“That woman ispure evil,” she hisses, walking briskly beside us as we head toward my office. “She’s already controlling the media narrative. The second she dropped that bomb, a story leaked aboutPerfectly Matchedfacing ‘internal instability.’” She shows me the article, and my jaw tightens:Perfectly Matched Faces Leadership Crisis – Will the Board Remove Grayson King?
I exhale sharply, rubbing a hand over my jaw. “So she waspreparedfor this exact moment.”
Margot glares at the screen. “Of course she was. She’s been planning this for years.”
Cassian and Isabella stroll behind us, still bickering about their date.
“Itoldyou I didn’t lie,” Cassian argues. “The dinner was at a Michelin-star restaurant.”
Isabella snorts. “Youneglectedto mention that we would be surrounded by finance bros debating tax loopholes over foie gras.”
“Did you or did you not have adelightfulconversation with Roger?”
“Ialmost stabbed Roger with my salad fork.”
“Ah, so you admit it was engaging.”
Margot turns, her expression exasperated. “Can you two take your weirdforeplayelsewhere? We arein the middle of a corporate crisis.”
Cassian smirks. “Foreplay? Interesting choice of words, Evans.”
Isabella scowls. “Margot, please.Do notput that thought into my head.”
I roll my eyes, pushing open the door to my office and stepping inside. Margot follows, along with Olivia, who immediately sets her tablet on the desk, pulling up various reports. I take a deep breath, centering myself. “We have forty-eight hours.” My voice is steady, controlled. “We need to turn this around before the board vote.”
Margot nods, but there’s something dangerous in her expression, something sharp and certain.
She glances at Olivia, then back at me. “We’re going to take Eleanor down,” she says simply.
I arch a brow. “How?” Her lips curl into a slow, calculated smirk. “By making sure she never sees therealattack coming.”
Cassian leans back in his chair, intrigued. “Idolove a good twist.”
Olivia sighs, already pulling up files. “This is going to be anightmare.”
Grayson King is not a King.
Eleanor believes those words are enough to take me down. But she’s wrong because with Margot by my side, I haveevery intentionof proving that bloodlines don’t determine leadership and in forty-eight hours, we will remind the board exactly whyPerfectly Matchedisours.
47
MARGOT
Grayson and I don’t waste a second. The moment the board meeting ends, the clock starts ticking. We have forty-eight hours to dismantle Eleanor’s power play, and that means no sleep, no distractions, and no room for mistakes. I lean against Grayson’s desk, arms crossed, watching as Olivia pulls up a projection ofPerfectly Matched’sfinancials on the office monitor. The numbers are stable, more than stable. Under Grayson’s leadership, the company has grown exponentially, expanding into international markets and solidifying its dominance in the matchmaking industry. Eleanor isn’t attacking him because he’sunfit. She’s attacking him because sheknowshe’s too powerful. She’s scared, which means we have leverage.
“We need to cut off her legs before she can stand,” I say, my voice sharp with purpose. “She’s relying on the narrative thatPerfectly Matchedis unstable. If we dismantle that, we dismantle her entire argument.”
Grayson, who has been scrolling through his phone, glances up. “How?”
I glance at Olivia. “Tell them.”
Olivia adjusts her glasses, clicking to a new slide. “We leak ourownstory.” She turns to Grayson. “One that doesn’t paint you as a liability, but as thevisionaryleader this company needs.”
Grayson leans back in his chair, arms folded across his chest. “Eleanor controls the media. She’s been feeding them stories formonths.”
“True,” Olivia concedes, “but she doesn’t haveCassian Laurentin her pocket.”
Grayson arches a brow, and at that exact moment, Cassian waltzes into the office as if summoned by sheer force of arrogance. “Ah, I do love hearing my name attached to things I haven’t agreed to yet,” he muses, strolling toward my desk. He gestures lazily to Olivia. “Continue. I’m already intrigued.”