Chapter 4 - THE MEETING WHERE MY HUSBAND CHOSE HER AGAINGrant's office occupied the forty-eighth floor of Mercer Tower.
I had visited it hundreds of times.
Sometimes for lunch.
Sometimes after fashion shows.
Sometimes just to surprise him with coffee when he worked too late.
His assistant, Daniel Price, always greeted me warmly.
That morning, Daniel stood as soon as I entered.
"Mrs. Mercer."
"Elena, please."
He glanced at Nadia.
Then at the folder in my hands.
"I'm sorry about everything."
The sincerity in his voice surprised me.
"Thank you."
He lowered his eyes.
"Mr. Mercer is expecting you."
The office hadn't changed.
Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked Manhattan.
A massive desk stood beneath a modern painting.
There were no family photographs.
No wedding pictures.
No evidence that Grant had a wife at all.
I had once teased him about it.
He'd explained that business required focus.
Now I wondered whether he had simply preferred a life where I occupied no visible space.
Grant stood behind his desk.
He looked as though he hadn't slept.
For a foolish second, I wanted to ask whether he'd eaten breakfast.
Old habits are difficult to bury.
"Elena."
His gaze moved to Nadia.
"Ms. Brooks."
"Mr. Mercer."
We sat.
Grant remained standing.
"I reviewed the suspension notice," he began.
"And?"
"Northline's finance department flagged payment discrepancies."
"Payments we can prove were made."
"Then the discrepancies should be corrected."
Nadia placed copies of our bank confirmations on the desk.
"We've already requested an independent reconciliation."
Grant nodded.
"I'll have someone prioritize it."
I opened my folder.
"What about Project Second Bloom?"
His expression changed.
Only slightly.
But I saw it.
"What about it?"
"Why is there an internal strategy to transfer my distribution contracts to a new partnership without my consent?"
Grant sat down.
"Elena, you're confusing preliminary analysis with a final decision."
"Then why does it say Rebecca gets operational authority?"
He looked at the document.
"Where did you get this?"
"Does it matter?"
"It matters if confidential company documents are being leaked."
I felt my patience thinning.
"Grant, I'm asking whether you signed off on a plan affecting my company."
Before he could answer, the office door opened.
Rebecca Hale walked in.
Black dress.
Cream blazer.
Perfect hair.
And around her neck, the sapphire.
My sapphire.
Not legally.
Not financially.
But in every way that mattered to the woman who had spent six months dreaming about it.
Rebecca stopped when she saw me.
Her lips parted.
"Oh. Elena."
I watched her touch the necklace.
A tiny movement.
Almost instinctive.
Or perhaps deliberate.
"Rebecca," Grant said sharply. "We're in a meeting."
"I know. Daniel said you were discussing the Northline situation."
She turned toward me.
"I thought I might help."
Nadia slowly closed her notebook.
I looked at Grant.
"Did you invite her?"
"No."
"Then ask her to leave."
Rebecca smiled.
"Elena, there's no need to be hostile."
My eyes moved to the sapphire.
"You're wearing it again."
Her fingers rested against the stone.
"Grant was very generous."
"I noticed."
She glanced at him.
"Perhaps this isn't the best time."
For one beautiful second, I thought Grant would finally do the obvious thing.
Tell her to leave.
Respect his wife's request.
Choose the woman he had married.
Instead, he said, "Actually, Rebecca has been overseeing the partnership review. She may be able to clarify the paperwork."
I stared at him.
Nadia shifted in her chair.
Rebecca sat down across from me without being invited.
She opened a leather portfolio.
"The luxury division is evaluating several opportunities," she explained. "Elena Vale Atelier has excellent brand potential, but its distribution model is inefficient."
I said nothing.
She continued.
"We could expand your reach considerably if you're willing to make a few adjustments."
"What adjustments?"
"Centralized decision-making. Consolidated vendor management. More aggressive licensing."
"And who would control those decisions?"
Rebecca folded her hands.
"An appointed partnerships committee."
"Chaired by you?"
"That's one possibility."
I glanced at Grant.
He avoided my eyes.
Rebecca leaned forward.
"Elena, I know this feels personal because of what happened last night, but business shouldn't be influenced by emotional reactions."
Something inside me went perfectly still.
"Last night?"
She hesitated.
I kept my voice calm.
"You mean my wedding anniversary?"
"Elena—"
"The evening you spent with my husband?"
Grant interrupted.
"Enough."
I looked at him.
"You're right."
Rebecca appeared relieved.
Then I stood.
"This meeting is over."
Grant rose.
"Sit down."
"No."
"Elena, we're trying to help you."
"You're trying to give my company to a woman who isn't qualified to run it."
Rebecca's smile disappeared.
"That's a very unfair assessment."
"Then show me your qualifications."
She blinked.
I continued.
"How many production teams have you managed? How many garment factories have you audited? How many fabric contracts have you negotiated? How many times have you stood in a warehouse at two in the morning because a shipment was delayed?"
Rebecca's cheeks reddened.
"I've managed luxury brand relationships for years."
"Wonderful. Then build your own company."
Silence filled the office.
I gathered my documents.
Grant moved around the desk.
"Elena, please."
I turned toward him.
"Do you know what makes this worse?"
His face tightened.
"It isn't that you gave her a necklace."
I swallowed.
"It's that you watched her sit across from me, wearing it, while she explained how she intended to take control of my life's work."
"Nobody's taking your company."
"Then prove it."
"How?"
"Terminate Project Second Bloom. Remove Rebecca from any decisions involving my company. Restore our manufacturing account."
He looked at Rebecca.
That glance lasted perhaps one second.
It told me everything.
"I can't make those decisions without reviewing the agreements."
I nodded.
"Of course you can't."
Then I looked at Rebecca.
"Congratulations."
She frowned.
"On what?"
"You finally got him to choose you in front of me."
I walked out.
Nadia followed.
In the elevator, I gripped the railing so hard my fingers hurt.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
"No."
She waited.
"But I will be."
When we reached the lobby, Nadia's phone rang.
Her expression changed as she listened.
"Can you send that immediately?"
She ended the call.
"What is it?" I asked.
"An attorney from Mercer's internal legal department contacted my office."
"And?"
Nadia studied me.
"Elena, there's another document."
"What document?"
"A proposed emergency shareholder resolution."
My stomach dropped.
"About my company?"
She nodded.
"Apparently, someone intends to argue that you're no longer fit to manage the atelier."
I stared at her.
"On what grounds?"
Nadia hesitated.
"Marital instability."
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And the person scheduled to present the proposal wasn't Rebecca.
It was Grant Mercer.
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