Chapter 84
Victoria had finally leveled out emotionally and looked up at Maxwell, "Maxwell, I'm fine; don't worry about me."
Before they arrived, Tracy had given Maxwell a call, hinting at her plans for the evening in a roundabout way.
The VIP room was dead silent, even the music had stopped, and everyone could feel the chilly vibe rolling off Maxwell.
Rosemary sneered and looked away, thinking how shameless these two were, flaunting their love in front of the wife, and who knew what they did behind closed doors, probably no holds barred!
Thinking this, she was even more convinced that divorcing Maxwell was the best decision of her life. Maxwell noticed her expression, his eyes filled with an icy chill that was hard to miss. No one spoke, and a heavy atmosphere spread out from him, blanketing the room.
Darren, as the host, stood up under pressure to break the ice, "Mr. Templeton, please, take a seat."
He had set up this whole event to cozy up to Maxwell's good graces. Although things hadn't gone as planned, he had achieved his goal, sort of. He just wasn't sure if Maxwell was here for Rosemary or Victoria.
Earlier, he had bad-mouthed Victoria pretty harshly to win Rosemary over, and now he was worrying he might have backed the wrong horse. Just the thought made him break out in a cold sweat. He couldn't help but glance at Rosemary, only to catch an “Oh boy, you're done for” look from her.
Darren felt dizzy, wondering if he had not only backed the wrong horse but also misjudged Rosemary's status. He was screwed!
Victoria noticed that Maxwell's gaze was fixed on Rosemary and softly called out, "Maxwell."
Maxwell looked away, "Did the investment talks go well?"
A hurt look flashed across Victoria's face, her lips bitten with two clear marks. She shook her head, "I guess Rosemary doesn't want Darren to invest in our dance troupe."
Rosemary, who had planned to just watch the drama unfold, couldn't help but burst into laughter because of anger when she was suddenly blamed for everything.
She took a moment to recall that she hadn't said a word since Victoria arrived, nor had she interacted with Darren at all.
"Ms. Temple, you can't just be thick-skinned like that. Even national treasures have to perform some talent or act cute to get money. You think just by showing up, people should fall over themselves to hand you cash? They hesitate and they're targeting you? Did you dance your brains away?"
The first few remarks were just snarky, but the last one was a straight-up insult! Victoria's face turned red, but she prided herself on being above such things and couldn't lash out in public like Rosemary.
"Rosemary, there's no need for this. I'm not trying to steal Maxwell from you. He and I are just friends. Surely, just because he married you, he doesn't have to cut off all his female friends?"
Rosemary gave a cynical smile, "You could give that a try."
It was like a loud, humiliating slap across Victoria's face, making her already pale complexion turn completely white.
She turned to look at Maxwell. If this man had any bit of intention towards her, he wouldn't have stayed uninvolved with her for so long after her return.
Maxwell's eyes narrowed as he watched Rosemary pushing him away, anger bubbling up inside him. He managed to restrain himself and said coldly, "How much investment do you need? I'll handle the negotiations for you."
A smile appeared on Victoria's face, "Great."
Darren was already ashen; seeing Maxwell escort Victoria over, he made room like a walking corpse. He tried to suck up and ended up shooting himself in the foot.
The atmosphere in the room quickly livened up. Darren had come with the intention of getting on good terms with Rosemary, so the people he brought were naturally good at socializing.
The girl who had been talking to Rosemary whispered, "That woman reeks of desperation. Can’t Mr. Templeton sniff it out?"
Rosemary sighed, resting her chin on her hand, "He can smell it. He's just lovesick."
Men were experts at calling out fakes, but they always fell for that type.
With Maxwell there, no one dared to raise their voice, so even though Rosemary was sitting on the sidelines, she could still clearly hear the conversation on the other side.
Maxwell casually played with his glass, asking nonchalantly, "Darren, you think Victoria's dance isn't worth your investment?"
Previously, he had casually mentioned investing in the dance troupe, not really interested in such refinement, but faced with Maxwell's question, Darren could only tough it out, "Ms. Temple's dance is heavenly. It's an honor for me to invest. I'll have my secretary discuss the details with Tracy tomorrow and sign the contract!"
Although Maxwell was talking to Darren, his gaze was fixed on Rosemary, who was chatting idly with someone next to her, not sparing a glance in his direction, seemingly unbothered by him showing up to support Victoria.
Darren, anxious for Maxwell's response, saw the man's face turning stormy in the blink of an eye, the temperature around them plummeting.
He said coldly, "In that case, let’s sign now."
It was almost like the unspoken words “I don't believe you” were written all over his face, and this was in front of everyone.
Victoria was inwardly pleased but didn't show it. She gently shook Maxwell's arm, "Maxwell, maybe tomorrow? I think Darren's here for a family gathering, and the contract needs to go through the legal department, so it can't be rushed."
Maxwell, dressed casually in a light sweater and a dark coat, didn't lose any of his tough, dominant aura, especially when Victoria mentioned a “family gathering”, Darren distinctly felt Mr. Templeton's icy glare. All rights © NôvelDrama.Org.
He'd got confused. Did he seriously tick off Mr. Templeton by just throwing a family shindig?
Maxwell said, "I'll have Harvey handle it. It won't take much time at all, right?"
Darren forced a smile, "No need to bother Mr. Holiday with such a small contract. I'll get someone from legal on it right away."
Yeah right, had Harvey deal with it? He'd probably end up losing his shirt! Darren whipped out his phone to call the company's legal department. Maxwell glanced over to where Rosemary had been, but she was gone.
Victoria followed his gaze, "I just saw Rosemary step out to take a call. You wanna go look for her?"
Before Maxwell could respond, Tracy, exasperated and right in front of him, said, "Victoria, you're too kind-hearted. Have you already forgotten how Rosemary treated you just now?"