All Chapters of Chasing The Boss: Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

The emergency board meeting was called for 8 AM on Friday morning. I'd been expecting it for days, ever since I'd started missing meetings to spend time with Lexi and prepare for the trial.I walked into the conference room to find all twelve board members already seated, their faces ranging from concerned to openly hostile. Robert Morrison, the board chair and my father's oldest friend, gestured for me to sit at the head of the table."Lucian, we need to talk," he said without preamble."I assumed as much, given the early morning summons.""This isn't a joke," snapped Patricia Wells, the board's most vocal critic of my leadership style. "You've missed three major meetings in the past two weeks. The Morrison acquisition is stalled because you haven't been available to make decisions. Our investors are starting to ask questions."I looked around the table at these people who'd known me since I was a child, who'd watched me build Cross Media Entertainment into something far more success

The relief I felt after Giselle's conviction lasted exactly eighteen hours. Tuesday morning, I walked into my office to find Gregory waiting with a grim expression and a thick folder."Sir, the board has made a decision."My stomach dropped. "And?""They want to meet with you at ten AM. Mr. Morrison asked me to give you this first."He handed me a letter with the Cross Media Entertainment logo. I knew what it was before I opened it."Motion for Vote of No Confidence in CEO Leadership" was printed across the top in stark black letters.I scanned the document quickly. Patricia Wells had drafted a formal motion calling for my removal as CEO, citing repeated absences from critical business functions, prioritizing personal matters over fiduciary responsibilities, and leadership decisions that undermine shareholder confidence."How many signatures?" I asked."Seven of the twelve board members." His voice dropped.Seven. Not quite enough for a majority, but close. If they could convince just

I couldn't concentrate on anything after Lexi left to find her father. The meeting with the potential COO candidate was a disaster because I kept checking my phone every few minutes."Mr. Cross, are you expecting an urgent call?" the candidate finally asked."I'm sorry, Sarah. Can we reschedule this? Something important has come up."After she left, I called Marcus, my head of security immediately."I need you to look into something for me," I said. "Quietly.""What can I help you with, sir?""There's a car wash on Tenth Street. I need to know if a man named Daniel Carter works there. He might be going by Jimmy now.""Any particular reason?""He might be connected to some loan sharks who could pose a threat to me and Lexi.""I'll have information for you by tonight."Next, I called my attorney."Ryan, hypothetically speaking, if someone close to me had a family member involved with loan sharks, what would you recommend?""I'd recommend calling the FBI. Loan sharking operations usuall

The rest of the afternoon felt like waiting for a bomb to explode. I'd called in every favor I had, contacted the FBI directly, and had my security team monitoring every entrance to my buildings. But none of it made me feel any better.Lexi sat curled up on my couch, staring out the window like she expected armed men to come marching up the driveway at any moment."I should have listened to you," she said for the tenth time. "I shouldn't have gone there.""What's done is done. We deal with the situation we have, not the one we wish we had."My phone rang. FBI Agent Sarah Chen, who'd been assigned to coordinate with us."Mr. Cross, we have an update. The undercover agent is alive but in custody. The Wale organization knows they have a federal agent, which means they're going to be desperate.""Desperate how?""Desperate enough to take bigger risks. Hurting civilians, targeting high profile individuals, escalating to violence faster than they normally would.""What's your recommendation

The phone’s shrill ring tore through the silence of our bedroom, jolting me from a shallow, uneasy sleep. Lexi was curled beside me, fast asleep, her breathing finally even after the horrors of the night. I snatched the phone from the nightstand before it could wake her, my heart hammering against my ribs. Calls at this hour never brought good news.“Lucian Cross,” I answered without looking at the screen, my voice a low.“Lucian, it’s Agent Chen.” Her tone was clipped, and professional, but I could hear the tone of exhaustion. “We’ve made a significant breakthrough. You need to come down to the field office. Now.”I sat up, the sheets pooling around my waist. Lexi stirred but didn’t wake up. “What is it? What did you find?” I kept my voice low.“We’ve completed the initial forensic accounting on the Wale organization’s books. We found the top.” She said.I sat up slowly, careful not to wake Lexi. “Who is it?”“It’s Ethan Shaw.”The name landed not as a shock, but as a grim confirmati