Eric thought he must have misheard. His face went pale with panic.
Jack gave him a slow, meaningful look. "Didn't you just say the SL Chairman is ruthless? And yet you still dared to piss him off? Impressive."
Eric's knees nearly buckled. He swallowed hard, terror rising in his throat.
He wasn't afraid of offending Brooks. But the Chairman behind SL? That was a different story.
But… wasn't Riley supposed to be the Chairman's special favorite? He'd been helping her—why the hell should he have to apologize?
But he didn't have time to think about it. Eric's voice cracked. "Where's the Chairman? I—I'll go apologize right now…"
The assistant said calmly, "Upstairs."
Eric sucked in a shaking breath and started toward the stairs, his face stricken with fear.
The entire ballroom fell silent, stunned at the way things had turned. Riley was left standing alone, her face bloodless.
