I look over at her, ignoring Asher entirely. 揑t sold out??
揧es.?
She doesn抰 meet my gaze, sliding a folder back into her bag.
揧ou didn抰 tell me.?
The words are out before I抳e thought them through, nothing more than a reflex. I know they抮e a mistake, even before she scoffs. 揑 was going to tell you last night. Part of why I was late. You had other plans for the evening, apparently.?
Before I can decide how to respond or deal with the guilt, my father appears. The room falls silent as he takes his seat at the head of the table. There are no round tables at Kensington Consolidated. The pecking order might as well be spraypainted on the walls in here. Even among the board, the hierarchy is clear.
His eyes linger on Scarlett, but he doesn抰 react to her presence. I knew he wouldn抰。 I抣l hear about this at our next 揷hat?though.
Arthur Kensington doesn抰 bother with pleasantries. He delves right into today抯 agenda, taking updates from different departments on current projects and different acquisitions. The projectors display a series of graphs and charts disclosing profits and margins.
Scarlett seems engrossed in the material. I wonder if this is how she acted at Harvard.
I抦 sipping my coffee when she speaks.
揥here are the November earning projections??
Total silence follows Scarlett抯 question. It抯 carpeted in here, but if someone dropped a pen, you could hear it fall. You don抰 interrupt Arthur Kensington. Not while he抯 leading a meeting. Not when he抯 complaining about the weather. Some of the executives sitting at the table have never said a single word during a board meeting, they抮e so petrified of my father.
Scarlett isn抰 stupid; she抯 making a statement.
My father holds her gaze while the rest of us hold our breath. I have the bizarre urge to make a sound and break the quiet. To protect Scarlett from the heavy weight of Arthur Kensington抯 disapproval.
Ridiculous on many levels, not the least of which is that Scarlett doesn抰 need my protection梔oesn抰 need me for anything. She抯 made that clear.
The rush of pride is also unexpected. Not many people have the confidence to question my father about anything, let alone business.
Silence continues to stretch. If I had to guess, I抎 say that my father is wondering if dealing with Scarlett抯 boldness is worth the billions we gained. He should try being married to her. I don抰 regret agreeing to it梔on抰 hate her, the way she implied last night梑ut I most definitely underestimated what a challenge it would be.
揑sabel??
I wonder if Scarlett knew Isabel is responsible for calculating the projections for our new projects. She definitely knew my father approves the packet before the meeting. I flip to the section containing the projections. September, October, December. No November.
My father missed a mistake, and Scarlett caught it.
揧es, Mr. Kensington??To Isabel抯 credit, her voice doesn抰 waver as she gets called out.
揇id your department exclude November from the projections??
揑t appears so. My apologies. I抣l correct the section and recirculate a copy to the board.?
My father nods. 揇o that.?He looks to Scarlett. 揑抦 glad to see your talents extend beyond designing clothes and networking, Mrs. Kensington.?
The muscles in my jaw protest from how tightly I抦 clenching it. I know exactly what he meant by networking, and the mention of fashion wasn抰 a compliment.
揈ven a CEO can make mistakes, Arthur.?
People don抰 interrupt my father and they don抰 call him by his first name either. Scarlett managed to break both rules in a span of two minutes.
My father tilts his head. He underestimated her. I knew it before; he knows it now.
The rest of the meeting passes without incident. I get pulled into a conversation with the head of our finance department as soon as it ends. I watch as Scarlett talks to Asher for a minute, then turns and leaves the conference room without sparing me a glance. A stupid part of me wants to chase after her. But I let her go.
When I walk out of the conference room, Oliver is waiting for me.
揥hat the fuck was she doing here, Crew??He whispers the question angrily. 揇ad is pissed. What if she抯 leaking information to Nathaniel Stewart??
I grind my teeth at the insinuation and the name. 揝he抯 my wife. She抯 entitled to a spot on the board; she owns the necessary shares.?
揝he抯 making a fool of you.?
揃utt out of my marriage, Oliver. I抦 handling it.?
He tsks, and it抯 grating as fuck. 揑nteresting you call it a marriage now, not a business arrangement.?
揃usiness arrangements are what I handle at the office. I don抰 go home and sleep next to it.?
揧ou sleep in the same bed??