The heiress
Chapter 32 The HeiressPublished by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.
M&M FOOD, NEW YORK. “What the fuck are you all doing with your goddamn time? How are we getting lower sales each passing day?” Asher yelled, throwing the sales report at the wall. The papers were scattered all over the floor. Everyone on the staff had their heads bowed, not knowing what to say. The entire week has been wavy for everyone in the company. Not only did their sales drop, but they were getting bad reviews on the newly produced product. The current head researcher altered some changes that Asher had approved unquestioningly without seeking the marketing team’s review. The amount of money lost is beginning to drive Asher crazy. He keeps wondering how Nina handled everything without having him do too much. The banks are already on his neck, and it’s either they make sales to pay back the money or the company gets sold out at a cheap rate. “Why is anyone not saying anything? Do you not have solutions to proffer? Are you saying I hired dullheads?” He bickered, yet no one had enough courage to say something. Asher hissed in disgust. “I blame myself for thinking any of you will be of help. Get out of my office right this minute before I lose my temper!” Everyone scampered out, and he headed back to his office in anger. Only to be met with the displeased look of his parents when he got into the office. “Mum, Dad, please. Not now.” He pleaded. Darren laughed dryly. “Do you think I am here to make jokes with you either? What exactly have you been doing, Asher? How did it get worse in less than two months?” “Does it look like I am joking around here? While you two are frolicking around town, I am here busting out to make the shabby company stand back on track.” Asher gritted. “If you are concerned as you say, why haven’t you gotten the money out of Andrea? Do you think we sat through that doom of a wedding all for nothing?” Leila questioned. Asher shut his eyes tightly, feeling like his insides would burst. “Mum, it’s barely a month since I married her. I can’t just make such a request.” “If you can’t do something as minimal as that, how the hell do you intend to make a goddamn company then!” Darren roared, staggering. Leila reached for his hand to calm him down. “Easy, darling. Your blood pressure.” She turned back to Asher. “You see what you are doing? Maybe we should have just let Nina be. At least the company was functioning under her. We supported Andrea because our association with her looks promising. It’s time she shows her potential to us. Get her father to pay or make her sign a check. She is a heiress, after all. Make it happen before the week runs out, Asher. We do not have time on our side.” She nodded towards Darren for them to leave. They didn’t bother to look at Asher again as they walked out of the office. Asher punched at the table hard, feeling his knuckles hurt. His head felt like it would explode. A message notification popped up on his phone, and his eyes popped out like saucers at the debit on his account. “What the fuck!” He cursed. He grabbed a hold of his jacket and car key. He hurried out of the office. Andrea was trying out the clothes she had used his money to buy when he stormed the room. She smiled at him from the mirror. “Hey, baby. How was your day?” “Would have been better if I didn’t just get that damned alert. How the fuck did you get my card? And what the hell did you buy to cost that bloody much?” He hollered. “Can you not yell at me? I only bought a few dresses and the new Chanel bag collection. Nothing serious.” She said in a dismissal tone, appreciating herself in the mirror. “But you have your money. Why spend mine?” He sounded helpless. Andrea frowned at him. “What is that supposed to mean? Am I not allowed to spend my husband’s money just because I have mine?” Not wanting to blow his chance, he smiled weakly. “That’s not what I meant. You didn’t tell me you would be going shopping. I am sorry.” Her smile returned. “It’s okay, my love. I know you would drool when you see me wearing all the dresses. So, how was your day at work?” She asked, still checking herself out. “It wasn’t anywhere close to a good day. There is a huge drop in our sales, and we have lots of payments to make. The head researcher is no good.” “Then hire another one.” “We can’t afford such excesses now.” He said. Andrea raised a brow. “What do you mean?” Asher cleared his throat and walked towards her, wrapping his arms around her waist. “Baby. I need your help. I feel ashamed to want to ask you this. But I am in a dark corner as it is. I was hoping you could write me a hundred million check. I will get it back to you, of course. I know that wouldn’t make any huge difference to you. And I don’t mind if you can ask your dad for help.” Her ears perked at his request, and she suddenly went cold in his arms. Andrea pushed him backward a bit. “Why do you need such a huge amount of money? Is something wrong with the company?” “Not really, it’s just a slight problem that I can fix. So you don’t have to worry. As soon as you sign the check, we will be back to normal, and we get to secure the future of M&M foods for our children through your contribution.” He smiled a bit too widely. Andrea tried to process the entire information. “Does this mean if there’s no money to save the company, we would go broke?” “Sort of. We would have to auction the company to another.” “What! Why would you say something like that so casually?” She growled, pulling at the dress on her. She felt hot from the inside. Asher looked confused at her attitude. “Why do you look so bothered? We won’t have to worry with your assistance. Or is there something to worry about?” “Of course there is, you moron!” She hissed. “What are you saying, Andrea? Make it clear.” “There is no money to give, Asher.” “How? Your dad’s company is doing very well. I am sure.” “It’s not my dad’s company.” He laughed dryly. “Stop making such an expensive joke. Be serious, please. It is a serious discussion.” “Do I look like I am joking too?” She glared at him. “Chad Davis is not my father. He is not my father!” Andrea yelled. A pin drop would make a shrill noise if dropped. Asher and