Page 55 of Billionaire’s Ruin

“Oh please,” I shot back, “what would you know about men?”

“Come on,” he groaned. “You should’ve seen the first time he met you. He practically drooled. And that cash? What the hell was that? Did he think he could buy your affection?”

He leaned closer to the camera, his expression hardening. “Maybe he did.”

I pressed on, refusing to let him change the subject. “What exactly did Kai have to do with the Asian project, Liam?”

He hesitated, gaze darting away from the camera. “It’s complicated.”

“Try me,” my tone was sharper than I meant it to be. “You said you killed the project because of him. Why?”

“Because he was the silent investor.” He exhaled, long and tight. “The one funding the hospital in China.”

I froze. “What?”

“Yeah. Through a few shell companies and offshore accounts, but the trail led back to him.”

“Kai? Are you sure?”

“I double-checked everything myself.” He leaned closer to the screen, voice low. “He was pouring money into that hospital like it was a personal mission. And guess what? The board only agreed to move forward after he requested you to lead it.”

My heart pounded, slow and heavy. “So all that talk about me being the best⁠—”

“Wasn’t entirely wrong,” Liam cut in softly, “but it wasn’t the only reason.”

Why did he do that?

Was Kai trying to own me in some way?

A deep breath rushed out, my head shaking as though it could dislodge the shock clinging to my chest. Now wasn’t the time to think about him.

Not again.

“No,” I said quickly, forcing a weak smile, “you just reminded me we took a detour from why I called in the first place.”

A muttered curse slipped out under my breath. How did I let Kai snake his way back into my life again and again, even when he wasn’t here?

He adjusted his glasses, guilt flickering in his eyes. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have told you that.”

But I wasn’t sorry. Not even close. Some part of me was relieved to finally know the truth—about the project, about what Liam thought of Kai. At last, the pieces fit together.

“Can you put Malaysia on the radar? Can we actually buy a hospital here? This one, specifically. Can you make it happen? Can you⁠—”

“June—” he cut in, tone weary, “you’re asking a lot.”

“I know,” I said quickly, softening. “I know, I just⁠—”

“You know what time it is here?” he asked, stifling a yawn.

A frown tugged at my brow as I realized I had no idea what time it was on his end.

His yawn wasn’t just exhaustion—it was his polite way of saying this conversation ends here. He was going to bed, and whether he’d actually help me or not was anyone’s guess.

It sounded like he needed persuasion. And I could give him that.

“Liam,” I said, leaning closer to the screen, “I’m… we’re doing this for Dannie. He’s the one who broke all the rules and sold the PPE to us when no one else would. Without him, maybe we wouldn’t have made it through. You, me, Dad… we all could’ve died.”

That caught his attention. His glasses slipped slightly down his nose, and for a moment, the brother in him surfaced—the one who still carried guilt from the early pandemic years.