Page 5

That changed last night and now, it was my turn to make my move.

The first one through the door was Sylvia Caldwell, who for some reason always walked like she expected to be called out for doing something she had no business doing. She was a part of my general counsel team and the mastermind behind at least half of the interventions that had kept Ashcroft Group out of some deep shit in the past decade. She said, “Good morning,” as she walked past me to find a chair to sit in.

“Morning,” I replied, without looking up. I needed to get my head in the game and stop thinking about my very first in-person encounter with Sutton Prescott.

Within ninety seconds, the rest of the executive team shuffled in and I gave them time to get seated. I let it play for another thirty seconds, then set my phone on the table with a decisive tap. Heads swiveled in my direction and I knew that I had everyone’s attention.

I stood and cleared my throat before I spoke. “Good morning. Before we get started with the agenda, I wanted to make an announcement and have work pickup on it.” I looked around the room to study everyone’s expressions before I continued. “Effective immediately, we are moving to close the Prescott Vantage deal ahead of schedule. I want this executed with urgency, precision and zero leaks. Anyone not prepared to deliver shouldn’t be in this room.”

Sylvia was the first to chime in. “Legal has drafted the initial packet, but we haven’t conducted a full review of their recent international contracts⁠—”

“Accelerate your process,” I cut in. “You’ll have access to every document you need by end of day.” I knew she’d protest, so I gave her nothing to push against.

Her eyes darted around the room but she said nothing. The rest of the team followed suit as I watched their faces take in the news I just dropped.

“Questions?” I asked. I have never believed in the open floor as a tool for team building. All it does is give power to the chronic hand-raisers and those desperate to be seen. But I do like to provide the opportunity just to see who grabs it.

James Chen, my Chief People Officer, chimed in. “There are some personnel redundancy issues with this acquisition. My team will need to coordinate with⁠—”

I shook my head before I interrupted him. “Redundancies will be handled after close. Anything else?”

There were none, of course. “Good,” I said after no one else took advantage of having the floor. “Let’s now work through the agenda.”

It was then that I took my seat once more and leaned back in my chair. I’d originally thought this meeting might be a waste of time, but given the decision I’d just announced, it was more than worth it.

And this was only just the beginning.

4

SUTTON

When I finally stepped foot into my condo and the front door closed behind me, all I could do was lean my head back on it. I couldn’t will myself to take another step because it felt as if that would take too much effort.

I stood there for a full minute, embracing the silence. Just standing there was doing a number on the tension that seemed to have settled in my shoulders. The place felt colder tonight, as if the atmosphere was trying to remind me that I lived alone. As I slid my pumps off, I could hear my bathtub calling my name. A nice soak with a glass of wine might just be the cure to all of my problems.

I enjoyed the coolness of my hardwood floors as I dropped my bag off in the kitchen, poured myself a glass of Merlot, and headed toward my bedroom. My condo occupied the eighth floor of a building in Dupont Circle, with windows that caught the last hour of sunlight on evenings when I made it home before dark. Tonight, I’d missed it by twenty minutes, but the glow from the city lights provided enough light that I didn’t bother turning on anything but one of the lamps on my bedside table.

I checked my phone one last time before setting it face down on my bed. A text from Cassandra “Cassie” Perry, my best friend, sat unread in my notifications and I made a mental note to get back to her when I was done with my bath.

Tell me you didn’t stay at the office until 9 again. Also, I have news. Call me when you’re human.

I smiled at that despite myself. Cassie had a particular talent for landing exactly between funny and concerned without tipping too far into either direction. Right now, I didn’t have the bandwidth for whatever news she was sitting on as long as it wasn’t an emergency, but there was hope that I would feel rejuvenated once my bath was over.

I peeled off my blazer and laid it across the back of the chair in the corner before moving into my bathroom. I placed my glass down near the tub and turned the faucet all the way to hot and let the steam start to build while I undressed.

I added a decent chunk of the eucalyptus bath salts I kept on the shelf above the tub and watched them dissolve into the water. Next, I tossed my towel into my towel warmer and pulled the pins that were keeping my updo stable. With a quick shake of my hair which was finally free, I stepped into the tub.

The temperature of the water was almost too much at first, but that was the point. I sank down slowly and let the water climb to my shoulders before I reached over and turned the water off. Somewhere outside, I could hear a siren in the distance and as soon as it faded, I closed my eyes.

For a while I didn’t think about anything in particular, which was an accomplishment on its own. I let the heat work through the knots across my upper back and tried to be nowhere except in this tub, in this building, in this body that had been running on adrenaline and black coffee since before the sun came up.

But my mind didn’t stay quiet for long because it never does.

Cain Ashcroft entered my thoughts once more as he had done since the day we spoke at the fundraiser. The way his suit fit him to perfection. The way he’d leaned in slightly when he spoke to me, not enough to be aggressive but just enough to make me very aware of how close he was standing to me. The quality of his attention, which was as if I was the only person in the room.

Of course, that was probably deliberate. I was also aware that knowing it was deliberate hadn’t done much to blunt the effect.

I exhaled slowly and let my head fall back against the rim of the tub. The wine was good, a rich Merlot that I’d been saving for no particular reason, and I took another slow sip before setting the glass back down. My thoughts drifted again, and this time I let them go where they wanted to go without fighting it.