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Chapter 3

Author: Jasmine Flower
I spent the rest of the day handling my personal affairs.

By the time I returned to Horizon Dynamics the following afternoon, a crowd had gathered outside my office.

Susan was sitting in my chair with one leg crossed over the other while two members of the cleaning staff threw my files into cardboard boxes.

She picked up a limited-edition fountain pen from my collection and tossed it into the trash.

It struck the bottom of the bin with a sharp metallic sound.

“Move faster,” Susan ordered.

“Mr. Carter said this office belongs to me now. I don’t want any of Ms. Moretti’s things left behind.”

I pushed through the crowd and entered the office.

“Susan, who gave you permission to touch my belongings?”

She turned my chair toward me and smiled brightly.

“The CEO did.”

“I’m the new general manager. I thought I’d help you pack so you wouldn’t have to come back later.”

“What are you talking about?”

Her smile widened.

“I now own twelve percent of Horizon Dynamics.”

“You only own eleven.”

“That means the general manager position belongs to me.”

I stared at her.

A moment later, Ethan walked into the office.

“Susan has performed well recently,” he said. “She also helped bring in several new projects.”

“The twelve percent equity stake is a reward she earned.”

I looked at the man I had loved for five years and barely recognized him.

“You transferred twelve percent of your forty-nine-percent stake to her just so she would own one percent more than I do?”

“You gave away part of your company simply to place her above me?”

At last, I understood what he was doing.

He did not need anyone to believe Susan was more capable.

He only wanted everyone to know that he could decide who stood above me.

A trace of discomfort crossed Ethan’s face.

It disappeared almost immediately.

“When did you become this petty?”

“I’ve already made my decision. Susan will take over your position starting today.”

He lowered his voice as though he were trying to be generous.

“I booked you a trip to the Maldives. Take some time off and clear your head.”

“When you come back, we’ll get married. I’ll buy you a two-million-dollar wedding dress. That’s twice as much as the one you purchased.”

I did not answer.

Ethan mistook my silence for surrender.

His expression softened, and he stepped closer.

“Ellie, as long as you stop fighting me over everything, I’ll give you anything you want.”

I pushed his hand away.

“I’m not resigning.”

The warmth vanished from his face.

“At home, I can love you, spoil you, and let you have your way.”

“But this is a company, and I am the CEO.”

He looked around the room, making sure everyone could hear him.

“So I am formally informing you that your employment with Horizon Dynamics has been terminated.”

I met his gaze.

“You became CEO because you used to be the company’s largest shareholder.”

Ethan frowned.

I continued.

“You aren’t anymore.”

“Moretti Group now owns forty percent of Horizon Dynamics, which makes it the company’s controlling shareholder.”

For a moment, Ethan looked stunned.

Then he laughed.

“So what?”

“Moretti Group has never interfered in daily operations. They gave me full management authority years ago.”

He lifted his chin.

“This company still answers to me.”

The office door opened behind him.

A man in a dark suit entered with two attorneys.

Ethan immediately recognized him as the head of Moretti Group’s North American investment division.

His entire demeanor changed.

“Mr. Romano,” he said, hurrying forward with an eager smile. “I wasn’t told you were visiting. I would have arranged a proper welcome.”

Nicholas walked past him without offering his hand.

Then he stopped in front of me and lowered his head.

“Miss Moretti,” he said respectfully.

“We’ve completed the acquisition. Your family now controls fifty-two percent of Horizon Dynamics.”

Ethan’s smile disappeared.
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  • The Empire He Built on My Name   Chapter 8

    Running the old district proved far more exhausting than rebuilding it.I left the estate at seven every morning with three folders waiting in the back seat of my car.My mother’s medical reports improved with every follow-up appointment. By her third examination, the doctor removed the cardiac monitor beside her bed.One afternoon, my father and I spoke in his study for several hours.When we came out, he gave Lorenzo a single nod.In the Moretti family, that was the highest approval a man could receive.One morning in October, Lorenzo posted a video on social media.We were standing on the second-floor terrace of a construction site, both dressed in white shirts. A redevelopment blueprint covered the entire table in front of us.Neither of us spoke.The final shot showed us lifting our heads at the same time and looking toward the city ahead.The caption contained only two words:A new legacy.The video passed one hundred million views.A major Wall Street publication ran a feature a