Andrea seem to hold their breaths to help them process everything. It felt like bells were ringing off in Asher’s ears. He staggered backward and slumped into the bed. “You-You are not your father’s daughter? How did you come by that ridiculous assertion, and when did you find out? Because the last time I checked, he was nice towards you at dinner like any father would and even sent us wedding gifts.” Asher said, still in doubt. Andrea ruffled her hair. “He was only playing nice because I begged him to. You seemed adamant about meeting him before we could move further with our love life.” He felt the urge to slap her shut. “Can you answer the fucking crucial question? When did you get to know that you weren’t his daughter? And how did no one know about it? Does Nina know?” “Nina doesn’t know. I found out after college. My mum was seeing someone else while she was with my dad. She fell pregnant, and since they were getting married, she said I was his. He found out during some blood tests when I fell sick briefly. But he didn’t stop taking care of me, and he promised to do so until I got married. That was why he ate dinner with us. But baby, why does any of that matter? M&M can always bounce back to normal, right? I am sure you need to come up with something innovative.” Asher wasn’t listening any longer. His soul kept moving back and forth out of his body. “You know, we would sort that out later. Can I at least make use of the money in your trust fund? Just in the meantime.” Andrea pouted, rubbing at her neck. “There is no such amount left in the trust fund. I only have a few hundreds of thousands left in it. I have been spending it for a while now.” Her response sounded unbelievable. But knowing Andrea and her excessive lifestyle, it wasn’t surprising to hear. He stood up, folding his shaky hands. “If you exhausted your trust fund. How exactly were you intending to fund your expensive lifestyle?” She giggled nervously and did an eye roll. “That is why I have you. Come on now, Asher. Your family has enough to last us a lifetime. I know you are exaggerating the company’s situation; it can’t be that bad.” She tried to sound hopeful even though her heart was racing fast. Asher laughed as he could envision doom on himself and the company for his hasty decisions. He moved closer to her, wishing he could strangle her to death. “So, you think that I am making a joke? To think you have no financial use for me, yet you squandered my fucking money!” He yelled in her face. Andrea screamed, backing up against the mirror. “W…why are you being aggressive? What did I do wrong? Did you marry me for my money?” The question made Asher burst into a fit of laughter. “Of course, you dumbhead! I did marry you for the money. Why else would I turn an amazing person like Nina away for someone as toxic as you? The company has been going through hard times for the past three years, and we had sales stability thanks to Nina’s constant innovative ideas and hard work. I didn’t know which path to tour, and then you started advancing at me. It struck me then that I could use you to my advantage. I can’t believe you are an empty vessel.” He growled at Andrea’s already pale face. Asher paced the room back and forth as he got teary-eyed. His parents will tear him apart for not doing his findings properly before getting involved with Andrea. Right in front of him, M&M will slip out of his hands. He pulled at his hair in frustration. “I am so doomed! I can’t believe I took this journey with you. My parents’ toil and hard work are about to drain because of you. Why the hell didn’t you admit to your truth? Why? Here I was, thinking you were an actual heiress. Fuck!” He screamed, kicking at the floor. “So-So you never loved me? You wanted me for my money?” She stuttered. He sneered at her. “Was I speaking Chinese at first? My life is heading for the flames all because of you.” “I can’t believe this! The only reason I seduced you was because I thought your company was thriving! If I knew you were broke, I would have only ruined the marriage and never gotten married to you.” Andrea lamented amidst the tears that rolled down her face freely. Asher laughed like a maniac. “Oh, wow. That’s a sound mutual feeling.” She collapsed into the ground, feeling her world spin. Nina would have the last laugh if she ever found out about her misery. She went from a safe fire to a volcano. Andrea had hoped Asher’s money would help her live the kind of life her father had provided her with. Her breath seemed to hitch at every attempt to breathe. “What is going to happen to us?” She asked. “What else? We are stuck in this together, I guess. First, I need to clear my head.” She got up hurriedly, holding onto his shirt. “Listen, Asher. You have to find a solution as soon as possible. I can’t live the life of a pauper, and it’s not the sort of life for me, please. You need to do something to save the company at all costs.” Asher stared at her hand in disgust. “Get that hand off me. If you are that eager, come up with a mind-blowing idea or get the fucking money. If you can’t do that, better get out of my face.” He said, pushing her away. As he left the house in the same manner he had driven in. Asher felt choked. Nothing seemed to make sense at the moment. He got into his car, bowed his head on the wheel, and screamed at the top of his voice. It didn’t help to calm his distorted nerves. Asher picked up his phone, his thumb roamed his contact. When he reached Nina, his guts weren’t enough for him to put a call through. Cursing under his breath, he minimized the contact app. There has to be a way out that ideas could solve. Nina couldn’t have been the only one with a brilliant idea in the company. Smacking his lips, he dialed his secretary. “Diane, call every department member together. We would all be working late today. Even if we have to work until morning, then so be it. No one leaves until I say so. Anyone absent should get a dismissal letter immediately. Is that clear?” He bellowed into the receiver. “Yes, sir,” Diane replied on the other end. Turning on the car ignition, he drove out of the compound. He has to save the company before deciding what to do with the impostor he married as a wife.