Chapter 298

Chapter 298
Rosalind

I stood in front of our walk-in closet at 6:45 AM, surrounded by what looked like the aftermath of a fashion tornado. Conservative black suit? Too funeral director. Power red blazer? Too aggressive for a first day. The elegant navy Chanel? Maybe too...

"Rosalind," Beckett's amused voice came from behind me, "you've been standing there for twenty minutes. How many outfits can one person possibly reject?"

I turned to face him, holding up two completely different ensembles. "I'm having an existential crisis about appropriate CEO attire. What does the head of Montgomery Industries even look like?"

Beckett moved closer, his hands settling on my shoulders with that familiar warmth. "She looks like you, darling. The best CEO is an authentic CEO. You need to choose the outfit that makes you feel most like yourself—confident, brilliant, unstoppable."

I looked back at the chaos in our closet. "And which outfit screams 'I can run a multi-billion dollar company'?"

"The one that makes you stand taller when you put it on," he said simply. "The one that feels like armor made of silk and ambition."

I smiled, reaching for the charcoal gray Tom Ford suit—the one that fit like it was designed specifically for my body, paired with the sapphire blue blouse that made my eyes look fierce.

"There," Beckett said with satisfaction as I emerged fully dressed. "That's the woman who's going to revolutionize the construction industry."

I was gathering my files and laptop when I felt his arms wrap around my waist from behind.

"I suddenly don't want you to leave," he murmured against my neck, his voice carrying a hint of genuine reluctance.

I laughed, reaching up to twist my hair into a high ponytail. "It's my first day as CEO, not my first day of exile."

"I know, but..." He tightened his hold slightly. "I'm already missing having you all to myself."

"I'll be back for dinner," I said, securing my ponytail with practiced efficiency. "But you can call me if you miss me too much."

Beckett groaned dramatically. "God, this is exactly why it took me so long to let you become a CEO. I knew you were too ambitious for your own good."

I turned in his arms, grinning. "I think you're the one who taught me to be ambitious. Originally, I was perfectly content to be a stay-at-home wife, you know."

"And now you can't be?" he asked with mock hope.

"Sorry," I said, standing on my tiptoes to kiss him quickly. "You've already created a monster."

As I headed for the door, Beckett glanced at the keys in my hand and started laughing.

"What?" I asked, pausing with my hand on the doorknob.

"We're definitely going to need to buy you some cars more appropriate for a CEO," he said, eyeing my modest sedan keys with amusement. "Can't have the head of Montgomery Industries arriving in anything less than properly intimidating transportation."

I smiled, adjusting my ponytail with one final, decisive motion. "We'll car shop when I have time."

The Montgomery Industries building was even more imposing than I remembered—thirty-seven floors of glass and steel reaching toward the Boston sky like a monument to corporate power. As I rode the elevator to the executive floor, I felt a familiar thrill of excitement mixed with nerves.

The conference room was already full when I arrived. Twelve members of the board of directors, most of them men in their sixties with the kind of expensive suits and practiced authority that came from decades of corporate warfare.

"Gentlemen," I said, taking my seat at the head of the table, "thank you for accommodating this early meeting. I know the transition has been sudden, but I wanted to discuss our expansion strategy immediately."

Robert Harrison, the longest-serving board member, leaned back in his chair with barely concealed skepticism. "Mrs. Montgomery, with all due respect, don't you think you should spend a few weeks learning how the company operates before making any... ambitious plans?"

"I've spent months studying Montgomery Industries' operations, Mr. Harrison. Which is why I know our current expansion timeline is too conservative."

Another board member, Charles Whitfield, chuckled condescendingly. "Too conservative? My dear, perhaps you don't understand the complexities involved in—"

"Perhaps," I interrupted smoothly, "you don't understand that I didn't come here for a discussion."

The room fell silent.

I stood slowly, my hands flat on the polished conference table, meeting each of their gazes in turn. "I came here to inform you of the new direction this company will be taking. We're accelerating our sustainable development projects, we're expanding into three new markets by the end of the quarter, and we're implementing the environmental standards I outlined in the proposal you all received yesterday."

"Now see here—" Harrison began.

"No, Mr. Harrison, you see here." My voice carried the kind of authority I'd learned from watching Beckett command rooms full of powerful men. "I am the CEO of this company. I'm not here to ask for your opinions or seek your approval. I'm here to give you your new marching orders."

The tension in the room was thick enough to cut with a knife.

"These changes will require significant capital investment—" Whitfield started.

"Which we have."

"The risk assessment alone—"

"Has been completed."

"Mrs. Montgomery," Harrison said, his voice tight with barely controlled frustration, "you can't simply walk in here and expect us to rubber-stamp every whim—"

"Whim?" I let the word hang in the air for a moment, my voice dropping to that dangerous quiet that Beckett had taught me was more threatening than shouting. "Mr. Harrison, I've just presented you with a comprehensive business strategy that will increase our revenue by forty percent within eighteen months. If you consider that a whim, perhaps you're not the right fit for this board."

The color drained from his face.

I looked around the table at each of them. "Let me be very clear about how this works. I don't need your permission to implement these changes. I need your cooperation. But if any of you feel you can't support this company's new direction..." I paused, letting my smile turn sharp. "The door is right behind you. I'll have your replacement hired by the end of the week."

The silence stretched for what felt like an eternity.

Finally, Whitfield cleared his throat. "What do you need from us, Mrs. Montgomery?"

"I need you to do your jobs," I said simply, settling back into my chair. "Support these initiatives, execute them efficiently, and help me turn Montgomery Industries into the most innovative development company in North America."

"And if we have concerns about specific aspects of the plan?"

"Bring them to me with solutions, not problems. I'm not interested in hearing why something can't be done. I want to know how we're going to make it happen."

Harrison shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Very well. When do we begin?"