  • The Empire He Built on My Name   Chapter 7

    “Everyone at Horizon Dynamics looked to you.”Ethan’s voice grew sharper as he continued.“When the engineering department had a technical problem, they went to you. When the legal team faced a difficult negotiation, they wanted you in the room.”“Whenever finance submitted a new budget, they asked for your opinion before they asked for mine.”His fingers tightened around the glass.“I was the CEO.”“But whenever anyone talked about Horizon Dynamics, they called it Elena Moretti’s company.”“I sat in that office every day feeling like I was working for you.”His breathing became uneven.“So I tried to put you beneath me.”“It was the only way I knew how to protect what was left of my pride.”He looked directly into my eyes, waiting for sympathy.“Ethan,” I said calmly, “I don’t hate you.”Hope flashed across his face.It disappeared when I continued.“I don’t feel anything for you anymore.”“Hating someone requires remembering them.”I looked at the man in front of me.“You are no long

  • The Empire He Built on My Name   Chapter 6

    “Only an insecure man calls a capable woman controlling,” Lorenzo said.He looked at me without hesitation.“I’ve never thought you were too much. I’ve only ever thought you were exceptional.”I smiled but said nothing.One year later, the main street of Palermo’s old district reopened.Nearly every major media outlet in Sicily attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony.I stood near the edge of the crowd while Lorenzo walked up behind me and rested one hand naturally against my waist.“Tired?” he asked.I shook my head.For the first time in years, there was no pressure in my chest and no constant sense that I needed to make myself smaller for the man beside me.Lorenzo never feared my ambition.Whenever I pushed forward, he was always there to push with me.Ethan appeared outside the Moretti estate on a damp evening.My mother had been feeling well enough to walk that day, so I was helping her along one of the paths through the olive grove when a hoarse voice carried from beyond the iron g

  • The Empire He Built on My Name   Chapter 5

    My father cleared his throat.“We should go inside. Your mother has been waiting a long time to see you.”The moment we reached the estate, I hurried upstairs.My mother was propped against the headboard in her bedroom. More than half her hair had turned white, and her face was thinner than I remembered.But when she saw me, her tired eyes immediately brightened.“Elena.”She held out her hand.I dropped to my knees beside the bed and pressed my face into her palm.“I’m staying,” I said.I lowered my forehead to the back of her hand.“I’m never leaving you again.”A few days later, I placed a redevelopment proposal in front of Lorenzo.He was sitting in the Moretti estate’s library, reviewing a shipping manifest from Naples. He set it aside and opened my proposal.Every section included its own financial model and risk assessment. The notes beneath each projection identified permit deadlines and approval windows down to the exact week.After reading the first three pages, Lorenzo close

  • The Empire He Built on My Name   Chapter 4

    Ethan slowly turned toward me.“Your family?”His eyes moved from Nicholas to me, as though he were trying to force the words to make sense.“What does he mean, your family?”Nicholas placed the shareholder resolution on the desk.“Ms. Elena Moretti is the only daughter of Don Vittorio Moretti and the sole heir to the Moretti family.”The office fell completely silent.Ethan’s face lost all color.“Elena Moretti?”He shook his head.“No. You told me you walked away from your family. You said you had nothing.”“I said I chose to live without their money,” I replied. “I never said my family had nothing.”His gaze dropped to the resolution.Moretti Group now controlled fifty-two percent of Horizon Dynamics.For five years, Ethan had believed he was building an empire of his own.He had never realized that the largest investor behind his company belonged to the family I had left for him.Nicholas turned toward him.“Now that Moretti Group holds a controlling interest, the board has passed

  • The Empire He Built on My Name   Chapter 3

    I spent the rest of the day handling my personal affairs.By the time I returned to Horizon Dynamics the following afternoon, a crowd had gathered outside my office.Susan was sitting in my chair with one leg crossed over the other while two members of the cleaning staff threw my files into cardboard boxes.She picked up a limited-edition fountain pen from my collection and tossed it into the trash.It struck the bottom of the bin with a sharp metallic sound.“Move faster,” Susan ordered.“Mr. Carter said this office belongs to me now. I don’t want any of Ms. Moretti’s things left behind.”I pushed through the crowd and entered the office.“Susan, who gave you permission to touch my belongings?”She turned my chair toward me and smiled brightly.“The CEO did.”“I’m the new general manager. I thought I’d help you pack so you wouldn’t have to come back later.”“What are you talking about?”Her smile widened.“I now own twelve percent of Horizon Dynamics.”“You only own eleven.”“That mea

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