The Billionaire's Secret Quartet

Chapter 1419
“I agree. Go ahead with your plan, George said, clapping Alaric on the shoulder with a reassuring thud.
*The Reeds have really thrown you a lifeline in business. Try not to burn bridges with them,” Michael reminded Alaric before he
left. After casting a meaningful glance at Hertha, he made his exit.
One by one, the rest of the stakeholders filtered out of the room.
At the conference room door, only Hertha and Alaric remained.
The once bustling space quieted down, and the air seemed to thicken with an odd tension that made Hertha feel uneasy, her
heartbeat picking up pace.
“Um, I actually...”
“Sorry you had to see that circus, Alaric cut in before she could continue, his normally carefree eyes clouded with a certain
gravity.
The roguish charm that usually danced in his eyes seemed to have dimmed, leaving him looking decidedly deflated.
He was apologizing to Hertha for having to witness such an unbecoming scene.
He was frustrated with himself, too. Anyone could’ve seen him in that state, but the last person he wanted to be seen like that by
was Hertha.
And yet, she had witnessed it.
Alaric felt as if his pride had been dragged through the mud, and he couldn’t bear to face Hertha.
After that apology, he turned to leave.
Hertha stood stunned, her mouth agape, struggling to reconcile the image of the embarrassed, guilt–ridden man before her with
the flamboyant, carefree Alaric she knew.
The nonchalance that once defined him was now overshadowed by restraint.
And that restraint was heart–wrenching to see.

Snapping back to reality and noticing Alaric walking away, Hertha hastily called out, “Alaric, I need your help with something.”
Alaric stopped in his tracks, his hands clenching at his sides, but he didn’t turn around.
At that moment, Alistair hurried over. He noted Alaric’s troubled expression and Hertha standing behind him near the conference
room door.
Alistair sensed trouble brewing. Alaric had been in a meeting today, and it wouldn’t have been the first time Georgia had caused
a scene in the boardroom.
This time, Hertha may have stumbled upon it, and Hertha was the one person Alaric cared about the most.
“Mr. Falconer, I apologize, I told the reception to let Ms. Kensington up. I intended for her to wait in your office. I didn’t expect her
to be at the conference room door,” Alistair apologized, bowing slightly in acknowledgment of his mistake. He may have really
messed up this time.
Alaric lifted his hawk–like eyes and said sternly to Alistair, “Go attend to your business!”
Alistair looked up in surprise, hardly able to believe that Mr. Falconer wasn’t holding him accountable for his blunder! The relief
was so sudden that Alistair almost couldn’t believe it.
“What, you want to forfeit all your holidays?” Alaric asked.
“No, no, I’m on it right away. Have a good day, Mr. Falconer, I’ll vanish,” Alistair quickly responded, throwing a glance at Hertha
before hurrying off.
He had dodged a bullet with Mr. Falconer, and it was all thanks to Hertha. Had it been any other day, a single mistake could have
cost him his vacation for half a year.
Hertha stepped up to Alaric, tilting her head back to meet his strikingly handsome face. She crossed her arms and with a teasing
smile, “Who would’ve thought that the free–spirited second son of the Falconer family, the lord of Sapphire Skyline, would find
corporate life so stifling?”
Seeing the amusement in her expression, Alaric’s already embarrassed demeanor grew colder, and with a voice tinged with
discomfort. he said, “Did you come all the way to Falconer Group just to get a laugh at my expense?“