Ditching Me for His 'Soulmate'? His Loss. Next Stop: My New Life novel Chapter 111

Chapter 4

The following morning, I arrived at the office promptly at 9 AM, only to find that both Lukas Clark and Farah White were conspicuously absent. It appeared that the confrontation from the previous night had been so exhausting that neither of them had managed to rise from their beds.

I settled into Lukas Clark’s executive chair, feeling a mixture of amusement and curiosity. With a calm demeanor, I began making a few phone calls, the soft hum of the office filling the room around me. About thirty minutes later, the key figures from both the Davis and Clark families started to trickle into the conference room, their faces a blend of concern and anticipation.

Only then did I deliberately pick up the phone and dial Lukas.

“Hey, darling,” I said, trying to keep my tone light but laced with a hint of teasing. “You mentioned you’d be working late at the office last night, but I came in this morning and you were nowhere to be found. Where are you?”

There was a brief pause on the other end, and I could tell Lukas had just been woken by my call. His voice was groggy at first, but he quickly gathered himself. “I stayed up all night working, so I was too tired this morning and ended up at a nearby hotel to catch some sleep.”

He quickly followed with a question, “Why are you at the office so early?”

I allowed a cold smile to settle on my lips. “Our families are here for a reconciliation meeting. There seem to be some issues with a few contracts, and everyone’s waiting in the conference room.”

“Alright, I’m on my way,” Lukas replied without hesitation.

No sooner had we hung up than Lukas arrived, slipping beside me with an affectionate smile. “Next time something like this happens, just call me directly. You don’t have to come in person.”

Despite his warm words, I noticed he was subtly positioning himself to block my view of the window, as if trying to shield me from something outside.

Shortly after Lukas’s arrival, Farah White quietly slipped into the room behind him. She lowered her head and buried herself at her desk, clearly hoping to avoid drawing attention to herself. I chose not to confront her directly, instead nodding toward the contract lying on my desk.

“There’s a discrepancy in the project and payment details here. Take a look,” I said calmly.

Before their arrival, the finance manager had already informed me that Farah White was responsible for drafting and signing all these contracts. The most glaring error was a misplaced decimal point in the payment figures—a small mistake with enormous consequences. If our company proceeded with the project under these terms, we wouldn’t just fail to turn a profit; we would be on the hook for over a hundred million in additional payments. Even canceling the contract would cost us tens of millions in penalties.

This was the so-called “achievement” Lukas had proudly boasted about at the annual meeting—Farah White’s handiwork.

Lukas leaned in to glance at the contract, and the color drained from his face almost immediately. His voice dropped to a harsh whisper. “Who drafted this? Bring them in here to explain!”

The finance manager glanced nervously at Lukas before responding, “Assistant White handled all the agreements—from negotiations to signing. You gave her full authority, and no one else was involved.”

I could see the tension ripple through Lukas’s forehead, veins bulging as frustration took hold.

I pressed my temples lightly and spoke slowly, “No wonder. She’s just an intern, yet the other party agreed to sign directly with her. She must have been looking for an opportunity to take advantage of us.”

Lukas shot me a quick, subtle glance before stepping closer and pinching my shoulder in a gesture that was both familiar and calculated.

My confidant nodded with understanding. “You can count on me, Miss Davis.”

The very next day, Lukas transferred the eighty million to my private account right on schedule.

As for me, I simply made a phone call to Mr. Wilson, the chairman of our business partner, and canceled the contract.

“Urja, I’ve watched you grow up. I wouldn’t have done this to anyone else,” Mr. Wilson said sincerely. “The problem was my subordinates failed to alert me in time. I owe you an apology.”

Mr. Wilson had started his business from nothing, and my father had supported him greatly. Their bond was more than just business; they were brothers in all but blood.

Because of this deep connection, our families had always been close. At one point, there had even been talk of arranging a marriage between me and Mr. Wilson’s only son, Cabot Wilson. But he was studying abroad at the time, and I was already captivated by Lukas, so the plan never materialized.

Later that afternoon, during the quarterly board meeting, both my parents and the Clarks were present. Lukas and I delivered our reports as usual, everything appearing normal on the surface.

Then, halfway through the meeting, everyone’s phones vibrated simultaneously. A video had been sent company-wide, showing Lukas Clark and Farah White kissing in a convenience store, then entering and leaving a hotel together.

The atmosphere in the room shifted instantly. The faces of both families darkened, the weight of the scandal settling heavily over us all.