Page 34 of The Founder's Power

“It can wait.”

“Can it? You didn’t even check.”

I glance at her, and she’s not angry. Just aware.

I sigh and rub the back of my neck. “There’s pressure right now. A lot of it.”

“Vincent.”

“Not him actually. Veridian Holdings. They’re circling like a shark.”

Her brow furrows. “They’re pretty big, aren’t they?”

“And always looking to get bigger.” I nod. “They’re strategic and calculated. They’re not emotional at all which makes them harder to outmaneuver. They want the structure, not the name.”

“Not the name…”

“Not my name,” I confirm. “They want to erase me.”

“What can you do about that?”

I run a hand through my hair. “There are nights I can barely sleep. Days I’m walking through walls trying to hold the seams together, and I know it’s not fair to bring that into this?—”

She touches my arm. “You’re allowed to bring your life into this. I know how hard you work and how many hours you put into it. I just don’t want to be the afterthought again. That’s all.”

The words gut me.

I turn to her, my voice rough. “You’re not. You never were.”

She leans back, folding one leg beneath her.

I hang my head. She could argue with me, and she would be positively right.

“Then let me in,” she insists. “Don’t lie to me by pretending you’re fine when I can see the pressure in your shoulders and the way you haven’t touched your food.”

I look down at my plate. I hadn’t even realized that I mostly shoved my food around instead of eating it.

I take a breath, my throat tight. “I’m trying, but I’m not used to this. I’m still trying to balance work and you, and now this… It’s not like Vincent and now Veridian Holdings is the first time someone’s come after me. I’ve managed before, but there have been stumbles along the way, and if things were rocky, I would always fall alone.”

“I can’t help with your business, but I’m here, for whatever it’s worth.”

“It’s worth everything.”

She smiles again, but her eyes are said. “What else?”

“What else?” I parrot. “Now… Now, I’m scared of falling and dragging you with me.”

She’s quiet for a beat. Then she says, “Maybe you don’t have to fall. Maybe you just have to let someone catch part of the weight.”

I don’t even know how, but just like that, the tension softens.

She’s not asking me to be perfect. She’s asking me to trust her, and even though there’s nothing she can do for my business, just knowing she might remain with me despite all of this helps.

I take her hand in mine, and I feel like I can breathe despite the Veridian Holdings threat.

* * *

The city humsoutside the floor-to-ceiling windows, but inside the conference room, everything is still except for Naomi Bellerose.

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