Chapter 9
Before Elise could dwell on the thought any longer, Juliet suddenly straightened, her eyes narrowing slightly as another piece of gossip came to mind.
"Oh."
She lifted her champagne glass, pointing it slightly toward the crowd.
"I just remembered something."
Amara turned toward her, already knowing that tone.
"What now?"
Juliet leaned her shoulder lightly against the railing, the corner of her lips curving into a knowing smile.
"Wendy and Roger seem to be getting a divorce."
Amara immediately shook her head.
"Nah..." She adjusted the bracelet around her wrist before looking back at Juliet. "They already reconciled."
Juliet blinked.
"Wait, they did?"
Amara nodded, swirling the champagne in her glass before taking a small sip.
"I saw them together yesterday." She lowered the glass and gave a casual shrug. "They looked perfectly fine. I honestly thought they'd worked everything out."
Juliet frowned, clearly unconvinced.
"No, I'm telling you—"
"Too late."
The deep masculine voice drifted into the conversation before she could finish.
All three women turned.
A tall man strode toward them with an easy confidence that seemed second nature.
One hand rested casually in the pocket of his perfectly tailored dark suit while the other loosely held a crystal glass of whiskey.
His dark, slightly wavy hair shifted in the sea breeze as he walked, and the neatly trimmed stubble along his jaw only added to the rugged handsomeness that had made him a recognizable face in business magazines for years.
There was a quiet warmth in his dark eyes that balanced the commanding presence he carried so naturally.
Elise recognized him immediately.
Elias Creed.
Owner of Apex Airlines.
She had never met him personally, but she had seen his face often enough to know exactly who he was. Whenever the financial news covered the country's most influential young billionaires, Xavier was almost always photographed alongside the same close-knit group of friends.
Elias Creed.
Cassian Han.
Lucius Frost.
And occasionally Maverick Bishop.
The media constantly speculated about their friendship, calling them an untouchable circle of billionaire businessmen who had built empires while remaining fiercely loyal to one another.
Seeing Elias walk over so naturally, Elise realized those reports hadn't been exaggerated.
The moment Amara saw him, her face softened.
"There you are," she said with an affectionate smile.
He stopped beside her naturally, his free arm slipped comfortably around her waist. Amara leaned into him without a second thought, resting a hand lightly against the front of his jacket before glancing back at Juliet.
Elias lifted his whiskey for a slow sip before looking at Juliet with an amused glint in his eyes.
"You're too late with the reconciliation news."
Amara frowned, turning her face toward him.
"What do you mean?"
Elias lowered his glass.
"The husband already has a girlfriend in Monaco."
The silence that followed lasted only a second.
Then—
"What?"
Juliet's eyes widened.
Amara's hand froze halfway to her mouth.
"You're serious?"
"Very."
Juliet stared at him in disbelief before grabbing Amara's arm.
"I knew something was wrong."
Amara shook her head slowly.
"This is unbelievable."
Meanwhile, Elise stood there, absorbing everything.
She had stepped onto this yacht expecting an elegant business gathering.
Instead, within less than an hour, she had somehow become part of a world filled with secrets she had never even known existed.
Divorces.
Affairs.
Family disputes.
Hidden relationships.
Xavier’s friends seemed to know everything about everyone.
And somehow...
She was now one of them.
A small part of her wondered what else she would accidentally learn before the night ended.
"Xavier."
Amara's voice pulled her attention away.
Elise turned.
Xavier was walking back toward them. But something was different. The calm, controlled expression he had worn all evening was gone.
His shoulders were tense.
His jaw was set.
Even from a distance, Elise could see the irritation written in the tight line of his mouth.
He reached them and released a quiet breath, running a hand briefly over his jaw before adjusting his glasses.
"Isaac Shaw just accepted an offer from another company."
His voice remained even, but the frustration underneath it was impossible to miss.
"If he steps down as CEO of Shaw Watches, the deal I've been working on for months is going to collapse."
Amara's brows pulled together.
"Isaac Shaw?"
Before anyone could say another word, a familiar voice drifted over the music.
"Well...looks like your biggest deal is dead, Mr. Chen."
The group turned as a man emerged from the crowd with an easy, self-assured smile.
Isaac Shaw.
He walked toward them at an unhurried pace, one hand tucked into the pocket of his tailored dark suit while the other adjusted the cuff of his sleeve. His polished shoes clicked softly against the wooden deck, his posture relaxed, almost leisurely, as though he had all the time in the world.
