Page 58 of Falling for Mr. Grump, the Big City Billionaire

Me, the corporate shark ready to bulldoze her entire community for a profitable acquisition.

Now?Everything's different.

I've proposed becoming a silent partner to protect Seaside Cove. My sisters already think I've lost my mind even though they say they’re on my side.

The board will be furious. But for the first time in my life, I don't care about pleasing corporate expectations. In truth, my three siblings and I already have majority rule in our favor. Still, it’s just good business to have the other board members on our side.

A soft knock interrupts my thoughts.

Skye.

Her presence fills the room before she even enters - a whirlwind of cinnamon and ocean breeze.

She's wearing those worn jeans that somehow look more elegant on her than any designer outfit could.

"You're really leaving," she says. Not a question. A statement tinged with something between resignation and challenge.

I turn, drinking her in. Wild curls. Fierce eyes. A spirit that refuses to be contained. "I have to handle the remaining directors," I respond, my tone deliberately crisp. Professional.

Distant.

But we both know I'm not truly distant anymore.

My hand reaches for her almost involuntarily. A gesture that would have been impossible weeks ago.

She meets me halfway - our fingers intertwining with a familiarity that surprises us both.

"I'll call you," I say, the promise feeling both foreign and natural.

She raises an eyebrow.

Classic Skye. Always ready to challenge me. "Will you, Mr. Billionaire? Or will corporate meetings consume you?"

The old me would have bristled and snapped back with corporate arrogance.

Instead, I find myself fighting a smile. "I'll make time," I respond, and mean every word.

New York awaits. But for the first time, it feels less like home and more like... just another destination.

***

Hours later, the bustling city is all I can hear, like a cold, unforgiving tower of steel and corporate ambition.

I've spent my entire career building walls – between myself and emotion, between business and personal, between the sleek corporate world and places like Seaside Cove.

And now, those walls are crumbling faster than I can reconstruct them, even if I wanted to.

Now I’m in New York and I just don’t feel like I belong here anymore.

I stare at my reflection in my penthouse bathroom mirror, straightening my charcoal Armani suit and pulling down my silk shirt sleeves.

The fabric feels different somehow. Less armor, more... vulnerability.

My fingers trace a small sauce stain – a remnant from my ridiculous collision with Skye's food truck – that I can't seem to get out, no matter how many times I've had it dry-cleaned. But I wear it anyway, stain and all.

Skye.

A smile lifts my lips.

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