Chapter 3

I had barely turned toward the exit when Mia glanced at Adrian.

He gave a slight nod.

Two security guards stepped in front of me.

“You’re not leaving yet.”

Mia placed a document on the table. The heading read Project Withdrawal and Continuing Cooperation Agreement.

Two pages were enough to make me laugh.

The agreement required me to admit that I had stolen Mia’s credit, resign as Director of Business Development, transfer my voting proxy to Adrian, and continue managing the company’s investors and strategic partners for three years.

I also had to keep my personal guarantees in place and remain silent about how the relationships had been secured.

In exchange, Cross Meridian would refrain from suing me for “reputational damage.”

They wanted my silence, my contacts, and my financial backing after taking away my title.

Adrian’s electronic signature was already at the bottom.

He hadn’t made a bad decision under pressure. He had approved this agreement before Mia ever walked onto the stage.

I tapped the paper.

“You refuse to acknowledge my contribution, but you still expect me to manage your clients and guarantee your debt?”

Mia folded her arms. “It’s the least you can do after the chaos you’ve caused.”

“If you had been content to support Adrian as his fiancée instead of demanding credit, none of this would be happening.”

I closed the agreement.

“I’m not signing it.”

“I knew you wouldn’t cooperate.”

Mia nodded to the technician.

A grainy photograph appeared on the screen. It showed me entering a penthouse suite at the Blackstone Hotel at eleven that night. An older man held the door for me, his body close to mine.

The photograph had been cropped to remove our general counsel, the financial advisers, and the project team already waiting inside.

We had negotiated for seven hours before Whitmore Capital accepted the investment framework.

Our general counsel had been inside that suite with me. Now he stood near the stage and said nothing.

The complete photograph existed in Adrian’s private cloud account. I had never sent it to anyone else.

Mia let her voice turn suggestive.

“So this is what Elena calls business development. No wonder older investors are always eager to meet with her.”

Laughter moved through the ballroom.

“What exactly are you implying?” I asked.

Her eyes widened innocently. “I didn’t imply anything. I can’t control what people conclude from the photograph.”

I looked at Adrian.

“You know what happened in that suite.”

He refused to look at the screen.

“Sign the agreement, and the photograph won’t go any further.”

That was when I understood.

Mia hadn’t stolen it.

Adrian had given it to her.

“You’re letting her smear your fiancée as a whore so you can take my position and voting rights?”

“The press will be here any minute, and closing begins in less than an hour,” he said. “I can’t let investors believe this deal depends on my girlfriend.”

“So you need them to believe it belongs entirely to you.”

“I’m protecting the company.”

Mia cut in.

“A CEO and his fiancée controlling the same financing deal creates an obvious governance problem. The cleanest solution is for Elena to leave the project—and the relationship.”

Adrian’s gaze dropped to the black diamond on my finger.

“We should put the engagement on hold.”

I removed the ring and placed it on the table.

“On hold? Or have you used up everything I can give you?”

“We’ll talk when you’ve calmed down.”

I almost smiled.

For five years, I had never used the Moretti name to control him. When my father offered to buy Cross Meridian, I refused because I wanted to protect Adrian’s pride.

All I had really protected was his insecurity.

My phone lit up.

[Principessa, the withdrawal notices have been delivered. Mr. Moretti is on his way.]

I locked the screen and pushed the ring toward Adrian.

“You don’t have to wait for me to calm down. The engagement is over.”