That was the danger Matthew had failed to anticipate.
Audrey did not need to destroy him.
She only needed to stop protecting him from questions.
Diana folded her hands.
“The personal relationship is not my concern,” she said.
“The classification of certain expenses may be.
The relevant records are preserved.”
Matthew’s mistress took a step away from him.
He noticed immediately.
“Don’t,” he muttered.
She stared at him.
“You said the apartment was yours.”
Another silence.
Audrey had not known that part.
Matthew’s eyes closed for a fraction of a second.
The mistress seemed to understand from everyone’s faces that she had just supplied a piece of information he had not wanted spoken aloud.
“I thought—” she began.
“Stop talking,” Matthew snapped.
Several guests flinched.
Audrey saw the woman recoil.
There it was again: the instant cruelty that appeared whenever Matthew could no longer control the room.
For years Audrey had interpreted his certainty as strength.
Now she could see what sat underneath it.
Fear of losing possession.
Of a deal.
Of a reputation.
Of a person.
Matthew turned back to Audrey.
“So this is what you’ve been doing while I’ve been working? Building a case against your husband?”
“You told me you were working.”
His face flushed.
“I built your company.”
Audrey’s fingers tightened around the folder.
That sentence hurt differently.
Clark Designs had begun with Matthew’s money.
Audrey had never denied that.
For years, whenever he was pleased with her success, he called the investment proof that he had always believed in her.
When he was angry, the language changed.
Then it became his company.
His generosity.
His permission.
He had said it privately before.
Never in front of this many people.
“You gave Clark Designs its seed capital,” Audrey said.
“Exactly.”
“As a documented loan.”
Matthew hesitated.
Audrey continued.
“A loan the company repaid in full four years ago.
Diana verified every payment.
You have no ownership interest in Clark Designs.
You haven’t for years.”
Brenda’s mouth curved despite herself.
Matthew looked toward Diana.
She gave him nothing.
He tried another direction.
