After His Secret Lover Ran Away, the CEO Went Mad のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 11 - チャプター 17

In Walter's conference room, a full set of documents was spread across the table.Operating control of two Moretti hotels on the bay.A share of the profits from a private club.A new project with a bigger budget than the North Shore.There was also a letter appointing me deputy director of the Moretti family's legitimate operations. From then on, I'd report only to Walter and Alex. I'd never have to go through Claire.Alex sat across from me."The decision on the North Shore isn't going to change."I looked down and flipped through the documents."But the businesses will keep separate books, and you'll be in charge. Claire will have no authority over them, and every project you've led will stay on your record."I turned to the last page."And the profit share?""It's to make up for what you lost when the North Shore changed hands."I looked up. "You think this makes up for it?""Nora, I know the North Shore matters to you.""So your answer is to give me two hotels, a club, and an even

At first, I didn't want to go.Claire's second text arrived right after the first. "If you don't come, I can always just show up at your office."I didn't want to cause a scene at the office during my last few days there, so I had no choice but to go.The restaurant was on the top floor of a Moretti hotel in Manhattan. As far as the public knew, it was just a members-only restaurant. But Moretti security was stationed downstairs around the clock.Claire was already there.The moment I sat down, she said, "I hear you quit.""Yes.""That's for the best."She picked up her coffee. "I came here today for one reason. Once you leave New York, don't contact Alex again. Not for work, not through friends, and not because of your history."I looked at her for a few seconds. "You two are getting married. Why are you so afraid I'll contact him?"Her expression changed. "I'm not scared.""Then why are you here?""Nora, you've been with him all these years. You should know exactly where you stand. I

Before I left New York, I spent an entire afternoon going through my apartment.Alex had given me a lot of things over the years.Jewelry, watches, bags, artwork. The spare key to this apartment. And the private keycard that took me straight up to the top floor at Moretti headquarters.In the past, so many of our fights had ended with a gift.I'd genuinely liked those things.When I got them, I'd really been happy.I wasn't going to suddenly pretend I'd never loved money just because I was leaving him.The check from seven years ago had saved me.I wasn't giving back the cashier's check he'd left on the nightstand the night of my birthday, either.That money had solved real problems. I didn't need to wipe out every bit of help he'd given me just to prove I was above it all.What I was sending back was the rest.Every time he gave me one of those things, I swallowed the questions I'd meant to ask.They were supposed to be gifts. Somewhere along the way, they'd become a way to end every

I didn't delete that email.And I didn't avoid using it just because it came from Alex.If the studio wanted to break into the big hotel chains, I wasn't going to hurt the team's chances just to protect my pride.We followed the normal process. We reached out, submitted our bid, and revised our proposal.No one from the Moretti family put in a good word for us, and Alex's name didn't open any doors.During the bidding process, the chain sent our proposal back twice, questioning whether our studio was big enough to handle the work. The second time, we were up past midnight revising it when my business partner asked if I wanted to call Alex. I shook my head. It wasn't because his connections were dirty or because I had something to prove. This time, I knew exactly what I needed: public information, not someone opening doors for me.Whether we landed the contract or not still came down to our proposal.All that email had done was save us some unnecessary detours.In the end, all I wrote b