Chapter 3: The Last Option

By the seventh day, I had stopped counting how many times I had heard the word no. It came from banks that had once competed for my father's business, from investors who had praised Bennett Industries during better years, and from companies that were suddenly too cautious to become involved with us. Every conversation ended the same way. They liked the company, respected its history, and understood that it could recover, but none of them wanted to risk their money while the debt held by Cross Enterprises remained unresolved.

I sat at my desk that morning with three financial proposals spread in front of me, searching for a weakness in my recovery plan that I could fix before another investor found it. The numbers were not impossible. Bennett Industries still owned valuable assets, our manufacturing division had profitable contracts, and several clients had already expressed their willingness to renew their agreements once the financial uncertainty was resolved. The problem was that we needed immediate capital, and nobody wanted to provide it while Cross Enterprises could still demand payment and force the company into liquidation.

Maya entered my office carrying a folder and closed the door behind her. “I have an update from the investor we contacted yesterday,” she said as she placed the folder on my desk.

I looked up from the documents and asked, “Is it good news?”

Maya shook her head slightly before answering, “Not exactly. They declined, but they gave us the name of another investment group that might be interested.”

I opened the folder and studied the information before asking, “How quickly can we arrange a meeting?”

“They can meet tomorrow afternoon,” Maya replied.

“Arrange it,” I said. “I will take the meeting myself.”

Maya hesitated before asking, “Celine, what happens if they say no too?”

I closed the folder and answered, “Then we find someone else.”

“You have been saying that since you came back from Cross Enterprises,” Maya reminded me. “What happens when there is no one else?”

Her question remained with me after she left, because I had been avoiding the same thought myself. I could keep calling investors, banks, and potential partners, but Bennett Industries was running out of time, and every rejection made the next conversation more difficult. Still, I refused to let myself think about Nathan's offer. Accepting his proposal would solve the immediate crisis, but it would also mean entering a marriage with a man I barely understood and whose motives I could not trust.

I spent the next two days preparing for the meeting, reviewing every figure and rebuilding the proposal from the ground up. I wanted the investors to see what I saw whenever I looked at Bennett Industries: a damaged but valuable company with the potential to recover. I refused to let them see desperation because desperation was exactly what would make them walk away.

The meeting lasted nearly two hours, and for most of it, I believed I might finally have found the solution I needed. The investment group asked detailed questions about our contracts, operating costs, and restructuring plan, and I answered each one confidently while explaining exactly how their capital would be used. By the time I finished, one of the investors leaned back in his chair and told me that the company had potential. For the first time in days, I allowed myself to feel hopeful.

That hope disappeared twenty minutes later when the investor returned from a private discussion with his legal advisers and placed my proposal on the table. “Miss Bennett, we believe your recovery plan is sound,” he said carefully.

I leaned forward and asked, “Then what is stopping you?”

“The debt held by Cross Enterprises,” he answered. “Our lawyers believe they have too much control over your company's immediate financial position.”

I forced myself to remain calm as I replied, “The debt can be restructured. I am prepared to negotiate reasonable terms.”

He shook his head before answering, “Our legal team has advised us not to proceed unless that situation changes.”

“Did they recommend another option?” I asked.

“They suggested that you speak with Nathan Cross directly,” he replied.

I gathered my documents slowly, refusing to let my disappointment show. “Thank you for your time,” I said before standing.

By the time I returned to the office, I was exhausted, frustrated, and more determined than ever not to give Nathan the satisfaction of being right. That evening, Maya found me still working through another set of financial reports and placed a cup of coffee beside my laptop.

“You need to go home,” she said.

I continued studying the figures as I answered, “I have twenty-two days left, and I cannot afford to waste any of them.”

“You cannot solve everything tonight,” Maya replied.

“I know,” I admitted. “But I need to find something that works.”

Maya pulled the chair opposite me and looked at me seriously before asking, “Have you considered accepting Nathan's offer?”

I immediately shook my head as I answered, “No.”

“You do not even know what I was going to say,” Maya pointed out.

“I know exactly what you were going to say,” I replied. “You think I should marry him because it would save the company.”

Maya sighed before explaining, “I think you should consider every option before the deadline.”

“I have considered it,” I said firmly. “Nathan Cross is the last person I want to depend on.”

Maya studied me for a moment before asking, “Is that because you believe he would control you?”

“That is part of it,” I admitted. “But there is something else.”

“What is it?” Maya asked.

I looked away from her before answering, “I don't understand him.”

Maya frowned as she asked, “What do you mean?”

“If he wanted Bennett Industries, he could buy it,” I explained. “If he wanted revenge against my family, he already has enough power to destroy us. Instead, he offers to save the company if I marry him. There has to be a reason.”

Maya was quiet for a moment before saying, “Maybe he wants you.”

Her words unsettled me more than I wanted to admit, but I quickly dismissed the possibility. “That does not make sense,” I replied. “Nathan barely knows me. He has met me only a few times, and most of those times I was accusing him of ruining my family.”

Maya gave me a knowing look before answering, “People do strange things when they are interested in someone.”

“I am not going to marry a man because you think he likes me,” I replied.

“I did not say you should,” Maya said. “I only think you should stop assuming that you already understand what Nathan wants.”

After Maya left, I returned to my financial reports, but her words stayed in my mind. I wanted to dismiss them completely, yet I could not ignore the fact that Nathan's proposal made no sense from a purely business perspective.

The next morning, the final investor on my list sent their response. They had reviewed the company's financial records and decided against investing, leaving me staring at the message with the uncomfortable realization that I had exhausted every serious option I could find. I looked at the calendar on my desk and calculated the remaining time. Twenty-one days were left.

I picked up my phone and opened the message Nathan had sent me after our first meeting. His number was still there, and for several seconds I considered calling him. I could ask what his offer really meant, find out exactly what he wanted from me, and perhaps negotiate terms before the situation became even more desperate. But making that call would also mean admitting that I needed something from him, and I was not ready to surrender that victory.

I locked my phone and placed it face down on the desk, determined to use every remaining day to find another solution. Yet as I stared at the financial reports covering my desk, I could no longer ignore the truth that had been growing harder to avoid with every rejection. Nathan Cross was becoming my last option.