Adira's POV
The email came in at 7:03 a.m.
Ristone Capital has withdrawn its offer. Effective immediately.
One of my largest investors, gone. Just like that.
By 8 a.m., my office was buzzing with panic. My assistant was fielding calls from board members, staff whispered in corridors, and I sat in my glass-walled office staring at the email, bile rising in my throat.
Ashley had struck. And this time, it wasn't gossip. It was money.
By noon, I was in a private conference room, staring across the table at two men I never thought I'd sit between: Jayden Craig and Kendrick Onowo.
Jayden was calm, as always, scrolling through data on his tablet. Kendrick leaned back in his chair, sharp suit, sharper jaw, arms folded like he owned the place. The air between them crackled — oil and fire.
And I was the one caught in the middle.
"Ristone pulling out was calculated," Jayden said smoothly. "Ashley has positioned herself as their poster child. They think glamour outweighs substance."
Kendrick snorted. "That's because half the men running Ristone would sell their souls for five minutes in Ashley's company."
I shot him a look, but he only shrugged. "What? I know them. I've done deals with them. They're predictable."
"Then predict this," I snapped. "What's her next move? Because I can't keep bleeding investors like this."
Jayden's gaze locked on mine. "She'll try to destabilize your brand perception. Make it seem like you're dependent, unstable, a shadow of her shine. Investors will follow the narrative unless we cut it off at the source."
"And how exactly do we do that?" I asked, my voice tight.
Kendrick leaned forward, surprising me with his seriousness. "By fighting her where she's weakest. She's all image, no infrastructure. You've built systems, loyalty, real growth. We expose that gap. We hit her back with numbers, strategy, things she can't fake with a smile and a designer dress."
Jayden's lips twitched in faint approval. "For once, we agree."
The two men shared a look not friendly, not hostile, but something grudgingly respectful.
And I sat there, caught between the billionaire who had been my silent shadow and the ex-bully turned banker who suddenly wanted to play ally.
It felt like war. And somehow, I was both the prize and the general.
Sam's POV
I watched through the glass wall, arms folded. Tiana stood beside me, whispering, "Is it just me, or does this feel like the plot of a very expensive drama?"
I almost laughed, but the tension was too thick.
Adira was in the middle of two storms Jayden with his quiet intensity, Kendrick with his surprising bluntness and Ashley, always circling, ready to strike again.
And me?
I wasn't sure if I was here as Adira's protector, or if fate was dragging me into my own collision with Kendrick. Because the way he carried himself now... it wasn't the boy I remembered.
And my heart, traitorous thing, noticed.
Ashley's POV
From her penthouse suite, she scrolled through the headlines, smiling.
Ristone drops Williams. Ashley steps in as new face of luxury expansion.
She'd cracked the first wall.
But she wasn't stopping until the whole empire collapsed.
And if Jayden Craig thought he could keep shielding Adira, she'd drag him into the fire, too.