Chapter 251 Chapter 251
She only gave him that icy stare because she was hurt and wanted him to feel the weight of losing her. But deep down in her dorm room, she must have been waiting for him to come back begging.
As for that Nicholas bloke... Edward scoffed inwardly. He was just a pawn, a handsome man she’d quickly hooked up with just to provoke him and make him jealous. Edward thought he knew her very well. Caroline wasn’t the sort to change her mind and give herself to another man so easily.
With the heady hope of a reconciliation, Edward’s heart raced. Excitement had replaced the destructive anger of mere minutes ago.
He couldn’t wait another second. “João Miguel, call the best florist in São Paulo. Order 999 roses and send them immediately to her campus in Araraquara. Oh, and make sure they’re pink roses. She loves pink roses.”
João Miguel was a little surprised by the drastic change in mood and the urgency of the instructions, but he nodded quickly, jotting it down on his tablet. “Yes, President Collins. Would you like me to attach a card signed with your name?”
Edward pondered for a moment, a confident smile appearing. “Not now. She… she’ll know it’s me.” Ask the florist to deliver an extravagant bouquet to her every day at the same time. As soon as I sort out my current ‘mess’, I’ll go there in person to beg her forgiveness on my knees, if necessary.
João Miguel nodded, understanding perfectly. — Yes, President Collins. I’ll arrange everything immediately.
The ‘mess’ Edward wanted to sort out was, obviously, the definitive and irrevocable end to his fake engagement to Claire.
João Miguel was immensely pleased with this. Of the two sisters, he had always far preferred the first fiancée. Caroline was elegant, well-mannered and treated the staff with respect.
The current ‘Miss Ford’, on the other hand, had a dreadful temper behind the scenes. Claire always came across as arrogant, spoilt and demanding when interacting with the company’s staff. She hadn’t even officially married Edward yet, but she was already walking the corridors of StarColi acting as if she owned the empire, shouting at make-up artists and assistants.
João Miguel had been fed up with her for a long time. That was exactly why he had gone to great lengths — and used his own contacts at the hospital — to uncover the truth about the pregnancy hoax. He wanted to bring her down.
João Miguel bowed and strode out of the office to carry out his orders.
He had been gone less than a minute when someone knocked frantically on the door.
Edward was holding his mobile, the screen open on Caroline’s blocked contact, wondering whether to send a message, when he heard the urgent knocking. “Come in.”
The door opened and StarColi’s Head of Public Relations entered, sweating coldly.
“President Collins.” The manager greeted him, his voice tense.
Edward placed his mobile on the mahogany desk, his expression turning serious again. “What is it now?”
The PR manager swallowed hard, unsure how to break the news without being hit by a flying ashtray. “Sir… chaos has broken out. There’s devastating news about Miss Claire Ford again. Someone has leaked a complete dossier onto social media and the biggest gossip sites. The post proves that she posted anonymously on the university forum to slander her own sister with lies about an abortion. The private account she used was exposed after professional hackers traced the IP address straight to the Ford mansion.”
The manager took a deep breath, fearing for his own life. “And worse, President… that same person has publicly revealed that Miss Claire came between you and your ex-fiancée. The entire internet now knows she is the mistress who ruined your ten-year relationship. The situation is spiralling out of control. Social media is flooded with the original post. Several media outlets and news portals have already contacted our press office demanding a statement.”
The PR manager wiped his brow with a handkerchief. “If this isn’t contained immediately, the impact on Miss Claire’s image will be irreversible. And, President Collins… your name is also being dragged through the mud in the post. What would you like the crisis team to do?”
Naturally, the PR department would not dare issue a statement involving the boss’s fiancée (and the boss himself in a cheating scandal) without direct orders.
Edward’s face, which had previously glowed with romantic hope, darkened in a storm of pure disgust and hatred. “You said she posted anonymously to slander her own sister?!”
The PR manager was somewhat taken aback by the focus of the question. He blinked, confused.
In the manager’s mind, Edward’s first reaction, as a lovesick fiancé, would be to ask if Claire was all right or to demand that the legal team take down the hackers to protect her.
Who would have thought the boss’s first concern would be to confirm whether she had actually attacked the ex-fiancée?
The manager had no idea of the drastic shift in feelings that had taken place over the last ten minutes in that office, but he replied promptly: “Yes, sir. The IP evidence is irrefutable. She orchestrated a cyberattack against Miss Caroline.”
“Did you see that post with your own eyes?”
“...Yes, sir. It’s everywhere.”
“Send me the link to my computer. Now.” Edward narrowed his eyes, his voice hissing like a venomous snake.
The manager thought Edward wanted to analyse the post carefully before deciding what defence strategy the agency would adopt to save Claire, so he quickly grabbed the tablet and sent the link directly to the President’s screen.