Chapter 573 Albert Pretends to Be Indifferent
Albert's surprised voice shattered the tense silence of the conference room like a match thrown into gasoline.
Yvette? Albert's wife? The room buzzed with barely contained curiosity despite everyone's attempts at professional composure.
Colleagues exchanged meaningful glances, some coughed to mask their nervousness, while others nudged each other under the table, silently acknowledging this unexpected development.
Yvette seemed oblivious to the undercurrent of fascination her presence had created. She stood quietly in the doorway, her expression serene as still water, as if she were accustomed to such attention—though only she knew her heart was hammering with nerves and embarrassment. She rarely appeared at the Valdemar Group, especially not at this late hour.
She lowered her gaze slightly, second-guessing her impulsive decision to come here. Every pair of eyes in the room felt like spotlights trained on her, but the most intense gaze belonged to Albert himself.
Albert sat at the head of the conference table, his expression grave and eyes unfathomable.
A flicker of surprise crossed his features before being quickly masked by his usual composure. He deliberately suppressed any hint of warmth, maintaining his cold demeanor as he slowly rose and approached her.
"What are you doing here?" His tone was deliberately distant.
Yvette met his gaze steadily. "I heard your work was finished. I came to pick you up."
Her words rippled through the room like a stone dropped into still water. The ambient chatter gradually died away as everyone sensed the charged atmosphere between them.
Albert turned back to scan the room, and everyone immediately buried their heads in their work, pretending intense focus.
His gaze finally settled on Vincent. "Vincent, did you tell Yvette my work was finished?"
Vincent shot up from his chair like a jack-in-the-box. "I thought that's what you meant earlier, sir."
Albert gave him a withering look before fixing his attention back on Yvette. "It's not finished."
"Then I'm interrupting." Yvette took a half-step back. "I should—"
"Wait in my office." Albert cut her off curtly.
"All right." Yvette nodded, offering an apologetic bow to the room before turning and hurrying away, her retreat carrying all the dignity of someone fleeing a crime scene.
Albert returned to his seat. "Let's continue."
His deliberate dismissal of Yvette's gesture—coming all this way to pick him up—left everyone baffled.
What kind of arrogant act was this? Where was the devoted husband they'd heard about? His wife had come to collect him, and he was still playing hard to get?
Just as everyone was mentally criticizing his behavior, Albert's expression remained stone-cold as his fingers, which had been flying across the keyboard moments before, suddenly slammed his laptop shut with decisive force.
"It's late. Nothing good comes from burning the midnight oil." He stood abruptly. "Meeting adjourned."
The moment Albert left, barely suppressed cheers erupted throughout the conference room. Everyone exchanged knowing looks and smug grins as they watched his retreating figure.
Let him pretend! He couldn't keep up the act after all!
Yvette stood in Albert's office, biting her lower lip in regret. She shouldn't have been so impulsive, barging into his conference room like that.
Remembering his cold reception, her chest tightened with a familiar ache. Albert was clearly still angry with her.
She didn't know how to win him back and was already preparing herself for the worst-case scenario. Just as she resigned herself to a long wait, footsteps echoed from the hallway—quicker than Albert's usual measured pace, but unmistakably his.
When she turned, she found herself looking directly into those penetrating dark eyes. His expression was cold, his face stormy, radiating barely contained irritation.
Yvette took a steadying breath and asked carefully, "Is everything all right? Will it be much longer?"
"Why did you come?" His tone was glacial.
Yvette bit her lip, her heart clenching, but managed to say gently, "I came to take you home."
"Take me home?"
"Yes." She nodded, keeping her eyes downcast. "I failed to keep my promise yesterday, so today I came to pick you up."
Albert studied her intently. "You're trying to make up for breaking your word yesterday?"
"Yes, but not entirely." Yvette's voice was earnest.
Albert loomed over her, his face deliberately stern, pretending to be unmoved. His eyes revealed nothing, cold as winter stone.
Yvette pressed her lips together. "I also wanted to apologize. I won't speak so carelessly again."
Her voice trembled slightly, carrying a telltale thickness that suggested tears weren't far behind.
Seeing Yvette on the verge of crying, Albert felt a flash of self-reproach.
Was he being too harsh?
The truth was, his heart had melted the moment he saw her in that conference room. He'd expected maybe a text message, not her actually showing up to collect him!
But with all his subordinates watching, he couldn't very well rush over and sweep her into his arms—that would have been far too obvious.
Albert noticed the moisture gathering in her eyes and felt his resolve wavering. He was just about to reach out and pull her into his embrace when a sharp knock interrupted them.
Albert's body went rigid as he quickly readjusted his expression, slipping back behind his mask of indifference.
His Adam's apple bobbed as he straightened, his voice dropping to a low growl. "Who is it?"
The person outside apparently misunderstood his tone as permission to enter and immediately pushed open the door.
"Mr. Valdemar, I stepped out to take a call and missed when they were reviewing the proposal with you. I'm bringing it now." The project manager spoke while looking up, then froze completely upon seeing Yvette.
Albert's gaze turned murderous as he snapped, "What are you standing there for? Hand it over."
The project manager trembled as he extended the document. "H-here it is, sir."
Feeling the arctic atmosphere in the office, the project manager wanted nothing more than to disappear into the floor.
Damn it, what rotten luck! Why hadn't anyone warned him that Yvette was here?
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