Jennifer spun toward Matthew, her grin so wide it looked like it might split her face. Her eyes sparkled, like she’d just scored a personal victory. Without hesitation, she threw her arms around him and peppered his face with kisses.“Oh my God, Rayn… you actually did it,” she whispered, breathless and electric. Her face lit up with a joy so raw, it was clear she hadn’t dared to believe this moment would ever come. “Jason Rogue doesn’t hand out chances like this unless he’s seriously interested. You just made your first real move toward building something way bigger than either of us imagined.”Matthew took a deep breath, trying to steady the storm of emotions swirling inside him, relief, disbelief, pressure. He still couldn’t quite wrap his head around what had just happened. Jason Rogue, a titan in the business world, the kind of man everyone wanted to partner with but rarely got past his ironclad gatekeepers. Most people never made it past the first layer of promises, empty ones, o

Seaside Bay sat quiet under the pale yellow glow of the streetlamps. Through the fogged-up glass window, the ocean looked like a sheet of black silk, glinting faintly. Every so often, a wave broke against the dock with a dull thud. The air was thick with salt, coffee, and the smoky scent of grilled meat fresh from the kitchen.The three men across from Matthew hadn’t said a word. The silence was heavy. Only the faint clink of a spoon from another table broke through, swallowed again by the whisper of the sea.Victor leaned back, arms crossed, eyes locked on Matthew like he was trying to peel back the layers of whatever the hell had just come out of the man’s mouth. “You talk like someone who’s lost everything,” he murmured, voice caught between pity and suspicion. “But I’ve never seen a man that wrecked still sit that straight.”Alfonso Kerr snorted, fingers drumming on the table, phone still clutched in his hand. “I’m not buying it. You could be selling dreams, Dominic Rayn. You said