He finds none.
The men who laughed with him earlier suddenly study the floor. The women who admired Mara’s dress now avoid her eyes. Executives know scandal by smell, and Caleb is standing in the center of it.
Adrian hands the documents to Evelyn. “Secure these.”
Evelyn nods. “Immediately.”
Then Adrian turns back to you, and the coldness softens.
“We need to talk privately.”
Caleb steps between you. “Absolutely not.”
Adrian looks at him.
It is not a dramatic look.
It is worse.
It is the kind of look that makes powerful men remember they are still employees.
“Mr. Rowan,” Adrian says, “you are being placed on administrative leave pending investigation. Security will escort you to collect your company devices.”
Caleb’s face drains.
“What?”
“You heard me.”
“This is because of her?” Caleb points at you. “Because of some teenage romance you think you had thirty years ago?”
Adrian goes still.
You feel the room tense.
But Adrian’s voice remains calm.
“No. This is because your wife handed me evidence that you may have misused company funds and submitted work that was not yours. The teenage romance is merely the part of the evening that makes me personally disgusted by your behavior.”
Someone near the bar coughs to hide a laugh.
Caleb looks like he might explode.
Mara suddenly speaks. “Caleb told me Vivian knew about the vendor payments.”
