New beginning: Billionaire love story

Alexander Harris was not in a particularly good mood after his call with Claire. His conversation with her had been tense, to say the least, and the pressure from the situation involving Claudia Wright was really starting to weigh on him. As soon as he was back in his car, he didn't waste time. He grabbed his phone and dialed Claudia's number, the edge in his voice sharp even before she answered.

Claudia was lounging in bed, flipping through a magazine when her phone buzzed. Glancing at the screen, she saw Alexander's name and rolled her eyes. "Here we go," she muttered to herself before answering. "What now, Alexander?" she said, her tone playful, expecting yet another lecture. But Alexander wasn't playing.

"You need to make an apology video," he said, straight to the point, his voice firm and cold. "And I expect a handwritten apology letter. Post them both on your social media, and send the letter to me as well."

Claudia sat up straight, her magazine forgotten. "Wait, what?" she scoffed, the disbelief clear in her voice. "That's too much, Alex. You're overreacting. I didn't ruin anything. All I did was show up and maybe interrupt a bit, but it wasn't like I crashed the whole Q&A session. I've told you this a thousand times!"

Alexander's voice didn't soften. "I don't care how many times you've said it, Claudia. You started this mess, and now you're going to clean it up."

"I started it?" she snapped. "I didn't realize attending a public event was a crime. It wasn't even that serious! The audience loved me."

Alexander's patience was hanging by a thread. "Loved you? Are you kidding me? The whole thing turned into a circus after you showed up. It's not about what you think happened, it's about how it looks to everyone else. You made a scene, Claudia, and now you have to fix it." Claudia was fuming. "You're acting like I set the place on fire or something! It was just a little Q&A, Alex. Lighten up!"

"Lighten up?" Alexander repeated, his tone icy. "Let me make this clear. If you don't do this, if you don't apologize and make things right, I'm terminating the contract between Solstice Vineyard and Harris Hotel. End of story."

That hit Claudia hard. Her grip tightened on the phone, knuckles turning white as she stood up from her bed. "You can't do that," she hissed, pacing back and forth. "You signed the contract, remember?"

"There's a termination clause," Alexander shot back without hesitation as if he'd been waiting for her to bring it up. "The one about disputes or disagreements between the parties involved. I can pull the plug if I want to."

Claudia cursed under her breath. That clause. She'd added it herself, thinking it would protect her from any shady moves Alexander might pull. She never imagined it would be used against her like this. She pressed her lips together, trying to think of a way out. Alexander's voice cut through her thoughts again. "It's up to you, Claudia. You can either make the apology or watch the deal fall apart."

She glared at the floor, her heart racing. There was no way she was going to let him win this, but right now, her options were limited. He had her cornered, and she knew it.

"Fine," she snapped, her voice dripping with resentment. "I'll do it. But this is ridiculous, Alex. You're blowing this way out of proportion."

"That's for you to think about later. I want the video and the letter posted before noon tomorrow," Alexander said, his tone not leaving any room for negotiation. "And don't even think about missing the deadline, because you know exactly what will happen if you do." Before Claudia could throw another retort, the line went dead. She stared at her phone in disbelief, the silence ringing in her ears. With a frustrated growl, she tossed the phone onto the couch, sinking back onto the bed, and fuming.

"He wants to play games, huh?" she muttered to herself, glaring at the ceiling. "Fine. Let's play."

Claudia Wright leaned back in her chair, a mischievous grin spreading across her face as she picked up her phone. She had an idea that would hit Alexander Harris right where it hurt, and she wasn't wasting any time.

With a flick of her wrist, she dialed a familiar number. Her secretary, a sharp and efficient woman named Juliette, picked up on the first ring, her voice crisp and professional as always.

"Bonjour, madame. How can I assist you?" Juliette's tone was as smooth as the finest wine from Solstice Vineyard.

Claudia leaned forward, her voice dripping with playful menace. "Juliette, darling, I need you to do something for me. I want you to limit the stock of our Solstice Vineyard wine at Harris Hotel. Make it very limited, you know? Just enough so they run out and start to panic." There was a brief pause on the other end. "Ah, madame, you want them to run out of wine?"

Claudia's grin widened. "Exactly. Alexander needs a little reminder

that business isn't always as smooth as he thinks it is. He threatened me, Juliette. Me! Poor man didn't even bother reading the full contract. There's a little loophole inthere, just waiting to make things interesting."

Juliette laughed softly, understanding the game. "And what else, madame?"

"Oh, one more thing," Claudia added with a wicked gleam in her eye. "Find me any footage you can of Alexander... not being his best self know he has a temper, and I'm sure there's something out there showing him lashing out at his employees. He can be quite the brute when things don't go his way."

Juliette's voice turned serious. "I'll start looking immediately. I'm sure there's something we can find. Monsieur Harris does have a reputation."

"Perfect. I want him to feel the pressure, just like he made me feel it. Business is business, after all. If he wants to play rough, well, I'll show him rough." Claudia's grin was positively wicked now, like a cat toying with its prey. "Let me know as soon as you've got something."

Juliette assured her she'd get to

work right away, and with that, the call ended. Claudia placed her phone down on the table and leaned back, satisfied. This was going to be fun. Alexander might have thought he could intimidate her, but he had no idea what he was dealing with. He'd learn soon enough.

The next morning, things took an unexpected turn for Claire Peterson. She had just settled into her office, her mind preoccupied with the mountain of paperwork she needed to get through, when her phone rang. It was her lawyer, David.

"Good morning, Claire," David greeted her, his voice steady but with an undertone of urgency. "I wanted to let you know that Lisa has been discharged from the hospital."

Claire shot up from her desk as she did not expect to be that fast. "What? Already??"

David paused before answering. "Physically, yes. But Claire, I need to be honest with you. I overheard some things while I was at the hospital, talking to the nurses. Lisa... well, she may not be in her right mind."

Claire blinked in confusion. "What do you mean, not in her right mind? What exactly did you hear?"

David sighed on the other end of the line. "The doctors and nurses were talking. Apparently, she's been... acting erratically. Saying strange things, behaving unpredictably. It's just what I overheard, but I thought you should know." Claire pressed her lips together, pacing back and forth in her office. "So you're saying it's not a good idea for me to visit her?"

"I wouldn't recommend it," David replied cautiously. "At least not right now. There's something off, Claire. I'll keep digging into this, but for now, just be careful."

Claire exhaled sharply, feeling a headache creeping in. This was the last thing she needed. Lisa had always been unpredictable, but this sounded more serious. "Alright, David. Thanks for letting me know. Keep me updated on everything." "Will do," David said before hanging up.

Claire dropped her phone onto her desk and rubbed her temples. What in the world was Lisa up to now?noveldrama