From Neglected Wife to CEO’s Obsession novel Chapter 36

“What about you? I thought you had work stuff to deal with. Why are you at the hospital too?”

I tossed the question back at them with a light smile, letting my eyes sweep over both their faces—cool, but impossible to ignore.

Instantly, I got two very different reactions. One face was pure embarrassment, the other was annoyed but with this almost amused outsider vibe, like he was just here to watch the show.

Remy paused, his tall, lean frame shifting forward a little. His eyes flickered before he answered, “Julia’s neck injury looked pretty serious, so I brought her in to be checked. She’s not feeling great and couldn’t really help with you or Cindy.”

So his so-called urgent business wasn’t work at all—he was just here for Julia.

I rubbed my throbbing forehead, ready to give him a piece of my mind.

But Elliot chimed in first, calm as ever. His voice was cool and sharp. “Avery’s head injury is pretty bad. I brought her to get it checked out. She’s not feeling well, so she can’t really focus on her work.”

Remy’s eyes narrowed a little. The stories were basically identical, but Elliot’s tone had an edge to it. A flash of something dark crossed Remy’s face as he asked, “You look kind of unfamiliar. And you are...?”

I had to resist the urge to smack my forehead.

Everyone in Georgia Bay already knew Elite Tech had been bought out, and that the new boss, Mr. Swanson, had taken over. Yet Remy didn’t recognize the guy standing right in front of him? Maybe he’d gotten too used to being on top, or maybe he thought he could go toe-to-toe with Elliot, the industry legend.

Elliot didn’t even bother looking at him. He kept his eyes forward, voice tight and steady. “No need to check, we don’t know each other. Who are you?”

Just then, the elevator hit the ground floor. The four of us stepped out, but the tension followed.

“I’m her husband.”

“I’m her boss.”

Remy, ever quick on the uptake, switched gears the second he heard Elliot was my boss. His eyes flickered as he covered up his irritation, and he stuck out his right hand. “So you’re Mr. Swanson. Nice to meet you. Remy, president of Thompson Enterprises. I’ve been wanting to meet you—didn’t expect it to be here though.”

Julia, who’d been silent the whole time, naturally reached for the front passenger seat.

She did it so smoothly—like she’d done it a hundred times before.

Clearly, there was a lot between them that I hadn’t noticed.

Remy’s use of “let’s” was loaded, and he knew it.

Maybe I was staring a little too openly, because Remy finally seemed to realize what Julia was doing. His face darkened as he said something under his breath, and Julia, looking upset, got out and slid into the back seat.

“Julia gets carsick, so I let her sit up front on the way here.”

I rolled my eyes and shot back, “Don’t worry about it. With everyone watching, one front seat doesn’t matter. Let her sit up front—sooner or later, it’ll be hers anyway.” I gave him a quick, mocking smile, shrugged like it was nothing, and turned to get into Elliot’s car.