"As long as it's fast, I'll accept anything," my voice held no hesitation. "I'll accept walking away with nothing."
Thunder raged outside, lightning tearing through the sky.
Once I left here, I'd never again wait for a man who would never answer my calls.
Chapter Four
Lucas
"Sign it."
I pushed the final document across the signing table. VitaGen's legal representative was drenched in sweat, hand trembling as he took the pen.
Everyone in the ballroom watched in silence. The champagne tower glittered beneath the crystal chandeliers. People held their glasses. Conversations stayed hushed. All eyes locked on the signing table, bearing witness to the acquisition. That's the Wall Street game—dress up a hostile takeover as a social event, make bloodshed look like an elegant waltz.
When the signature appeared at the bottom of the page, applause erupted.
Six months. Finally done.
"Congratulations, Lucas." Vivian glided through the crowd in her red dress, champagne in hand. "Six months to take down VitaGen. Tomorrow's Wall Street Journal front page is all yours."
I kept my voice flat. "The credit belongs to Rockefeller Group. Not to me personally."
"You masterminded everything." Vivian pressed the glass into my hand, her elaborate manicure grazing my knuckles. "The board, those dinosaurs—they wanted your grandfather's slow-play strategy. But your plan won."
"The plan isn't perfect."
I stepped back.
Vivian moved closer, nearly pressing against me.
Her chest brushed my arm through the thin fabric of her dress. Too intimate for a public setting.
I stepped back again, deliberately creating distance.
"Tomorrow, VitaGen's going to be a circus." She sounded almost gleeful.
Warning bells went off in my head. Fifty percent staff turnover would trigger chaos. I needed to finish the restructuring fast and seize complete control.
Fast?
Start now, then.
"Back to the office." I checked my watch. Midnight. "We need the restructuring draft finished by dawn."
Vivian seemed to snap back to reality. "Now? But the party's not over. You're the guest of honor. You're just leaving?"
"I have zero interest in social events." I set my glass on a passing waiter's tray. "If it weren't for VitaGen's major shareholders, I wouldn't have stayed one minute."
I glanced back at the ballroom. Under the gaudy lights, faces caked in makeup looked even more fake through the alcohol haze. Everyone spouting insincere bullshit, making me sick with their flattery. Better to get back to Ella than waste another second here. This acquisition had already eaten too much of my personal life. I needed to wrap this up so I could take Ella on a proper vacation.
The Rockefeller Group headquarters in Midtown Manhattan blazed with lights even at night. The elevator shot straight to thetop floor. Doors opened. I walked straight to my office, Vivian right behind me.
"Pull up files on all VitaGen department heads." I rattled off the requirements. "I need to assess everyone's value."
Vivian sat at her workstation and started typing.
The next forty-eight hours felt like a marathon.
