The Ex-Wife's Burning Elegance novel Chapter 1120

Thirty-six billion dollars.

Lauretta could put up a billion. Antoney, after speaking with his father, Nicolle Watson, could scrape together about three billion, but that was the limit—they still had to keep The Watson Group running smoothly.

Haynes could temporarily free up seven billion in liquid assets, but once he handed that over to Stella, his company would have to make every investment decision with extreme caution.

If the cash flow broke down, it would be a disaster.

Foreman, after hearing about the situation, was willing to contribute four billion. Neville could manage five billion.

Altogether, that made just twenty billion.

There was still a hole of over ten billion—impossible to fill.

Even if Stella went to Mr. Burton for a loan, there was no way he could produce sixteen billion at the drop of a hat.

Besides, she couldn’t ask Haynes, Neville, and Foreman to pour all their working capital into her project. If their companies ran into a cash crunch and couldn’t come up with the money, she’d go down in history as the one who ruined them all.

Once Stella confirmed she was in the clear, she was discharged from the hospital.

She needed to find a way to raise more funds.

Right now, her only real asset was the original shares her mother had left her.

After some thought, Stella decided to have Aicken reach out to the shareholders who had supported Nora.

Joshua saw what she was planning and caught on immediately.

“You’re thinking of selling those original shares to them?”

And selling to the shareholders who’d supported Nora was the best choice—they’d backed her mother, and they’d back her, too. If she wanted to buy the shares back someday, negotiating with them would be straightforward.

With that in mind, Stella turned to Joshua. “What do you think?”

She looked up, and caught his gaze unexpectedly—eyes dark and gentle, as if filled with a sky full of stars.

He smiled. “Given your situation, it’s by far the best option. But…”

Stella asked instinctively, “But what?”

Joshua replied, “Have you considered the Williams family? Their power is spread out, but for a family of their stature, pulling together this much capital shouldn’t be an issue.”

Stella snorted. “Of course I’ve thought about it. But the Williams family would demand my original shares in exchange—and probably try to drive a hard bargain, asking for as much as they could possibly get. They’d act as if they were doing me a huge favor, all the while scheming to get every share I own.”