My Duplicated Husband novel · Chapter 6 of 24

Chapter 6: Board Meeting

The boardroom at Penhallow Boatworks looked out over the marina, and every chair at the long table was full.

Six board members stared at my husband as he walked in.

I walked in beside him with my hand tucked in his elbow.

Nobody said hello.

The chair, a heavy old man who had known Lorne's father, took off his glasses and put them on again.

"Lorne," he said. "Good Lord, son. What happened to you?"

"I got sick," Lorne said.

It was a simple answer, and it was true as far as he knew.

He'd put on a navy suit that hung from his shoulders and looked ten years older than he had at breakfast.

I'd tried to pin the waist, and he had laughed at me.

Then he had pulled me close in the closet and kissed me until I forgot what I was doing.

Now he stood at the head of his own table, and his hand was cold in mine.

"Sit," I whispered.

He sat.

Dina was already at his right, with a leather folder squared in front of her.

She gave him her warmest smile.

"Welcome back. We've missed you."

"I'm sure you have," Lorne said.

She flicked a glance at me.

"Shall we begin? We have a quorum, and there's one urgent item."

"Lorne has been unwell, and the last quarter has been so heavy on him."

"Has it," I said.

"It's a simple measure. A temporary proxy, so the company can function while he recovers."

"The board votes his shares through the next quarter, with myself as his designated agent."

She opened the folder and slid a document across the polished wood.

It was four pages, stapled, with a yellow flag at the signature line.

"He just needs to sign here," she said. "And here. And initial the corners."

Lorne looked down at it.

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