Emma sat at the bar, her fingers wrapped around a glass of sparkling water. She was lost in thought, replaying the day over and over.“Rough day?” a voice asked, cutting through her thoughts.Emma looked up slightly and saw a man leaning against the bar, a faint smile on his face. He had the kind of confidence that made her skin crawl. “I could say the same about everyone here,” she replied flatly, taking a small sip from her glass.He chuckled. “Well, maybe I can make it a little better. Can I buy you a drink?”Emma shook her head. “No, thank you.” She placed her glass down firmly. “I’m not here to chat.”The man’s smile faltered for a second but returned quickly. “Come on, just one drink. I promise, no strings.”Emma didn’t answer. She reached for her wallet, paid the bartender the small tab she had gotten, and stood up. “I said no.”The man shrugged and muttered something under his breath, but Emma didn’t hear it. She pushed past him, walking toward the exit with determination, ign

“Who approved this?”Emma’s voice cut through the conference room as she slammed the printed article onto the table. The headline stared back at everyone in bold letters:HARPER CONSTRUCTION TO STOP EASTRIDGE PROJECT, SOURCES SAYMia froze mid-step. “What?” She rushed forward, snatched the paper, and scanned it quickly. Her face pale. “That… that didn’t come from us.”Emma planted both palms on the table. “Of course it didn’t, because I never approved anything like this.”Around the table, department heads shifted in their seats but no one spoke.Emma looked at each of them. “The Eastridge project is our biggest ongoing development since Titan Global pulled out. We did not halt it. We did not announce a pause. We did not brief the press. So I’ll ask again, who approved this?”Mia’s tablet lit up with alerts. “Investors are reacting already,” she said, voice tight. “Our shares are dipping and some partners are calling.”Emma exhaled slowly, forcing herself to stay calm. “Call PR now.”B

“Are you sure you’re okay?”Emma didn’t look up as she handed her card to the cashier. “I’m fine.”The woman hesitated, eyes flicking from Emma’s pale face to the small box on the counter. “Stress can do a lot,” she said gently, sliding the card reader forward.Emma forced a nod. “That’s what I said.”The machine beeped to show it was approved. She grabbed the bag before the cashier could say anything else and walked out.The evening air felt thick and heavy. Emma unlocked her car, slid into the driver’s seat, and sat there for a second longer than necessary. Her hands rested on the steering wheel, fingers stiff.“It’s just stress,” she said under her breath. She drove home in silence.The house members greeted her the way it always did now, quiet, like it had been empty all day.Emma kicked off her shoes near the door. One of them tipped over, she didn’t bother fixing it. She dropped her keys on the console table and took two steps forward before her stomach twisted sharply.“Wait—”S

“Can we start?” Emma didn’t raise her voice, but the room went quiet anyway.The projector hummed softly and a slide glowed on the wall, numbers, lines, and a sharp dip that no one wanted to look at for too long. Emma stood at the head of the table, hands resting on the back of a chair, eyes steady.Mia sat to her right, tablet in hand. Two board members sat across from them and another joined by video, his face stiff and unreadable.Mia cleared her throat. “We lost Atlas group this morning.” It was just the sound of someone shifting in their seat.“Lost?” one of the board members asked.“Paused,” Mia corrected. “They’ve paused funding the current project.”Emma nodded slowly. “For how long?”“They didn’t say.”Another board member leaned back. “That’s not the same as pulling out.”“It triggers things,” Mia said. “Automatic ones.”The room went quiet again. Emma straightened. “Which clauses?”Mia didn’t look up. “Two projects freeze immediately. One is overseas and the other is domest

Emma shut the door behind her harder than she meant to.The sound echoed through the quiet house. She stood there for a second, her back against the door, her chest rising and falling too fast. Her bag slipped from her shoulder and hit the floor.“It’s over,” she said out loud. Her voice sounded strange to her own ears. “It’s actually over.”She pushed away from the door and walked into the living room. The lights were off and she didn’t bother turning them on. She dropped onto the couch and stared at the wall.Harper Construction was gone.Her phone was face down on the table. She didn’t touch it. She didn’t want to see any more messages, any more sympathy, or any more quiet confirmations that everything she had built was finished.A bitter laugh escaped her mouth. “You promised,” she said to the empty room. “You said you wouldn’t let this happen.”Liam’s calm face came into her mind without permission. Always telling her there was time, that there was a way out, that he had her back