The CEO's Proposition

SAVANNAH My husband didn’t love me anymore. His love burned out for some time now, leaving me with a void in my heart and an ache in my body that I believed would be filled with new flames when the old spark returned. But the coldness remained. Our usual bond had faded, and the lovemaking didn’t feel as good as it used to. It was hurried and robotic. I tried several times to figure out what had gone wrong. I married Edward after we graduated from NYU. We’d been together since we were eighteen, so we decided it was time to settle down. I was crazy in love and nothing else mattered but him. For starters, Edward stopped telling me he loved me. Second, he didn’t want a child. I understood we were busy, but we had been married for five years. Finally, where did he go on Saturday nights, and why did he often change his phone password? Edward stepped out of bed after our loveless sex, letting the blanket fall to the floor. “Would you like to join me in the shower?” “No, I’m still not fe

SAVANNAH“Edward did what?” Wesley’s voice thundered in the coffee shop at Midtown we always went to.“Hey!” I hissed.“Sorry.” He gritted his teeth. “I’m going to fucking kill him, Savannah. I don’t care if he has a rich aunt.”Riley patted her older brother’s arm. “Relax, dude. That’s not helping.”The three of us had been best friends since our early teens. We were supposed to be four, but Sofia returned to Mexico for college, and we hadn’t seen her since.“So, what are you going to do?” Wes asked.I rested my chin on my palm. “He can go to hell. I’ll resign from my position at New Star Media.” I looked at Wes. “You said you have a vacancy in your department. Is it still open?”“So, you’ve finally considered that now, huh?”Wesley Allen was associate marketing director at Sebastian Entertainment Group. The company was founded as a record label, but after acquiring subsidiaries, it expanded into a global mass media and entertainment studio conglomerate with a net worth of eighty-fiv

SAVANNAH “What? ‘You looked exhausted? That’s the difference between us?’” Riley quoted Sofia’s words in rage. We were now at the bar, drinking our favorite cocktails. “I will cut her tongue when I see her.” Wesley laughed that he almost teared up. “Are you sure that’s Sofia?” “Why would she lie about it?” I said. Riley hugged me. “That’s okay. Let’s just forget about her.” “Yes, so let’s change the subject. Hey, I sent my resume,” I told Wes. “Did you get it?” “Yes, but I couldn’t show it to my boss,” Wes replied. “He’s busy with something the CEO asked him to do.” “That’s fine. I can wait.” Wesley clapped his hands and rubbed them together. “Great. You know I really need your marketing knowledge and organizational skills. You’ve helped Amara with your ideas. I’m surprised she let you go.” Edward was still her nephew. Of course, she’d choose him. “Nah. I’m glad she let me go.” “Listening to you sounds exhausting,” Riley suddenly commented. “I still think owning a r

SAVANNAH I kept myself busy the entire day, avoiding Edward. He was preoccupied with work, so I assumed he had no time for a coffee break. No one in the office knew about our marital issues, but I refused to tell anyone—not even Emma. Brett, who was also my boss, seemed clueless, but if he knew, he was still usually professional. “Ms. Reed?” But Brett wasn’t friendly, either. We didn’t dislike each other, but we didn’t like each other either. “Ms. Reed,” Emma’s voice pushed through my disarrayed mind. “I’m sorry. What is it?” “Are you okay?” “I’m fine. Where were we? Oh, it’s our, uh, current biggest project.” “I’m sorry. I hope you don’t mind me saying this, but it’s almost seven. Didn’t you say you have an appointment?” “Seven?” I checked my watch. God. I didn’t notice. “Ms. Reed, we still have three days.” She looked at my face curiously. “I was watching you, and you weren’t stopping. Your eyes were glued to the computer all day. Everyone went home.” I looked around our o

RAFAELI sat in the boardroom for ten days in the talk of one of my studio’s biggest film franchises. I initially planned to release the film to PeekFlix when Emilio signed. The premise would be based on the bestselling post-apocalyptic, fantasy, and science fiction book The Zion’s Code Trilogy. The books sold over one hundred million copies worldwide, so Adam suggested I read and consider them for a motion picture. I ended up liking it. With our best directors, scriptwriters, and a set of A-list actors, a big budget, the film should be huge.Movies our studios had produced were listed as the highest-grossing films so far. We’d gained millions of followers globally, so I had a good feeling about it. So, each creative team and department presented schemes for new film productions, artist screenings, scripts, and music arrangements, as well as its events and conferences, in order to execute strategic initiatives.After the series of meetings, I was behind my desk, allocating decisions,