In the Lap of Luxury

Chapter 539 Illegitimate Child

Grace immediately looked up and asked, "What happened?"

Ashley scrolled through her phone and exclaimed, "It turns out that Willow has an illegitimate child. This is huge news!"

Surprised, Grace took out her phone to read the news.

Indeed, that morning, the paparazzi had revealed that Willow had a child. By that afternoon, they had released footage of her secretly meeting a man, with the child calling him 'Daddy'!

The internet went into a frenzy.

"I can read every word, but I don't understand anything."

"She's married and had a child with another man? That's crazy!"

"I can't imagine what the husband is feeling."

Ashley shook her head, sighing. "I know her agent. Her marriage was already a headache for him, and now he also has to deal with this PR disaster."

Grace watched the video, gripping her phone tighter.

"Maybe the child's not hers?"

"That's impossible. Look, the child resembles Willow so much. Genetics don't lie, and the child even called her 'Mom'."

Grace had a sinking feeling and immediately pulled her phone out to call Matthew.

Even though others might not have been able to identify the man in the video since his face was hidden from view, she was able to recognize Matthew.

Matthew didn't answer the phone.

Ashley continued to mutter, "Why would she do this? It's one thing to marry, but to cheat? Now her career is over."

Grace abruptly stood up and headed out of the office. Luke followed behind her. "Ms. Lewis, what's wrong?"

"We're going to Byte Technologies!"

Byte Technologies was laying the groundwork for the international collaboration, and with Black Friday approaching, such a scandal would kill any chance of them going public.

…

When they arrived at Byte Technologies, everything seemed calm. It seemed the company wasn't affected by the scandal yet.

Matthew's assistant respectfully stated, "Ms. Lewis, you don't have an appointment, and Mr. Thorne isn't seeing anyone today." Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.

Grace felt annoyed.

"Does it matter if I have an appointment at this point? Mr. Thorne is really keeping his cool."

The assistant was taken aback. She stammered, "You …"

"Let me in."

Inside Matthew's office, everything breakable had been smashed to pieces. Matthew sat on the couch, disheveled, surrounded by a few confidants, all too afraid to speak.

Grace walked in to see the large TV broadcasting the latest news.

Willow's husband, Theodore Holden, was weeping in front of the media. "I always thought that was my child …"

That alone was enough to sway public opinion.

Then, Theodore posted on social media, accusing the father of the illegitimate child, shockingly revealed to be Byte Technologies' president, Matthew!

The news showed his lengthy post, and the comments were all filled with abuse and attacks.

"Byte Technologies' official website has been overrun."

"Every video on the Byte app is discussing this."

"Mr. Thorne, what do we do now?"

It was a brutally ironic turn. They used to thrive on traffic, and now they were being consumed by it.

Rival platforms that had long harbored resentment against Byte Technologies for their short videos began spreading videos about the Willow scandal. Their target was clear.

They were aiming at Matthew and Byte Technologies. Once their reputation was damaged, their rivals could rise among the ranks in the business world.

This wasn't just simple gossip.

Matthew was on the brink of fury, closing his eyes to try and stay calm.

"Limit the comments across the entire app and bring the public discussion down to the lowest. Contact Willow. I need to see her!"

His confidants hurried to carry out his orders.

Grace then stepped forward. She picked up the remote to turn off the TV.

"Mr. Thorne."