His Mistress is His Ex-Wife
Chapter 59: Voting

Chapter 59: Voting

[ At W Diamond Group... ]

The Chairman, Mr. Alfonso Williams, called the meeting to order. "Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for gathering on short notice. We’re here to discuss and finalize our decision in choosing our last endorser for our upcoming Product Launch of Mystery Jewels."

The members of the board and stockholders listened to Chairman Alfonso attentively.

He continued, "Before we proceed to the voting process, let’s hear brief presentations from our two representatives from the Marketing Department regarding their recommendations. Director Smith, you may start."

Sasha stood up and began her presentation. "We’ve already selected three foreign international artists to be our endorsers, so it is beneficial for us to choose another endorser from our local artist. That’s why I recommend Minerva of YJ Entertainment. She is labeled as one of our country’s superstars."

"Her popularity and positive image align with our target market. Our research indicates a strong resonance with her among our audience," Sasha added, ending her short presentation.

Sasha’s presentation received positive feedback from the board members. They seemed happy with her recommendation. Some of them are fans of Minerva.

"Now, let’s call on Miss Stones, the Marketing Coordinator for her presentation." Chairman Alfonso glanced at Bella, rooting for her. He thought of giving her a bonus if she would win against Sasha.

’Do your best, Miss Stones. I truly want to recruit that masked singer to be our product endorser.’ Alfonso thought to himself.

Meanwhile, Bella was nervous and petrified to do this presentation but she had no choice. None from their team wanted to oppose or offend their Marketing Director, Sasha.

But Chairman Alfonso approached her, expressing his support for Athena. He promised to back her up and he reassured her that she had nothing to fear about Sasha.

’You can do this, Bella. You didn’t deserve that slap. You must endure and fight!’ Bella tried to cheer her anxious self as she stood up.

Facing the distinguished board members and stockholders was absolutely nerve-wracking! She could feel that all eyes were on her, including Sasha’s.

Bella took a deep breath, fixed her eyeglasses, and smiled at them.

"B-Before I state my reason why I recommend this person, I want to share this video with everyone. Please watch Athena’s performance."

An audio-visual presentation was now being shown to everyone wherein Athena was singing a song entitled Trustfall by Pink.

As the first notes of the music echoed through the meeting room, a hush fell over the board members. Athena’s voice filled the space with a powerful and mesmerizing melody, captivating the audience... most especially Dominique.

Dominique’s gaze was fixed on the screen, his heart thudding against his chest. He couldn’t take his eyes off Athena’s face. He was being drawn by her voice.

’Her voice will always remind me of Sabrina,’ Dominique clenched his fists, his expression becoming solemn. Part of him wanted to see her once more.

’Sigh. What am I thinking? I should focus on this meeting.’ Dominique scolded himself inwardly.

Meanwhile, the board members exchanged astonished glances as they watched and listened to Athena’s performance. They felt like they attended a live concert.

Soon, Athena’s performance reached its peak, leaving the board members in stunned silence. The once-skeptical faces now bore expressions of admiration and amazement.

When they recovered from awe, the board members began murmuring to each other.

"She sings well!"

"Her mysterious aura added more allure to her performance."

"Oh! This is Athena, the masked singer."

Some of them took their phones and searched Athena in Ye-Tube. They gasped in surprise after finding out she had forty-five million followers and subscribers in her Ye-Tube Channel.

Realizing the impact of the video presentation of Athena’s performance, Alfonso couldn’t help but smile triumphantly while Sasha’s face contorted with grimace.

Sasha didn’t expect that Bella would show them Athena’s performance. It was quite effective to catch their attention, especially those who didn’t know Athena yet.

"So ladies and gentlemen, that’s Athena, the mysterious masked singer. As you all know, our theme for the Product Launch is Mystery Jewels. Her enigmatic charisma is suited to our theme. Aside from that, she has a lot of fans all over the world. It will be good for our jewels to be promoted by her. A new face!" Bella started to present the advantages of choosing Athena.

"Furthermore, she can also perform during the event to entice more clients and customers. The other endorsers are in the field of acting and modeling wherein they can’t perform like Athena. Entertaining the VIP guests with her captivating voice is also an additional bonus for us! Instead of inviting other performers, we can let our endorser perform. It’s cost-effective!"

The room buzzed with different reactions– some nodding in approval while others shrugging their shoulders and undecided.

"That’s the end of my presentation. Thank you for listening." Bella humbled herself as she graciously bowed her head before returning to her seat.

The discussion became lively as members shared their opinions, debating the pros and cons of each candidate. Some argued for the reliability of Minerva, a more established celebrity in their country, while others championed Athena’s fresh and mysterious appeal.

After the presentations and mini-deliberations, Chairman Alfonso announced the start of the voting process. Using their respective tablets and laptops, all the board members and stockholders were now ready to cast their online votes.

They had to click one name and once they pressed submit, their votes would be flashed on the screen, and the system would automatically add the total votes per candidate.

Sasha cast a glance at Dominique who was lost in his thoughts. ’I have nothing to worry about. I have my husband’s support, including his allies. As a privilege for owning fifty percent of a company’s share, his vote is equivalent to ten points.’

Dominique was now holding his tablet. He stared at Athena and Minerva’s name for a long moment, contemplating. He promised Sasha he would vote for Minerva.

Several board members already submitted their votes. The tension heightened as the votes were counted. Accumulated votes were now being displayed on the screen wherein Minerva was in the lead with six points.

Because of Dominique’s influence, the closest board members and shareholders followed his request to vote for Minerva.

Dominique was about to cast his vote, supporting Minerva, when suddenly an urgent message popped up on his tablet screen.

Upon opening the message, the color drained from his face as he saw a photo that sent shockwaves through him. He struggled to find words to describe the turmoil within him.

The urgent message from his subordinate had altered his perspective, forcing him to change his decision about whom he should vote for.

Dominique’s hand trembled slightly as he processed the implications of what he saw in the captured photo. Without a second thought, Dominique changed his mind, choosing Athena instead of Minerva.

After pressing the submit button, Dominique rose from his seat.

"I need a moment," Dominique uttered, his voice strained. He excused himself from the meeting room, leaving the others, especially Sasha, in a state of confusion.

Before they knew it, the voting procedure was done. Ignoring Dominique’s sudden departure, Chairman Alfonso announced the result. "The majority has spoken. We have chosen Athena to be our product endorser! The Marketing Team should do their best to recruit her and negotiate with her manager!"