Married To The Billionaire Alpha King-Chapter 70 - isn’t something I do

70

~Lira’s POV

I held up my hands in mock surrender, smiling. "I’m not playing. I just... have an idea. But I wanted to see you first, in person. Figured it would be easier to explain without yelling over the phone."

He studied me for a long moment, the silence stretching uncomfortably. Finally, he leaned back and crossed his arms again. "You have my attention. But this better be worth it, Lira."

I smirked. "Oh, it will be. You’ll see. But first, tell me, how’s it feel to be back? Sitting at the same company, walking past all those people who thought you were finished?"

He shrugged, but I could see the pride flicker in his eyes. "It’s... fine. Not what I expected, but fine."

I leaned back in my chair, letting a slow smile curl over my lips. "Good. Because I think we can make it even better. Together."

He blinked at that, startled, a little unsteady. "Together? Don’t start with the... whatever this is."

I laughed softly, shaking my head. "No, not whatever. I just... want us both to benefit. There’s a way you can stay. Legally, permanently. But it’s going to take a little... cooperation."

His frown softened slightly, curiosity battling suspicion in his gaze. "I’m listening," he said cautiously, leaning forward.

I leaned back and let out a quiet sigh of relief, feeling the first flicker of control in the conversation. "Good. That’s all I ask....for now. We’ll talk details next. But you’ll have to trust me on this."

He didn’t answer immediately, just stared at me, and I could feel the tension, the anticipation, the mix of fear and hope hanging in the air between us.

Finally, he muttered, almost reluctantly, "Fine. I’ll hear you out. But I swear, Lira, if this goes wrong..."

I raised a hand, interrupting him with a grin. "Then we deal with it. But trust me... it won’t go wrong."

Ronan stared at me like he was trying to read my mind.

"What exactly are you planning?" he finally asked.

I smiled slowly, folding my arms on the table. "It seems Elara still has soft feelings for you. Why else would she allow you back into the company? Think about it. She could have easily refused. But she didn’t."

He frowned. "Lira... don’t start."

"I’m serious," I insisted. "If she didn’t still care for you, she wouldn’t even want you near the building. So why not use that?"

He scoffed, shaking his head. "Use what? Her being nice? That doesn’t mean anything."

"It means everything," I said sharply. "It means she’s vulnerable. And we can use that vulnerability to destroy her reputation."

He sat up straighter. "Lira."

I leaned forward. "Listen. All we have to do is expose her as Alpha Darlon’s wife who is cheating with you."

Ronan’s eyes widened. Then he laughed. Not a warm laugh. More like disbelief. "You’re still on that? After everything? You really think this nonsense will work?"

"It will," I said firmly. "It will work because people already think something is off. She came into that office like a queen. All polished, all perfect. People love tearing down someone who looks too perfect."

He rubbed his face, frustrated. "And what? We just yell that she’s cheating, and people will believe it? That’s childish."

I grinned. "We won’t just yell. We’ll show them."

He froze. "Show them?"

"Yes." I lowered my voice. "We dragged her. You... sleep with her. And then we record it. Once the video goes out, Elara is finished. Her reputation? Gone. Her marriage? Gone. Her position in the company? Gone. And I will walk back into that office and take back what’s mine."

He stared at me like I had grown two heads.

"Lira," he said slowly, "that’s insane. Do you hear yourself? Drugging her? Recording it? You think Alpha Darlon will let us breathe after something like that?"

"He doesn’t have to know it was us," I snapped.

"He will know." Ronan leaned over the table, lowering his voice. "And he won’t just fire us. He’ll kill us. You know the kind of man he is."

I swallowed, but lifted my chin. "Sometimes you take risks. If you want something badly enough, you take the risk."

"No," he said firmly. "Not that kind of risk. I’m not ruining my life for your obsession."

My hand tightened around my glass. "So you’re backing out?"

"Yes," he said. "I’m not doing this. I’m not drugging anyone. I’m not recording anything. I’m not stupid."

I laughed quietly. "Then I guess you’re okay with losing your job. Again."

His eyes narrowed. "Lira..."

"I’ll report you," I said calmly. "For the embezzlement you committed last year. And not the small one everyone knows about. The real one. The big one. The one that would bury you."

He stiffened. "You wouldn’t."

"I would," I said softly. "And you know I have the files. The emails. The transfers. If I hand those over, not only will the company throw you out, but the authorities will step in too. And when they start digging, they’ll realize the amount missing was way more than what you pretended it was."

Ronan stared at me, breathing hard.

I watched him. I could tell he was weighing everything. His pride, his fear, his hatred for me... and his hatred for losing.

Finally, he muttered, "You’re insane."

"And you’re cornered," I replied. "So choose."

He clenched his jaw. "This will blow up in our faces."

"It won’t," I whispered. "Not if we do it right."

He shook his head slowly, looking exhausted. "What exactly do you want from me right now?"

"I want you to agree," I said. "I want you to say you’re in."

He stared down at the table for a long moment, then dragged a hand over his face.

"This is the last time I let you pull me into anything," he said bitterly.

A small smile crept over my lips. "So... you agree?"

He didn’t look at me when he answered. "Yes."

My heart leaped. I sat back, satisfied. "Good. Because I’m not letting Elara take everything from me. Not when it all should have been mine."

Ronan looked up at me, finally. His eyes were cold. Tired. Resigned.

"This better work, Lira," he said quietly. "Because if it doesn’t... we’re dead."

I shrugged, pretending the fear crawling in my stomach wasn’t real. "Then we just have to make sure it works."

He exhaled slowly. "What’s the next step?"

I leaned forward, lowering my voice again.

"We plan."

"Good," I said quietly, leaning back in my chair. "You finally came to your senses."

Ronan let out this rough breath, the kind someone gives when they’ve already lost but are pretending they still have a choice. "Don’t start," he muttered. "Just tell me what you’re expecting from me. Clearly, you already have a whole plan mapped out."

I tilted my head. "Not a whole plan. Just... enough."

He scoffed and rubbed his temples as if I was giving him a headache. "You’re unbelievable, Lira. You really are. Every single time I think I’ve seen the worst of you, you manage to dig a bit deeper."

"That’s because I don’t stop," I said, shrugging lightly. "Giving up isn’t something I do."

He scoffed and rubbed his temples as if I was giving him a headache. "You’re unbelievable, Lira. You really are. Every single time I think I’ve seen the worst of you, you manage to dig a bit deeper."

"That’s because I don’t stop," I said, shrugging lightly. "Giving up isn’t something I do."