Chapter 149

Aria’s POV

For most of my office tasks, I could work from my laptop wherever I wanted. However, there were times when I needed my printer and my file cabinets. For this reason, I did find myself down in my boiler room/office around ten minutes a day, printing and filing.

Unfortunately, today, this was the exact ten minutes when Mr. Gunner happened to stop by.

“Aria?” he asked, knocking on the door.

Turning away from the printer, I saw him just as the door opened, revealing the state of my crammed desk and supplies smashed up in the corner of the room beside the boiler. His regularly guarded, calm face immediately reflected his shock.

“You… work here?” he asked me.

“Uh,” I said, uncertain what to say. “It’s a temporary situation, while they are building the new annex.”

He looked at the ceiling, where a single lightbulb hung down. “Do you even have enough light in here?”

“I don’t typically work in here,” I said at once. “This is just where I keep my printer and files for now. “In the new annex building, I’m going to have a very nice room.”

I had no idea if this was true or not, but I had to say something to help protect the company. Else, I could only imagine what the report would say.

The club shouldn’t suffer just because Joanna had some kind of vendetta against me, pushing her to want to sabotage me at every turn.

“I had been hoping you would show me what your job is around here, and how you handle things,” Mr. Gunner said. “But now I see a much bigger problem.”

Reaching into his satchel bag, Mr. Gunner retrieved a notepad and a pen. After writing a few notes for himself, he tucked that back away and pulled out a camera instead.

“I will need a few pictures of this for my report,” he said. “If you could please step out of the way. I would hate to further shame you by making you appear within the pictures.”

My cheeks heated slightly in embarrassment. He thought I was down here as some kind of punishment! That I was being shamed within the club!

He had no idea that it was a personal insult by Joanna and no one else.

The accusation rose to the tip of my tongue. Accusing Joanna might save the club while disgracing her, but it could also harm it if she turned things around, which she had been prone to do.

Right now, Mr. Gunner only had his own assumptions to go on. Perhaps my best course was to let him bring those assumptions forward so that the club could defend itself on its own. I would warn Liam first, however. He had a right to know about the storm coming his way.

Mr. Gunner motioned for me to step out into the hallway. After hiding any sensitive documents, I did as he asked. From the hallway, I watched as he snapped several pictures of my boiler room workspace.

“This is disgraceful,” he muttered under his breath.

When the picture-taking was done, he joined me in the hallway. Returning his camera to his bag, he retrieved his notepad and pen once more.

“Now. Aria. I have a few questions for you, and I would like for you to answer me honestly. I will keep your name anonymous when I speak with your bosses, so you will not have to worry about retaliation.”

“It’s not like that,” I tried to say.

He gave me a pitying look, clearly not believing me.

“Tell me,” he said, glancing down at his notepad. “How do you feel about Liam as a boss?”

“Liam?” That surprised me.

Wasn’t Mr. Gunner here to investigate cheating? Now he was taking pictures of my office and asking me about Liam? I felt like there was more going on. Even so, I wouldn’t have anyone believing that Liam wasn’t an excellent boss.

“Liam really cares about the team and the club,” I said. “He puts his heart and soul into this place. I see him stay late as often as he does. I know he’s here more than he’s spending time with his own family.”

Mr. Gunner scribbles something down in his notepad. I only catch a glimpse, but I read quickly, Improper Work/Life Balance.

My heart sank. In trying to defend Liam, maybe I was only making things worse.

“Do you believe that Liam would be capable of implementing the kind of cheating the club is being accused of?” he asked.

“Absolutely not,” I said. “Liam would never do something like this.”

“Perhaps he himself wouldn’t be the one committing the act, but it is likely he knew about it.”

“Impossible,” I said.

“You don’t believe he’s the type of man who would turn away while something like that happened under his watch?”

“No,” I said. Not purposefully, anyway. He had been very busy lately. If something did happen, if someone was cheating, I was certain Liam didn’t know about it.

“And how long have you been mistreated while at this club, Aria?” Mr. Gunner asked.

“I’m not mistreated,” I said at once.

He glanced behind him to the boiler room.

I swallowed thickly. Now would be the time to throw Joanna under the bus, but who would believe me? Even then, Mr. Gunner would only blame Liam.

The left hand should know what the right had was doing. He’d probably say something like that.

“I’m not being mistreated,” I said again. “This is a temporary situation while the annex is being built.”

Mr. Gunner gave me a long look. Then, with a seemingly disappointed little sigh, he wrote something down in his notebook.

By the end of the day, I was absolutely exhausted mentally and emotionally. Mr. Gunner had left shortly after his last question, but the encounter stayed on my mind for a long time afterwards. I should have said things differently. I should have found a way to convince him that Liam was a good man.

I felt like I utterly failed in my part to help protect this club.

The only thing I felt I had managed to do was inadvertently save Joanna.

Above all, I hoped that Liam decided not to work late tonight so that we could talk this out. Though, afraid of hearing him and Joanna together again, I had been too afraid to go to his office.

Fear was starting to be an uncomfortable burden, hanging heavy on my shoulders. I hated and resented it. I needed to find a way to deal with Joanna soon, for my own well-being.

With a heavy heart, I drove myself back to the manor. Isabella was already there, watching the kids, so I anticipated seeing her car in the driveway.

I was surprised to find, however, that parked behind Isabella was a second car. A black limousine with tinted windows.

Our driveway was circular so there was enough room for all of our cars, as well as Liam’s, if he pulled in behind me. So I parked and exited my car. On the way to the front door, I realized the limousine was idling, the engine on.

As I walked by, one of the back windows began to roll down.

“Aria,” said the older man in the backseat. I knew he was. I’d seen his picture enough, even if I’d never personally interacted with him. “How nice to finally meet you.”

This man was Markus. Liam’s father.