Run, Girl (If You Can)

Chapter 187: Too Good To Be True

When the meeting (finally) ended and people began filing out of the conference room, Cameron felt more than a little intimidated being caught between two powerhouses. As if it had never left, Aaron's terrifying aura was back in action.

He flicked through the share transfer agreement wordlessly, acting casual about it though Cameron knew his boss was making note of every single word to be sure there weren't any loopholes.

Aaron looked up and spoke coldly. "It says here that you will transfer me another ten percent of your shares when my wife gives birth to a son."

Alistair replied in a haughty tone. "Your grandfather did the same thing when you were born. It is traditional."

"I see."

The temperature in the room dropped about twenty degrees with those two simple words. Something about that part of the agreement really riled Aaron up for some reason.

He handed the document over to Cameron. "Read through it. You'll be signing it as well as the witness."

Feeling as though he had been handed a bomb, he accepted the piece of paper gingerly. It seemed pretty straightforward. Something that caught his attention was that the wife's name was never mentioned. This agreement was valid no matter who Aaron married.

It was a bit suspicious that this document was so clearly in his boss' favor. The share transfer agreement specified that it was 'on the condition of Aaron Hale's engagement' rather than on the condition of his marriage. Even if the engagement was called off, the shares were still his.

As for the child clause…it didn't mention a specific name either. It was as Aaron said; he would get another 10% when his wife gave birth to a son.

Despite the suspicious lack of 'Bethany Carlisle' in this document, it seemed legit so Cameron signed it and handed it back to Aaron. He and his father both signed as well and Aaron was given the original copy of the document to hold onto.

After they left the boardroom, he whispered so quietly that Cameron could barely hear while staring straight ahead. "Come to my office in an hour."

So he wanted to discuss what had just happened. Aaron wasn't stupid—he clearly found the circumstances suspicious as well. That hour ticked by sluggishly.

Countless reports had piled up on Cameron's desk that needed approval during the two hour meeting. This was yet another reason he couldn't wait for the day that his boss took his shares back and kicked him off the board. He wouldn't lose so much time that would later have to be made up by working twice as hard.

Sometimes he questioned why he didn't just retire early—he had a couple million in the bank after all—but then he remembered that he lived in one of the most expensive cities in the world and was about to start a family.

Besides, he would go nuts if he had nothing to do all day every day. Still, he hoped the number of business trips he had to take would be cut back soon.

He could only take Jennica with him for so long, provided she was even free. Once they had children someone would have to stay behind to care for them.

Cameron stretched and craned his neck back to check the clock on the wall. It was about time to head upstairs.

"Tell me your impressions of the document," Aaron commanded before he even had time to shut the door.

He took a seat on the couch and shrugged. "Honestly? It seems too good to be true. But hey, you're closer to your goal."

Alistair was now down to 32% of the shares. Technically speaking, if you added all of Aaron's up that other people were holding onto, he had 2% more than his father. It still wasn't enough but an extra 10% was nothing to scoff at.

"That's because it is too good to be true. I imagine you noticed the lack of a wife's name on the entire agreement."

"Yeah, what was that about?"

Going off of that, Aaron could marry Keeley (provided she ever forgave him) and still get the extra shares if she gave birth to a boy. It didn't make sense that he was so angry about that part when he read it earlier.

"He still expects me to end up with Lacy Knighton." Aaron's tone was deadly as his fist pounded the desk. "He must be planning something. If he didn't expect the identity of my fiancée to change he would have included the fake name I gave him."

Wow. He was paranoid. But he also had a point; Alistair had gone this far to try and get him to marry that woman already.

Cameron's feelings of pity increased. Aaron's life kind of sucked.

"I thought you said he was satisfied with the fake fiancé you came up with."

"That's what he claimed…" Aaron showed a rare moment of weakness and rested his head on his hand. "What do you think my odds are of getting away with murder if I get rid of the stupid woman permanently?"

He chuckled. His boss never kidded around like this. Unless…"You are kidding, aren't you?"

"Maybe. I don't know. She's been a thorn in my side for so long now that I really do wish she were dead."

"I don't recommend it. Even if you were able to get away with it, it's still illegal." He brought out the big guns, not knowing whether or not it would backfire on him. "Keeley wouldn't want you to either."

Aaron deflated. "No, she wouldn't. I really don't know how to deflect Lacy forever though. She doesn't know the meaning of the words 'give up.' She must have brain damage. All I've done in the past seven years is tell her how much I hate her at every given opportunity and she still thinks she has a chance."

Cameron tried to cheer his friend up but really he was at a loss. He had never dealt with problems like this personally.

"Don't worry about it too much; New York is a big city. It's easy enough to hide from someone if you really want to. She doesn't know where you live. Just stop going to those parties you hate anyway and you'll be set."

"I suppose," he said with a sigh before launching into an explanation of how he needed Cameron to come gamble in Monaco when he dealt with bargaining for land to build their overseas branch.

Just great. His wedding was less than two months away and he had to go on yet another business trip. He couldn't be Aaron's loyal dog forever but now wasn't the time to bring that up. The last thing he needed was to set off the ice volcano before Aiden got back.