Chapter 3 A Costly Apology

Natalie was equally surprised.

She knew the project still needed final approval from headquarters, but no one had told her the CEO would personally attend the banquet.

Her gaze followed Dominick as he carried the contract toward a sofa tucked into the far corner of the hall and presented it to the young man sitting there.

Instead of taking the document right away, the man raised his eyes and scanned the crowded room until his gaze landed directly on her.

Natalie's heartbeat suddenly stumbled.

The man's features were sharp and striking, his eyes unreadable. More than that, he carried a quiet authority that made people instinctively take him seriously.

Natalie had noticed him earlier. Sitting alone in the corner, he was so ridiculously handsome that everyone around him seemed almost forgettable.

At the time, she had assumed he was a rising actor brought along by wealthy sponsors to make connections with investors.

She never would've guessed that he was actually the CEO of RL International.

So that was what a truly powerful CEO looked like.

Beside him, the other important guests at the banquet suddenly seemed like ordinary businessmen.

Damien finally took the contract and skimmed through it briefly. Then, he lifted his eyes and said something with a faint, knowing smile. A moment later, Dominick returned and said, "Mr. Elliott wants to speak with you."

Waylon swallowed hard as excitement surged through him.

This was the CEO of RL International, the very man nearly every powerful businessman in the room wanted to impress.

If he could establish a partnership with him, the Ashton family's business would rise to an entirely different level.

Wouldn't even Sainkiat's most influential figures have to treat him carefully once that happened?

Just imagining that made Waylon's pulse race.

Having grown so used to Natalie accompanying him everywhere, he started forward and said to her without even thinking, "Come with me."

Natalie's brows drew together slightly, but she followed anyway.

The moment they reached Damien, Waylon immediately put on his most flattering smile. "Mr. Elliott, I've heard so much about you. I've personally overseen this partnership from the beginning and made sure every detail was handled properly. It's a real honor that our proposal has earned your attention—"

Damien dropped the contract onto the floor before Waylon could continue. "Did you even read this?"

Waylon's expression stiffened. "Of... of course."

"And after reading it, you still thought this was acceptable?" Damien glanced at him coldly. "Is this the standard the Ashton Group considers professional?"

Panic flashed across Waylon's face as he hurriedly bent down and picked up the contract.

Sweat gathered along his forehead, but he didn't even bother wiping it away. Instead, he began flipping through the pages as fast as he could.

What exactly was wrong with the contract?

Hadn't everything been prepared according to what they had agreed on?

Damien lifted his glass and took a slow sip before speaking. "The financial projections in Appendix Three are seven percentage points different from the figures in your original proposal."

Waylon nearly lost his balance. He whipped around toward Natalie, anger and accusation blazing in his eyes. "How did that happen?"

Natalie blinked at him with innocent confusion. "I... I have no idea. Weren't you the one who personally finalized everything?"

Waylon immediately snapped, "You were the one who—"

A mocking laugh from Damien cut him off. "Interesting. The second a problem appears, your first instinct is to blame someone else. What an impressive sense of responsibility."

Waylon shut his mouth at once, not daring to say anything more.

Because he had wanted all the credit for himself, he had always arranged for Natalie to negotiate with Dominick while everything officially remained under his name.

Now that the contract had a problem, there was no way he could admit he hadn't even bothered reading it. No matter how furious he was, he had to accept the blame.

"This was my mistake. I sincerely apologize." Waylon lowered his head. "I hope you'll give me a chance to correct it, Mr. Elliott."

Damien merely swirled the wine in his glass slowly.

Still, the pressure radiating from him made his attitude obvious. He wasn't about to let the matter go easily.

Waylon drew in a slow breath, visibly forcing himself to make a painful concession. "To show our sincerity, the Ashton Group is willing to give up another ten percent on the deal."

Damien let out a humorless laugh and looked at him as though he had said something ridiculous. "RL International has plenty of companies willing to work with us. Why would I choose one that slips major inconsistencies into its contracts?"

Waylon's chest tightened.

Was Damien actually planning to walk away from the partnership entirely?

He couldn't let that happen!

The Ashton Group had already scaled back several other projects months ago just to concentrate its manpower and resources on securing this deal with RL International.

If everything collapsed now, the company wouldn't merely miss out on billions in expected profits. Every cent invested in the project over the past several months would be in vain.

His father and the shareholders certainly wouldn't let him off.

After weighing his options, Waylon swallowed his pride. "Mr. Elliott, please give me one more opportunity. If you're willing to continue this partnership, I'll accept whatever condition you set."

Damien lifted one brow. "Whatever I ask, you'll agree?"

"Yes," Waylon replied without hesitation.

Tension coiled through him as he waited to hear what Damien intended to demand from him.

Damien, however, remained silent. His attention drifted toward something nearby, and faint amusement appeared in his eyes.

Waylon followed his line of sight and immediately noticed a bottle of red wine.

An idea struck him at once. "I'll finish that entire bottle as my apology."

Damien said, "Don't bother. Forcing someone to drink can end badly, and I have no interest in being blamed if something happens to you."

Waylon hurriedly said, "No one's forcing me. I'm choosing to drink it myself to prove how sorry I am."

Before anyone could stop him, he snatched up the bottle, tipped his head back, and started drinking straight from it.

Vera hurried over to Natalie, concern flashing across her face. "Why are you just standing here? You know Waylon can't hold his liquor. Go over there and drink it for him!"

Natalie turned toward her. "Did you even think before opening your mouth?"

Vera's brows drew together. "What are you talking about? I'm telling you to go and help Waylon!"

Natalie quietly sighed.

Some people apparently needed even the most obvious things explained to them.

Keeping her voice low enough that only Vera could hear, Natalie said, "He's drinking because he's the one who made the mistake. The whole point is to prove to Mr. Elliott that he's taking responsibility. If I suddenly step in and drink for him, what do you think that'll look like?"

Vera stared at her in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Natalie nearly gave up. Clearly, subtle explanations were wasted on Vera. "It'll make Mr. Elliott look like he's intentionally humiliating Waylon. You'd be putting Mr. Elliott in an awkward position, and Waylon would probably suffer even more because of it."

Concern crept across Vera's face. "But if Waylon actually finishes that whole bottle, he's going to feel sick..."

She narrowed her eyes. "Wait. Are you only saying this because you don't want to drink for him? Is this just your excuse to avoid helping him?"

Natalie sighed inwardly again.

Even a direct explanation apparently wasn't enough for Vera to grasp something this simple.

Then again, it was true that she didn't want to help Waylon.

She was the one who had deliberately altered the contract figures in the first place.

There was absolutely no chance she would let months of her own hard work become a gift to a cheating bastard and the shameless woman clinging to him.

When Natalie still didn't move, Vera pressed her again, saying, "Hurry up and do something!"

Natalie immediately shot back, "You're the one who came here as his plus-one. Why don't you drink it for him?"

Vera fell silent for a moment. Then, she muttered, "Actually... maybe you're right. If either of us interferes now, it could make things even worse for him."

Meanwhile, with nearly everyone watching, Waylon was still forcing himself through the bottle.

His throat worked with every swallow while red wine leaked from the corners of his mouth and ran down onto his tailored suit, leaving one dark stain after another.