Chapter 11 Strangled by Jealousy
Briar's POV
Sienna's voice cut through. "Mr. Stone, Vance Botanicals is in such terrible shape right now that they can barely keep their doors open. How can they possibly be considered in the same category as Montgomery Medical Group? You're not seriously letting this third-rate company participate just to make the numbers look better, are you?"
Kai glanced sideways at Lucian, who was now studying his phone screen with apparent disinterest, and then turned back to Sienna with a polite smile. "Apex makes its decisions based on innovation potential and market positioning, not just current financial performance. Both companies will receive equal consideration during the bidding process."
Owen practically lunged forward and grabbed Kai's hand, shaking it with enthusiasm. "Mr. Stone, you really do have excellent judgment! I promise you Vance Botanicals will not let you down!"
Kai extracted his hand carefully and nodded. "Save the promises for the presentation."
I stepped forward quickly before Owen could embarrass us further. "Thank you for this opportunity, Mr. Stone. We'll prepare our proposal carefully."
Devon moved in smoothly and put his hand on Sienna's shoulder. "Congratulations, Miss Vance. May the best company win."
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The moment we were outside the conference room and the door had closed behind us, my legs nearly gave out and I had to lean against the wall to keep myself upright. My brain was a mess.
I looked at Owen and realized with some surprise that I didn't want to strangle him anymore. He had actually tried to help me back there, even if his execution had been absolutely terrible. "Go find your cousin. This is a good opportunity and we can't waste it. Even if we got the bidding qualification from Apex, taking business away from Montgomery is going to be nearly impossible without serious advantages."
Owen's eyes widened and nodded. "You're right. I'll go find him right now." He turned and practically ran down the hallway toward the exhibition area.
I sat down on one of the benches and stared at nothing for a long moment. My phone buzzed and I pulled it out to see a message from Lily: [Alpha Julian's car has been parked outside the main entrance for almost half an hour. He's waiting for you.]
I forced myself to stand up and walk toward the exit. I pushed through the glass doors and stepped out and immediately spotted Julian's black Mercedes parked across the street.
I was about to step off the curb when someone called my name. "Briar!"
I turned and saw a young man jogging toward me with a huge smile on his face and my brain took a second to place him before the memory clicked into focus. This was the kid I'd helped a few weeks ago when I'd found him cornered in an alley by a group of thugs who were calling him a bastard and threatening to teach him a lesson.
He ran up to me with his eyes practically glowing with excitement. "Briar, it really is you! I've been wanting to find you to say thank you!"
Lucian appeared behind him, walking at a more measured pace, and his eyebrows rose slightly when he saw me. "So you were the one who helped Ash that day." His expression shifted into something more serious. "Thank you for helping him. I appreciate it."
I forced a smile. "It wasn't a big deal. Anyone would have done the same thing."
Before any of us could say anything else, Kai came storming out of the building with his phone pressed to his ear and an annoyed expression on his face. He spotted Lucian immediately and walked over. "The herbal tea you ordered last time was absolutely terrible. Every single client who tried it complained. Replace it immediately."
Sienna and Devon came out right behind him and I heard Sienna whisper to her brother, "So he's just a purchasing assistant. What a waste of a good face."
Lucian's head turned slowly toward Sienna and his expression went flat and cold. "Miss Montgomery, I suggest your brother get you a muzzle. The way you snap at everyone you meet, you're going to bite the wrong Alpha someday and get your fangs pulled out."
Sienna's face flushed dark red and she took a step forward but Devon grabbed her arm and pulled her back toward their car.
I stared at Lucian and said before I could stop myself, "You're everywhere lately. How do you keep showing up at exactly the right moment?"
Ash jumped in immediately. "My brother's company isn't doing very well so he's been taking all kinds of side jobs to help support me!"
Lucian shot his brother a look that clearly said shut up and then turned back to me with a smirk. "You're one to talk. You're so desperate now that you're making up stories about glowing sedatives to trick investors. Do you really have any room to judge my career choices?"
I felt my face heat. But then an idea occurred to me. "Since Apex needs to replace their tea supplier anyway, why don't you consider working with Vance Botanicals? We specialize in herbal products. Small steady contracts like that add up over time."
Lucian tilted his head slightly. "You're really trying to turn every conversation into a sales pitch, aren't you?"
"I'm trying to survive," I said flatly.
My peripheral vision caught movement across the street and I saw Julian's car door opening. My heart rate spiked immediately and every muscle in my body tensed. "I have to go. Think about the tea contract."
I didn't make it three steps before Julian was out of the car and crossing the street and his hand closed around my upper arm hard. He yanked Lucian's jacket off my shoulders and threw it on the ground and then the torn back of my dress was completely exposed. Julian stripped off his own suit jacket and draped it over my shoulders, pulling the sleeves around to tie them tightly at my throat. His fingers pressed against my windpipe and he leaned in close. "Who tore it?"
My mind went blank with panic. "I did it myself. I was moving some boxes at the office and it caught on something sharp."
I took a step backward but his hand was still gripping my shoulder. "I need to get back to the office. If you have something to say, you can say it here and then I'm leaving."
Julian's expression went dark and before I could react, he grabbed both my shoulders and spun me around, slamming my back against the car door hard enough to knock the air out of my lungs. One of his hands locked around my waist and the other came up to wrap around my throat and he pressed his full weight against me.
His fingers tightened slowly and I felt my airway closing and my vision starting to narrow at the edges. "You threw my gift in the trash at the auction and crawled into another man's arms. Now you're walking around wearing his clothes. Do you think I won't actually hurt you, Briar?"
I couldn't breathe and couldn't speak and my hands came up automatically to claw at his wrist but he didn't even seem to notice. Tears leaked out of the corners of my eyes from pure physical reflex and my lungs burned and screamed for air.
Then suddenly the pressure disappeared and Julian's body was yanked away from me and I heard the sharp crack of knuckles connecting with bone.
I collapsed against the car, sliding down until I was sitting on the ground with my back pressed against the door, gasping and choking and trying to pull air back into my lungs.
Lucian was standing over Julian with his fist still clenched and his eyes cold and furious. Julian's head had snapped to the side from the force of the punch and there was already a red mark blooming across his cheekbone.
Julian's driver lunged forward but Lucian moved faster, catching the man's arm and twisting it behind his back before sweeping his legs out from under him and dropping him face-first onto the pavement.
Lucian looked down at Julian with an expression of pure contempt. "The great heir of Shadowmoor Pack, and this is all you can do? Beat up women who can't fight back?"