I Became His Replaced Bride

Chapter 8

AMÉ jewellery headquarters, Ahmedabad,
2:00 pm

Aarav exuded rage, controlled yet untamed, searing underneath the skin. How did this come to happen at his damn company? Nothing goes unnoticed by him, so how is such a huge mistake? He has competent and reliable, honest and loyal employees. They couldn't dare to go against him, fully aware of his ruthlessness. And top of all, this fucking problem caused him to postpone his honeymoon with Aashna, for fuck's sake!

"Sir, this is the full report," Ritesh handed Aarav the file containing all the information regarding the problem. He tried not to trip over his feet for the sake of maintaining professionalism, his boss was walking fast, and in long strides. He was having difficulty catching up to such a hasty gait. Could he complain or whine? No chance! He cannot poke his already enraged boss further. Finally! Thinking so, he sighed, the white double doors of his boss's office came into vision.

Aarav took the seat behind the rich ebony mahogany desk in the French leather chair. He flipped the file, eyes narrowing, brows furrowing deeper the further he read. Ritesh gulped, he couldn't deny that his boss never lost his charm however the emotions he felt. He was magnificent in whatever he did, as simple as going through a file. His hands seemed perfectly inclined on the table, fingers turning the pages in fluid motion yet delicately, posture straight and rigid, and his body situated on the chair like a model advertising for a magazine's front cover. Ritesh sometimes, no, every time, was lost for words to witness such grace of his boss. But only he knew what those captivating charms held beneath. A devil with unmatched ruthlessness and cruelty, a possessive beast with unimaginable obsession and destruction.

"Explain," Aarav ordered with a monotonous voice yet Ritesh felt the chills that it evoked down his spine. Five years of working with the emotionless man still hasn't made him immune to such a deep and authoritative voice. It has become a reflex action instead of a habit. Ritesh resisted the urge to shift on his feet, an action depicting how nervous he felt. Aarav hates when people are not confident and competent in any situation, so he took a deep breath and spoke, "Tarun Nayak, he is the assistant to the IT personnel, Mr. Mukesh Yadav. He stole the financial data of the company, sir. It was done a week ago, to be precise, and just now had come under our attention."

Aarav clenched his jaw, how insolent and inconvenient! He stared at Ritesh, his fists clenching, "and why now?" Ritesh gulped, the situation had turned worse, has it been a day after the sabotage, Aarav wouldn't have gotten so furious, "Our competing jewellery company, Noor, has the same designs for the upcoming wedding edition for fall, also, they have released it. Their records confirm they had used our pricing strategies and cost structures. The market is loving them."

Aarav nodded, eyes hardening around the corners, "what is the situation overall?" Ritesh wanted to drop the soul-boring and discomforting eye contact because his furious boss looked a second away from snapping anyone's head. So he did what any sane person would do, he gathered the file that had been idly in his hands and started dictating the loss, "we have a commercial loss of 11.5 million. Loss of confidentiality includes our financial data that contains sensitive information about the company's earnings, expenses, and investments. Stock Market Impact: our stock market prices have dropped by 0.12% and the occurrence of insider trading is still being under inspection. Reputation Damage: if the financial data theft becomes public or affects the company's ability to meet financial obligations, it could harm our reputation. Investors, customers, and partners may lose trust in the company's financial stability and integrity. Operational Disruptions: financial data is closely tied to budgeting and resource allocation. Our records and operational planning have been disrupted leading to political financial losses that are being calculated."

Aarav slapped the desk before looking out of the bay windows, brows pulled together in a disgruntled frown. Ritesh hesitated before continuing, "the board of directors are waiting for you in the conference room, sir. And lastly, the company's public image is severely threatened. It could cause more financial losses."