MasukAdriana’s PovEight months into being VP at Apex, I was in a conference room reviewing our latest bias audit when my phone rang with an unfamiliar number."This is Adriana.""Ms. Castellano, I'm calling from the Women in Tech Summit. We'd like you to give our keynote address next month in San Francisco."I set down my pen. "Keynote?""We are expecting two thousand attendees, mostly women in technology and AI. We want someone who can speak on building ethical frameworks and navigating the tech industry as a woman. Your work at Apex makes you the perfect speaker."After I hung up, I sat staring at my calendar. Two thousand people. A keynote about ethics in AI and women in tech. I could do the professional version, stick to algorithms and policy. Or I could tell the truth about what it actually took to get here.Later in the evening, I was lying with my head on Zayn’s chest. Then I told him about the invitation."Are you going to do it?" he asked."I think so, but I'm terrified.""Of the
Adriana's POVEighteen months into living in California, I was on the floor building a block tower with Lily when my phone rang with a number I didn't recognize."This is Adriana." I said."Adriana, this is Rebecca Martinez from Apex Intelligence. We spoke a few years ago about a director position."My hands stopped mid-block placement. "Dr. Martinez, yes, I remember."“We’ve been following your work closely,” Rebecca continued. “Your healthcare bias report and the panel you spoke on last quarter made a strong impression on our board.”"Now, I'm calling because we have a new opportunity that might interest you. Do you have a few minutes to talk?"I looked at Lily who was now knocking over the tower we'd just built. "Sure, let me just move somewhere quieter."I went to the home office and closed the door, my heart already racing."We're creating a VP of Ethics position to lead our entire ethics division," Rebecca continued. "You'd be shaping AI policy at the executive level, managing a
Zayn’s PovThe California sunset looked different from the office window than it had from the penthouse in New York—softer somehow, stretched across more sky.I was closing my laptop at five thirty when Patricia knocked on my open door."Heading out?" She had a stack of contracts in her hands."Yeah, hosting dinner tonight." I stood and grabbed my jacket. "Can those wait until morning?""Absolutely, have a good evening." She paused. "The team's really clicking, by the way. I think we found our rhythm here."Driving home took twenty minutes instead of the forty-five I'd dealt with in Manhattan, and I still wasn't used to how much easier that made everything. More time with Lily before bed, more time helping Adriana with dinner, more time just being present.At home, Adriana was setting up the back patio with string lights while Lily toddled around pointing at things and naming them."Tree! Bird! Dada!""Hey, baby girl." I scooped her up and she immediately grabbed my tie. "Are you help
Adriana's POVFinally this place is becoming more like home. I joined a mothers' group that met at a community center three blocks from our house, and I stood outside the door for five full minutes before forcing myself to walk in.Inside, eight women sat in a circle with babies and toddlers playing on foam mats in the center. Everyone looked up when I entered and I immediately wanted to leave."Hi, you must be new!" A woman with curly red hair waved me over. "I'm Melissa, that's my daughter Emma destroying the block tower.""Adriana, and this is Lily." I set Lily down and she immediately crawled toward the toys."How long have you been in the area?" Another woman asked."Three weeks ago, we moved from New York for my husband's company.""Oh, I'm from New York too!" Melissa's face lit up. "Brooklyn originally. What part?""Manhattan."We ended up talking through most of the session while our daughters played together. Emma was a month older than Lily and already walking confidently wh
Zayn’s PovMonths later, Connor and Sage must be enjoying the youth of their marriage while I woke up in a San Francisco hotel room for the third time that week and immediately wanted to go home.Except home was being packed into boxes in New York, and in four days it would be here in California, and I wouldn't have to choose between my family and building this company anymore.My phone buzzed with a video from Adriana. Lily taking wobbly steps across the living room, Adriana's voice in the background saying "Come to Mama, you can do it!"I watched it three times before getting out of bed.Two months of flying back and forth between coasts had nearly killed me. I’d leave Sunday night, work Monday through Thursday in San Francisco, fly home Thursday evening to spend three days with Adriana and Lily, then repeat. Patricia kept telling me it was unsustainable and I kept telling her just a few more weeks.Now it is finally happening. The movers were coming tomorrow to pack the penthouse
Adriana's POVLily was ten months old when Sage got married at the botanical garden, and I was standing in a bridesmaid dress that fit perfectly, holding my daughter on my hip while my best friend prepared to walk down the aisle. “You looked beautiful," I told Sage in the bridal suite, adjusting her veil with my free hand while Lily grabbed at the tulle."I'm so nervous." Sage's hands were shaking. "Is that normal?""Completely normal, I threw up twice before my ceremony." I shifted Lily to my other hip. "But once you're up there with Connor, everything else disappears."The ceremony was outside under an arbor covered in white roses. Connor was already crying before Sage even appeared, and when the music changed and she started walking, he completely broke down. His best man handed him tissues and I watched my best friend
Zayn's POVMy phone rang at eight in the evening and her name on the screen made my heart skipped a beat.I answered immediately. "How did it go?""I survived." Her voice sounded exhausted. Raw. "Seven to five vote. I can stay but I'm under scrutiny. Two weeks to prove I'm innocent."Relief hit me
Adriana's POVI woke up thinking about what comes next, my mind already three steps ahead the way it always was when I'd solved one problem and needed another to chase. Zayn was asleep beside me, one arm thrown across my waist. I slipped out carefully without waking him.The apartment was quiet, ju
Adriana's POVI woke up to Zayn's arm heavy across my waist, his face buried in my hair and his breathing slow with sleep. For a moment I just lay there feeling the warmth of him against my back, the rise and fall of his chest, the way his fingers splayed possessively over my stomach even in uncons
Adriana's POVThe email from Reeve Technologies' HR department sat in my inbox like a countdown timer, subject line reading "Sabbatical Leave Ending - Return Date Confirmation" and I stared at it for ten minutes before finally opening it. My four weeks were almost up, they needed to know if I'd be







