Chapter 146
“You meant? Flaunting yourself in front of men just to scrape by?”
As he spoke, Hadley met his words with an icy glare.
Her lips curled into a smirk, dripping with contempt. “That’s right—I flaunt my body for money. And you, Mr. Flynn? You’re the one paying for it. What gives you the right to sit in judgment?”
“You—!”
She didn’t flinch. She didn’t back down.
“I’m a dancer,” she stated, steady and unwavering. “I earn my way with my own skill. I don’t steal. I don’t cheat. I don’t break the law. Tell me, what exactly am I doing wrong?”
Eric’s eyes darkened. “So you’ve learned to run your mouth.” His patience snapped. “After all these years, this is the person you’ve become? I won’t stand here and argue with you. Gather your things and come with me. I refuse to let this continue!”
“Not happening.”
Hadley lifted her chin, her defiance cutting through the air like a blade. “This is my life—I’m not going anywhere.”
Eric froze for a second, stunned by her resistance. Then his expression hardened, his jaw clenching as he lowered his voice to a dangerous growl. “Do you really think I’ll let this slide? If you won’t leave with me, I’ll see to it that this place shuts down. You’ll have nowhere left to run.”
Hadley met Eric’s threat with nothing more than a knowing smile, effortless and unwavering.
Her voice remained steady, almost amused. “I don’t think so.”
“Hadley!”
“Mr. Flynn!”
She barely acknowledged the storm gathering in Eric’s expression—the tension in his jaw, the fire in his eyes. Instead, she pushed forward, her words measured and deliberate.
𝖈𝖍𝖊𝖈𝖐𝖊𝖉 𝖘𝖙𝖔𝖗𝖞 𝖍𝖊𝖗𝖊: 𝖌ⲁ𝗅𝗇𝗈ν𝖊𝗅𝘀⫺𝖼𝗈𝗆
“Tell me, just how much is the Flynn family name worth to you? If you walk out that door now, all people will talk about is two patrons fighting over a pretty dancer. Typical nightclub drama. No scandal. No fallout.”
Then, with a subtle shift, her voice took on a biting mockery.
“But shut down Galant? Oh, that would be a mistake. Because then, I’ll make sure everyone knows exactly who I am. You might see me as nothing, but let’s not forget… I’m still Mrs. Flynn.”
She paused just long enough to let the weight of her words settle before delivering the final stroke. “Picture the headlines, Eric. The esteemed Flynn family’s daughter-in-law—Srixby’s most coveted nightclub dancer. Now that would be a spectacle, don’t you think?”
Eric went rigid. His features hardened, his fury warring with disbelief. Hadley simply laughed.
“How could you allow something so disgraceful? Quite the scandal, wouldn’t you say?”
A heavy silence settled over the room.
Eric’s jaw tightened, the muscle ticking in frustration. As much as he despised it, Hadley had struck exactly where it hurt.