Billionaire Woman Went to a Party Dressed Poor—Everyone Rejected Her Except a Kindhearted Single Dad
Chapter 7
Victoria doubled security.
Daniel hated it.
“There are two men outside the house.”
“Three.”
“You’re proving my point.”
“They’re protecting you.”
“They make me feel like a prisoner.”
Victoria softened.
“I know.”
Daniel looked at her.
“Why are you still working with the board?”
“Because if I leave, they win.”
“They’re threatening Lily.”
“I won’t let them.”
“You can’t control everything.”
Victoria went quiet.
That was true.
For the first time, she wondered whether the marriage had put Daniel and Lily in greater danger.
“I’ll end this,” she said.
“How?”
“I’ll sell.”
Daniel stared.
“Your company?”
“Yes.”
“All of it?”
“If I sell, they stop.”
He shook his head.
“You don’t believe that.”
“What?”
“You’re not afraid of losing the company.”
Victoria looked at him.
“Then what am I afraid of?”
“Losing what the company means.”
She didn’t answer.
Daniel continued.
“Your father built it.”
“Yes.”
“You think selling it means losing him again.”
Victoria looked away.
Daniel was right.
Her father had died when she was twenty-nine.
He left her the company.
But he had also left her one instruction.
Never let the Sterling name become more important than the people behind it.
She had forgotten that.
Maybe the marriage had reminded her.
The next morning, Victoria asked Daniel to visit the headquarters.
Employees stared.
Rumors spread instantly.
“The husband is here.”
“He looks normal.”
“He doesn’t even wear designer clothes.”
Daniel whispered:
“I hate this place.”
Victoria laughed.
They entered the executive floor.
Her CFO greeted them.
“Mrs. Sterling.”
“Victoria.”
“Yes.”
She looked around.
“This company feels different.”
“How?”
“Cold.”
The CFO smiled.
“Success often does.”
Daniel frowned.
During the meeting, an employee quietly approached Victoria.
“Can I speak privately?”
Victoria nodded.
The employee revealed that company funds were being diverted.
Not by the board.
By a subsidiary.
Millions had disappeared.
Victoria demanded records.
The CFO resisted.
Daniel watched.
“Why don’t you give her the documents?”
The CFO looked at him.
“This doesn’t concern you.”
Daniel replied:
“She owns the company.”
“So?”
“She asked.”
The CFO reluctantly handed over the files.
Victoria reviewed them.
One name appeared repeatedly.
A private investment firm.
Blackwell Capital.
Her aunt Margaret’s company.
Victoria looked at Daniel.
“The takeover isn’t the problem.”
“What is?”
“She has been draining the company before selling it.”
“Why?”
“To make it cheaper.”
Daniel shook his head.
“Then we stop her.”
Victoria smiled faintly.
“That simple?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“Find out where the money goes.”
Daniel was right.
The trail led through six shell companies.
Eventually, it ended at a property development fund.
And that fund owned the building where Daniel’s maintenance company had been based for fifteen years.
Daniel stared.
“My office?”
Victoria nodded.
“She’s trying to force your company into bankruptcy.”
“Why?”
“Because your maintenance system is one of the few things preventing her from controlling the hotel’s operating contracts.”
Daniel understood.
This wasn’t just about Victoria.
Her aunt was targeting everyone who stood between her and control.
Including him.
That night, Daniel found Victoria sitting alone.
“You okay?”
“No.”
He sat beside her.
“You don’t have to do this alone.”
She looked at him.
“That’s becoming a problem.”
“What?”
“I like having you around.”
He smiled.
“Sounds serious.”
“It is.”
Then she looked away.
“Because this was supposed to be fake.”
Daniel was silent.
Neither knew what to say.
