queezed her fists. "I-I don't kno

make Ivette King break a soli

e hissed, earning a h

raffic lights to turn green, she said, "What happened

hand to the base of her throat. "He never woul

Annet murmured, not taki

do, and you

it. Since they'd met at the fun fair four years ago, Ann had never bothered hiding her utmost dislike for the man. Ann perceived

face, laughing and squeakin

ay yes,

the still-crossing pedestrians. "Because no wasn't an option. I lov

write that on paper to a deaf man and he might

oved again, speeding through the lines. The moment the words left her lips,

sky, her phone buzzed and she glanced down at it. Aaron. She closed the screen and forced deep breaths into her lungs, raising

******

No

oned out through half of it while thinking about that man's tongue in places that had made her dance wil

r responsibilities to Aaron the

ll forgotten, tossed aside, and for what? To be used as a figurehead whi

month. Another decision that had been taken without her consent. They were hell-bent on driving her cra

o well to remember who owns the very floor on which

and these floors as much as you do, an

ront of him. "It has been finalized. You will get married to Mr. Maxwell and

said, surprised at t

gust. . .she couldn't tell which it was. "This is the only way you can be o

eritance away? Because I am a woman? Not the boy ch

had enough. She'd given up on her dreams of a simple life to take on the position of CEO that had basically been shoved down her throat when the company had been on th

lia King had taken it upon herself to teach Ivette what she knew of the business, of spinning words to one's advantage and how body language could very well aff

d, flipping through the pages so she could see the required signatures for the merger, and surely

Had the proposal been the final piece in the puzzle? All those meetings Aar

ht disapproval in his gaze caused her fus

already turned to meet her fathe

her heels. "I will not marry Aaron. I will

hing his dark curls away from his forehead. It was the

ld. "No. You can't

n of observing people like they were opponents that needed to be taken down. "Breaking the engagement earn a

, glaring at him with nothing but h

hen her face, and said bla

ar jar in her old bedroom at the family house, but she thought better of it an

things to ensure her place in the company, even after the merger. She'd have to sh

pun on her executive chair, turning away from the stunning v

ting the armrest. "This is

ry time. The light seeping into his twin pools of blue, the slight crinkle around

mile teased his lips as she leaned in, no doubt expecting something else