Anna's POV
The screen on my phone lit up, and I immediately felt the pull of dread tighten in my chest.
Joint Phoenix Project Meeting 9:00 AM Tomorrow
Location: Simpson HQ – Boardroom B
I stared at it for a few seconds, my jaw clenching. No warning. No discussion. Just a forced summons with barely twelve hours' notice.
Typical Jack.
I didn't move, didn't blink, didn't even bother hiding the cold fury creeping beneath my skin. Not this time.
"Daniel. Rachel." My voice sliced through the quiet of my office. "Clear your schedules. You're coming with me to the Phoenix meeting."
Rachel appeared in the doorway almost instantly, heels clicking against the polished floor. She already had her tablet in hand. "Just the three of us? What about Sean and the rest of the technical team?"
My eyes never left the glowing screen. "Exactly what they want. If we show up with our full team, they'll spin it as formal mediation."
She hesitated. "And this isn't mediation?"
"No," I said flatly, finally setting my phone down. "It's an ambush."
Daniel stepped inside, brow furrowed. "Ms. Shaw, walking in outnumbered could be interpreted as weakness."
I stood, tugging my jacket into place with deliberate care. My spine straightened. My voice, calm and razor-sharp.
"Or confidence."
I looked him straight in the eye.
"I am Shaw Corp, Daniel. I don't need a wall of people behind me to prove it."
The next morning, Simpson HQ was already buzzing when we arrived. The receptionist looked vaguely startled when she saw only the three of us walk in. Good.
By the time we reached the boardroom, Jack was already seated at the head of the table like a self-crowned king, surrounded by eight of his executives. Every last one of them in matching charcoal suits, their expressions smug, territorial. Hungry.
I didn't rush.
Instead, I paused just inside the doorway and surveyed the scene like a queen surveying a battlefield. I could feel Rachel and Daniel behind me, silent and composed, the air thick with tension.
I walked to the table with measured grace, set down my notes minimal, intentional and settled in. Rachel took her seat to my left, Daniel to my right. Together, we formed a quiet wall of defiance.
Jack's eyes narrowed.
"You're late," he said, voice edged with practiced disapproval.
I slowly checked my watch, allowing the pause to stretch. "I'm exactly on time, Jack. Maybe your clock's fast."
The corner of his jaw twitched.
"Where's the rest of your team?" he demanded. "The technical leads? Sean?" He said Sean's name like it was something he wanted to spit out.
"I'm here," I replied, evenly. "Shaw Corp is fully represented."
"You're not taking this seriously."
"On the contrary," I said, folding my hands on the table. "I take this project very seriously. So seriously, I chose to represent my company personally rather than send a parade of suits."
I let my eyes drift, unhurried, across the faces of his executives.
"Can your people speak with the same authority for Simpson Group?"
There was a small but noticeable shift two of the suits exchanged glances. A flicker of discomfort.
Jack's face flushed dark red.
Before he could retaliate, Lucy always so eager to play the part of polished assassin leaned forward. Her smile was painted on, her tone falsely sweet.
"We noticed Sean isn't here," she said, eyebrows drawn in mock concern. "He was supposed to be one of the key participants in today's discussion."
"Sean is my employee," I said, voice still calm. "He doesn't need to be here for this conversation. I trust him implicitly, and I have no intention of removing him from the Phoenix Project."
One of the executives cleared his throat. "Ms. Shaw, if I may. Your appointment of a… companion… to a leadership position in a high-stakes initiative like Phoenix is—"
"Escort?" I cut in sharply, brow raised. "That's what we're calling it now?"
His face didn't move. But Lucy filled the gap with her signature syrup.
"Come now, Anna," she purred. "We all know where you found him. A young woman in your position should be more mindful of optics."
There it was.
I didn't laugh, though I wanted to.
"A young woman like myself?" I repeated, my voice clipped. "Would you offer that same advice to a man in this seat?"
"This isn't about gender," Jack interjected. "It's about your judgment. You've placed an unqualified individual with a shady background in a critical role. And we still have an unresolved data leak."
I arched a brow.
"You mean the leak of the test data Sean discovered?" I asked, casually flipping open my notes. "The one marked 'VOID'? The one someone planted to frame Trevor?"
Lucy's smile cracked. Only slightly. But enough.
"The investigation is ongoing," she said quickly. "In the meantime, having someone from Olympus Club involved—"
"I've made my decision," I said, voice flat and final. "Sean stays."
Jack's fist slammed into the table. Water glasses trembled. Rachel didn't flinch.
"This isn't a negotiation, Anna!" he barked. "You're risking everything we've built because of your personal involvement with that man!"
I didn't move.
"My arrangement with Sean is professional," I replied. "He reports to me. Period."
Jack straightened and pulled a folder from the table.
"Simpson Group has two conditions. One: You share Shaw Corp's core technology with us. Two: You reduce your profit share by two points."
I didn't even glance at the folder.
"Two percent may seem minor," I said, tone tightening, "but we both know what that means in the long run. And our core technology?" A bitter laugh escaped. "Why not just ask me to hand over Shaw Corp on a silver platter?"
"It's a reasonable request under the circumstances," one of the men muttered.
"Reasonable?" I said incredulously. "It's extortion."
Jack stood, straightening his jacket. "Then we're withdrawing from Phoenix."
I said nothing.
He continued, emboldened. "You have one week to vacate the research facility. The land belongs to Simpson Group. We're taking it back."
I felt Rachel's breath hitch beside me.
He was serious.
Jack's tone dropped an octave as he stepped back from the table. "You forced my hand, Anna."
He walked to the door. One by one, the others followed. "One week," he said as he left. "Get your people and your boy out."
The door closed.
Silence echoed in the room. Cold. Absolute.
Daniel looked at me. "Was he bluffing?"
I didn't need to think. "No."
Jack had always been a man who paraded his power, especially during our marriage. He used Lucy as a trophy, never once caring how public their affair was. But now, divorced and bitter, he wanted to control me like I was still his.
It was laughable.
And dangerous.
Rachel looked visibly shaken. Daniel stared at the door like it might explode open again.
"Go back to your departments," I told them. "Business as usual. I'll handle this."
"But—"
"Phoenix belongs to both our families. Jack doesn't get to destroy it because I won't bend to him."
As Daniel left, I pulled out my phone and messaged Sean:
Don't worry. Stay calm. I've got this.
Back at Shaw Corp, I paced my office. The glass walls felt too thin, the city beyond too far away. Phoenix had been my passion project something I created after our wedding to unite our families. Jack had supported it, in theory. Now he wanted to tear it apart just to punish me.
I couldn't replace Simpson Group's resources overnight.
And I sure as hell wasn't going to fire Sean.
I sat, fuming, weighing legal options and alternative sites when my phone rang.
Mr. Simpson's assistant.
"Ms. Shaw," she said crisply. "The Chairman requests your presence at the Simpson residence. Immediately."
A pause.
"He said it's not a request."
I stood.
If the lion wanted to see me I'd walk into the den myself.
Unshaken.
Unbowed.
Unbroken.