Page 80 of King of Ruin

"They had an emergency board meeting this morning."

She spoke so casually it sounded like she was discussing the weather.

"I assumed someone would've called you by now."

Color visibly drained from Isaac's face. His confident posture stiffened.

"That's..."

He swallowed.

"...that's impossible."

No one answered.

Isaac quickly pulled his phone from his pocket, his fingers moving so fast he nearly dropped it.

He stared at the screen for a second before immediately dialing.

"Excuse me."

Without waiting for a response, he turned sharply and strode away, weaving through the guests with considerably less confidence than he'd arrived with.

The moment he disappeared into the crowd, his voice rose above the music.

"Get me my assistant."

A beat passed.

"Now!"

The group watched him vanish toward the opposite side of the yacht.

Juliet completely lost it.

A laugh escaped her before she could stop it, quickly dissolving into full-blown laughter as she doubled over, one hand clutching Amara's arm for support while the other pressed against her stomach.

"Oh my God..." she wheezed between laughs. "You absolutely destroyed him."

Amara merely took another unhurried sip of her champagne, looking entirely innocent despite having just sent a billionaire into a full-blown panic.

Beside her, even Elias failed to keep a straight face. He lifted his whiskey to his lips, pretending to take a drink, but the smile tugging at the corners of his mouth betrayed him.

Xavier watched Isaac disappear through the crowd, weaving between guests with his phone already pressed to his ear, before slowly turning back toward Amara. The irritation that had tightened his features moments earlier had completely disappeared, replaced by the rare hint of amusement that only seemed to surface around old friends.

He adjusted his silver glasses with one finger, studying her for a long moment.

"...How?"

Amara met his gaze over the rim of her champagne flute before lowering it with a small smile.

"My hairdresser."

Silence.

Juliet groaned dramatically.

"Oh, not this woman again."