When he reached them, he stopped directly in front of Xavier, a smug smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"I have to admit," Isaac continued, lightly rocking back on his heels, "watching months of hard work disappear overnight is surprisingly satisfying."
Not a single muscle moved on Xavier's face.
Standing with one hand resting inside his trouser pocket, he simply looked at Isaac through the lenses of his silver glasses.
Isaac's smile grew a little wider.
Juliet glanced between the two men before quietly leaning toward Amara.
"He practiced that speech."
Amara hid a smile behind the rim of her champagne glass.
"You think?"
"Definitely."
"He even paused for dramatic effect."
Elias lowered his whiskey, the corners of his mouth twitching.
"I'd give it a three."
Juliet nodded thoughtfully.
"Too rehearsed."
Isaac frowned.
"...Are you people rating me?"
"No," Juliet replied immediately. "We're criticizing your delivery."
Before Isaac could process that answer, Amara looked at him with mild curiosity, as though something had just occurred to her.
"Oh." She blinked once. "Have you started looking for another job?"
Isaac looked at her.
"...Excuse me?"
She tilted her head, genuinely puzzled.
"I just assumed you would've started by now."
He gave a short laugh.
"What are you talking about?"
Amara lowered her champagne glass.
"Your board." She shrugged lightly. "They chose your replacement this morning."
Silence.
Isaac stared at her.
His smile slowly disappeared.
"...What?"
Juliet's brows shot upward.
She turned so quickly toward Amara that a lock of blonde hair slipped over her shoulder.
"They what?"
Amara looked between them with complete innocence.
"Oh..." She frowned slightly. "They didn't tell you?"
Isaac blinked.
"No."
"They had an emergency board meeting this morning."
She spoke so casually it sounded like she was discussing the weather.
"I assumed someone would've called you by now."
Color visibly drained from Isaac's face. His confident posture stiffened.
"That's..."
He swallowed.
"...that's impossible."
No one answered.
Isaac quickly pulled his phone from his pocket, his fingers moving so fast he nearly dropped it.
He stared at the screen for a second before immediately dialing.
"Excuse me."
Without waiting for a response, he turned sharply and strode away, weaving through the guests with considerably less confidence than he'd arrived with.
The moment he disappeared into the crowd, his voice rose above the music.
"Get me my assistant."
A beat passed.
"Now!"
The group watched him vanish toward the opposite side of the yacht.
Juliet completely lost it.
A laugh escaped her before she could stop it, quickly dissolving into full-blown laughter as she doubled over, one hand clutching Amara's arm for support while the other pressed against her stomach.
"Oh my God..." she wheezed between laughs. "You absolutely destroyed him."
Amara merely took another unhurried sip of her champagne, looking entirely innocent despite having just sent a billionaire into a full-blown panic.
Beside her, even Elias failed to keep a straight face. He lifted his whiskey to his lips, pretending to take a drink, but the smile tugging at the corners of his mouth betrayed him.
Xavier watched Isaac disappear through the crowd, weaving between guests with his phone already pressed to his ear, before slowly turning back toward Amara.
The irritation that had tightened his features moments earlier had completely disappeared, replaced by the rare hint of amusement that only seemed to surface around old friends.
He adjusted his silver glasses with one finger, studying her for a long moment.
"...How?"
Amara met his gaze over the rim of her champagne flute before lowering it with a small smile.
"My hairdresser."
Silence.
Juliet groaned dramatically.
"Oh, not this woman again."
Amara laughed.
"My hairdresser," she repeated, as though it explained everything. "Half the billionaire wives in the city go to her salon. They sit in those chairs for three or four hours every appointment, and sooner or later someone starts talking."
She lifted one shoulder, her expression impossibly innocent.
"I just happen to tip well enough that she accidentally remembers to tell me everything afterward."
A laugh slipped from Xavier before he could stop it. It was quiet, brief, but genuine enough that all three of them immediately turned to look at him.
Juliet pointed at him triumphantly.
"There. You made Xavier laugh."
"I should write today's date down." Amara nodded solemnly. "It may never happen again."
Xavier pinched the bridge of his nose, the ghost of a smile still lingering on his face.
"I've spent years building a global business," he said, gesturing vaguely with the whiskey in his hand. "I've hired investigators, analysts, consultants..." He paused, giving a small shake of his head. "And somehow your hairdresser still has better intelligence than all of them."
Amara smiled sweetly, clearly accepting the compliment.