Chapter 47

Chapter 47
Avery maintained a completely innocent expression.

"Coffee's ready," she announced.

Chloe's lips curled into a pleased smile. She gave Avery a smug look.

"I'll take that..." she said, reaching for the coffee while contemplating how to make Avery's life difficult.

But everything went sideways in the next second.

With a quick flick of her wrist, Avery "accidentally" dumped the entire cup of steaming hot coffee onto Chloe's dress.

"Ouch!" Chloe shrieked, jumping to her feet.

Her pale yellow sundress instantly bloomed with a dark brown stain. The scalding liquid left angry red marks on her bare legs.

"Avery, have you completely lost your mind?" Chloe couldn't contain her rage anymore. Disgust twisted her features.

Meanwhile, Avery's expression remained perfectly calm. "Sorry about that. My hand slipped." She offered an apologetic smile that didn't reach her eyes, her tone devoid of any actual remorse.

This only fueled Chloe's anger further.

"You did that on purpose!" Chloe's face drained of color as her chest heaved with fury. She couldn't help but look toward Matteo, her expression crumbling into a wounded pout. "Mr. Ferrari, is this how your secretary treats your guests?"

"I think you need to get a handle on your staff. She's completely unprofessional!"

But Matteo had reverted to his usual cold demeanor.

"How I manage my employees isn't any of your concern," he stated flatly, his words carrying an intimidating weight.

Chloe felt like she was facing a dangerous predator. Indeed, Matteo had always been untamable—no one dared tell him what to do.

"I'm sorry, that's not what I meant. It's just that Avery went too far," Chloe backpedaled, genuinely upset. The coffee had been scalding hot, after all.

Tears welled in her eyes as she pressed on. "Mr. Ferrari, I'm fine, but if Avery is this clumsy with everyone, won't that reflect poorly on your company?"

Matteo remained unfazed. He even cast an amused glance at the coffee stain spreading across Chloe's dress.

"Avery already said it was an accident," he drawled, lounging back on the sofa and tilting his head as he studied her. "I'm sure you won't make a big deal out of it."

He hadn't expected Avery to deploy coffee as a weapon. He liked that about her. Perhaps the office needed a few more coffee machines.

"I—" Chloe couldn't find words to continue in Matteo's presence.

She shot Avery a venomous glare when she thought no one was looking, but had no choice but to swallow her anger.

"Of course I won't make a fuss," she managed, taking a deep breath. She knew today's interview was too important to derail over this incident.

"Excuse me, I need to change my clothes." With that, she left the reception room, coffee stain and all.

After Chloe's exit, Owen frowned at Avery. "You shouldn't be here in the reception room."

He assumed Matteo was deliberately tormenting Avery, treating her like a servant. After all, the Matteo Ferrari of office rumors was notoriously cruel.

What he didn't expect was Avery's complete lack of gratitude for his concern.

"I'm Mr. Ferrari's executive assistant. My presence here is perfectly normal," Avery replied coolly. "The real question is about you—is your company doing so badly that you've started working for Chloe's radio station now?"

She skillfully deflected his question back at him, her tone distant and annoyed.

"Of course not," Owen replied, catching the sarcasm in her voice.

Remembering his purpose for being there, he decided not to argue with Avery. Instead, he pulled out an elegantly wrapped gift box and respectfully presented it to Matteo.

"Mr. Ferrari, I sincerely apologize for what happened at the racetrack. I was completely out of line," he said earnestly.

His thoughts drifted to the Olympic uniform design project—a contract he couldn't afford to lose. It was the equivalent of the golden ticket in the design world.

"The reason for my visit today is to discuss our potential collaboration. As you know, our company has made quite a name for itself in recent years, having designed numerous—"

Gone was Owen's arrogance from the racetrack incident. Now he was all business, giving Matteo his carefully rehearsed pitch.

In truth, Owen hadn't wanted to accompany Chloe here to beg for Matteo's forgiveness. But his company was in serious trouble—their internal systems had been maliciously attacked, with bugs appearing constantly. Their stock was in freefall, causing devastating losses.

Without securing a major client soon, his company would face serious financial difficulties.

"Mr. Ferrari, this company represents years of hard work from both Avery and myself. I hope you'll reconsider your position," he added, trying to leverage his connection to Avery as a bargaining chip.

Matteo gave him a disinterested glance. "Is this supposed to be an apology?"

He'd recently had his assistant create numerous problems for Owen's company. Though he couldn't quite articulate why, Matteo had always followed his instincts.

The bottom line was that Owen irritated him. Especially after learning this idiot had been married to Avery—that knowledge had brought out Matteo's most vindictive impulses.

"I'm not big on forgiveness. A mistake is a mistake, and I don't need any gifts," Matteo said, ignoring the proffered box.

To someone of his status and wealth, even several million dollars would be meaningless.

"What about our partnership?" Owen pressed, still unaware that Matteo was behind his company's recent troubles.

He desperately needed this collaboration. "The national athletic uniforms are too large a project for any single company to handle. Our firm could—"

His pitch was cut short.

"I won't be working with your company," Matteo rejected him bluntly. "The fact that you keep someone as clueless as Chloe around shows your terrible judgment and taste."

Owen's face darkened with humiliation.

Having Avery witness his dressing-down made it that much worse, wounding his pride deeply. His embarrassment turned to anger as he rounded on her.

"Have you been badmouthing me to Mr. Ferrari? Is that why he's rejecting me?" Owen clenched his fists. "You might hate Chloe, but she's still your stepsister!"

Though he knew Avery had suffered at her stepmother's hands, Owen believed none of that was Chloe's fault. In his eyes, Chloe was pure-hearted and always looked out for his interests. Compared to her, Avery seemed heartless.

"I'm amazed that after all this time, you still blame me for your failures," Avery replied, her tone dripping with mockery. "Has it occurred to you that maybe Matteo rejected you because your company simply doesn't qualify for the partnership?"

"You—!" Owen's face turned ashen.

Avery's words cut like a knife, striking right at his insecurities. It was true—whether in company size or business standing, he was nothing compared to Matteo Ferrari.

"You're impossible," Owen seethed through gritted teeth.

"Am I wrong?" Avery kept her cool gaze fixed on him. "Owen, instead of questioning me, maybe you should reflect on your own shortcomings."

At that moment, Chloe returned, having changed into fresh clothes. Sensing the tension between Owen and Avery, she immediately sized up the situation.

She approached Owen, her voice honey-sweet as she soothed him. "Owen, why don't you wait outside? I'll handle this—the interview is the priority today."

Owen was already at his breaking point. He unclenched his fists and relaxed his posture.

As a parting shot, he deliberately placed his hand on Chloe's shoulder right in front of Avery. "I'll wait for you outside."

He'd expected to see Avery crushed by the gesture—in the past, his emotional manipulation had always hurt her deeply.

But now, her expression didn't change at all. It was as if their little display meant absolutely nothing to her.

That's not possible. She must be putting on a brave face.

With that thought, Owen stormed out of the reception room in frustration.

After his departure, Chloe put on an even sweeter smile. "Mr. Ferrari, shall we begin our interview now?"

She pointedly glanced at Avery. "To avoid unnecessary distractions, perhaps certain... redundant individuals should step out?"

Her challenging look toward Avery silently bragged about the one-on-one time she was about to have with Matteo.

Avery saw right through Chloe's intentions. An interview wasn't a date. She couldn't understand what Chloe was thinking.

Avery had planned to leave anyway—just looking at Chloe's face turned her stomach.

But before she could move, Matteo spoke: "Avery, stay."

The smile froze on Chloe's face.