She Rejected The Heir. I Married Him. Chapter 07
Cassian’s retaliation hit harder than I’d expected.
The day after Sienna spread her rumors through the private club chats, the IRS and securities regulators opened investigations into suspected accounting fraud at Carlisle Holdings.
At the same time, Voss Capital submitted the complete evidence to the audit committee and regulators and publicly disclosed a short position against the company.
Over three consecutive trading days, Carlisle Holdings lost seventy percent of its stock value and teetered on the edge of bankruptcy.
The Ashfords were doing no better.
The suspension of the Orion project triggered a chain reaction.
Several major projects Adrian had been so proud of ground to a halt.
Collection letters from banks and default notices from suppliers flooded Ashford Design Group’s legal inbox.
That evening, I showered and settled onto the bedroom couch with a book.
Cassian came in and tossed a file onto the table.
“The Carlisles’ bankruptcy liquidation is underway.”
He loosened his tie and approached me.
“Feel better?”
I closed my book and looked up.
“What if I say no?”
He chuckled, almost indulgently.
“Then we’re not done.”
“No laws need to be broken. No threats, either.”
“We only have to send their hidden audit papers, altered records, and false reports to the right people. They’ll destroy themselves.”
He leaned over me, bracing his hands on either side of the couch and caging me in his shadow.
He was overwhelming, but I didn’t dislike it.
“Adrian cornered you today.”
It wasn’t a question.
“Yes.”
“What did he say?”
“That I’m heartless. That I’ve changed.”
A cold look flashed through Cassian’s eyes.
“That’s all he’s got.”
“If he comes near you again, my attorneys will seek a restraining order. Security will document every instance of harassment.”
He delivered the ruthless words as calmly as anything else.
That was Cassian Voss.
He didn’t care about being reasonable. He protected what was his.
My phone rang.
There was no saved name on the screen, but I recognized Adrian’s private number.
I left it unanswered.
Cassian glanced at it.
“Answer.”
He straightened.
“Put it on speaker.”
I did as he asked.
“Mira…”
Adrian’s voice was almost unrecognizably hoarse. Loud voices filled the background, as if he were in a private lounge.
“Mira, I was wrong.”
It was the first time he’d said that to me in eight years.
“I know I was wrong. I shouldn’t have made you take her place. I shouldn’t have sided with Sienna.”
“Please ask Cassian Voss to leave my family alone.”
He sounded close to tears.
“Help me this once, and I’ll never speak to Sienna again. I promise.”
“I’ll marry you. I really will!”
Before I could react, Cassian laughed.
The sound was cold enough to cut.
The other end of the line went silent.
“Mr. Ashford,” Cassian said slowly.
“You’re offering to marry my wife in front of me.”
“Is your family not going under fast enough for you?”
Adrian sounded terrified.
“C-Cassian Voss…”
“This recording will go to Orion’s independent investigation committee tomorrow morning, along with the evidence of the altered documents.”
There was no warmth in his voice.
“The banks, the board, and the regulators can decide whether Ashford Design Group survives another day.”
“That’s what happens when you call business coercion love.”
He ended the call and looked at me.
“Feeling sorry for him?”
“No.”
I met his eyes.
“He makes me sick.”
Cassian studied me for two seconds, then reached out and brushed his thumb along my cheek.
“Mira. Your taste in men was terrible for those eight years.”
I didn’t pull away. I simply held his gaze.
“It was.”
“That’s why I chose the best this time.”
His thumb stilled.
The air between us seemed to stop moving.
His eyes darkened.