She's dangerous

“Mr Grey” Leo Grey closed the distance in smooth, deliberate strides. His hand extended toward her.

“Ms. Moretti,” he said, his voice silk over steel. “An honor.”

Zara let him take her hand. His grip was warm, practiced, the kind of touch that came from a man who knew he was watched wherever he went. He lifted her hand slowly, his gaze never leaving her face, and pressed his lips to the back of her palm.

The kiss lingered just long enough to blur courtesy into something more dangerous.

“You are,” Leo murmured, “even more striking than I expected.”

A faint curve touched Zara’s lips, but her eyes stayed cool, unreadable. She had wanted his attention, needed it, for her plan and here it was.

But before she could reply, the temperature in the room shifted.

Cassian hadn’t moved a muscle. He stood a step behind her, shoulders squared, hands in his pockets. But the air around him changed, sharp as winter glass. His gaze was fixed on Leo, a stare that stripped away charm and burned straight through to warning.

The assistants hovering nearby fell silent. Even Leo’s smile faltered for a fraction of a second under the weight of it.

Zara felt it too, that heavy, commanding presence pressing at her spine. A reminder. A possessive aura but Zara wanted to make him know she belonged to no man so she gave out a dashing smile to Leo 

Still, she kept her hand in Leo’s, her chin tilting slightly higher.

Cassian’s voice cut through the tension, calm but lethal.

“Business first, Grey. Try to remember why we’re here.”

Leo released her hand slowly, deliberately, though his eyes lingered on Zara as he stepped back. His smile returned, but tighter, touched with challenge one could see the lust from how he looked at her and within Zara she was so satisfied because she had him where she wanted 

“Of course,” he said. “But forgive me…. This beauty deserves acknowledgment before business.”

Cassian’s mouth curved faintly, but there was no humor in it. Only danger.

“Then consider it acknowledged.”

The silence that followed was thick, electric Zara caught between two predators, each staking ground in their own way.

       ****************************************

Leo slid his hands into his pockets, as though unfazed, though his eyes flicked back to Zara before he spoke. “Of course. Business.” He gestured toward the conference room ahead. “Shall we?”

They entered a room designed for intimidation—high ceilings, glass walls, a polished table that gleamed under recessed light. Papers were already waiting, each folder marked with the Grey crest.

Leo took the head of the table but leaned slightly forward, gaze alternating between Cassian and Zara. “As you know, we’re here to discuss the merger proposal. Grey Enterprises is prepared to offer forty percent stake in the joint venture. Naturally, with Wolfe Industries’ global network, we’d see rapid expansion into Europe.”

Cassian lowered into his chair with controlled ease, flipping open the folder. He scanned the numbers, expression unreadable. Then he looked up, his tone flat. “Forty percent is generous—if you were bringing equal weight to the table. But you’re not. You’re trying to use Wolfe resources to prop up an empire that’s already buckling.”

A silence followed, heavy, sharp.

Leo’s jaw tightened, but his smile never faltered. “You underestimate us, Wolfe. Grey Enterprises has assets you don’t—connections that don’t respond to brute force.” His gaze flicked back to Zara. “And relationships worth cultivating.”

Zara’s pulse jumped, but she kept her expression smooth, resting her hands lightly on the table.

Cassian leaned back, his stare cold and unwavering. “You think charm will get you what you want. It won’t. Not from me.” He let the words hang before adding, softly, “And not from her either.”

Zara felt the warning coil beneath his calm tone, directed at Leo but binding her just the same.

The air in the room thickened, every number on the page forgotten as the real negotiation began—control, attention, power.

And Zara knew she was standing at the center of it.

The folders lay untouched between them, their silence pressing harder than any numbers on paper.

Zara broke it.

“With all due respect, forty percent is an opening bid,” she said, her voice smooth but firm. “And an ambitious one. But Mr. Wolfe is right—Wolfe Industries doesn’t need this merger to survive. Grey Enterprises does.”

Leo turned his attention back to her, interest sparking in his eyes. “And yet, here you are, Ms. Moretti. If Wolfe didn’t need us, why waste your time walking into this room?”

Her lips curved, but there was steel in her tone. “Because sometimes power isn’t about what you need, it’s about what you can take.”

The room went still.

Cassian’s gaze slid toward her, sharp and assessing, as though weighing just how much she intended to reveal. He didn’t stop her. That was rare.

Leo leaned back in his chair, watching her with a half-smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Spoken like someone who understands the game.” His voice dipped, smooth and taunting. “Tell me, Ms. Moretti… is that your role here? To negotiate for Wolfe—or to distract me while he sharpens his knife?”

Cassian’s jaw ticked, his presence like ice in the room, but Zara didn’t falter. She leaned forward slightly, letting the crimson of her lips catch the light.

“My role,” she said, “is to ensure no one underestimates Wolfe Industries. Not even the Greys.”

For the first time, Leo’s smile thinned.

Cassian finally spoke, his voice a quiet threat. “You wanted an answer, Grey. Here it is. We’ll take majority control—sixty-five percent. Wolfe provides the infrastructure, the capital, and the global reach. You provide the connections. If you refuse…” His eyes cut through Leo like a blade. “Then Grey Enterprises can continue drowning on its own.”

The words landed like a verdict.

Leo didn’t respond right away. His gaze lingered on Zara—studying her, considering. Then he leaned forward, elbows on the table.

“Sixty-five,” he repeated slowly. “You drive a hard bargain, Wolfe. But maybe I prefer hearing it from her lips.” His eyes flicked back to Zara. “Tell me, Ms. Moretti… do you agree with your CEO’s terms?”

The room fell into silence again, the weight of both men’s stares pressing down on her. One cold, commanding. The other sharp, assessing.

Zara exhaled softly, letting the tension coil tighter. She knew her next words could shift the balance.

Zara didn’t answer right away. She leaned back in her chair, silk whispering against leather, one leg crossing the other. Her red lips curved in something between a smile and a dare.

Cassian’s gaze cut toward her like a blade. He expected her voice aligned with his, not this deliberate silence stretching until it felt like she was holding the room hostage.

Leo leaned in, his eyes gleaming with curiosity. “Finally,” he murmured, “someone who understands vision. Wolfe, you should value her more. She sees what you don’t.”

The words landed like bait. Zara could almost feel Cassian’s cold aura thickening, the dangerous stillness of a predator deciding whether to strike.

She let the moment breathe. Then she tilted her head and, instead of answering Leo, she turned toward Cassian.

“Mr. Grey is right about one thing,” she said smoothly. “You don’t need an assistant who only carries files. You need someone who amplifies what you already are. Wolfe doesn’t bend for numbers—he sets them.”

Leo’s smirk faltered. For a moment, he looked caught between irritation and fascination, as if she’d pulled him in only to shove him back.

And Cassian—he didn’t move, didn’t blink, but something shifted in his stare. Zara had handed him the stage again, sharpened his power with her words, and left no doubt in the room about who held the reins.

Cassian’s voice came low, steady, final. “Sixty-five. Non-negotiable.”

This time, Leo didn’t argue.

The deal was sealed, but the real move had already happened.

Because Cassian Wolfe, the man who never let anyone steer him, had just been put back in control—by Zara Moretti’s hand.

A smile curled at her lips as she stood up and walked out of the room elegantly the two men couldn't help but stare 

No one cares walk out on anyone of them 

She's dangerous