Chapter 188
Juliana
I sat behind my desk, watching the young man who called himself Mateo with the calculating precision I'd honed over decades in boardrooms.
Look at him sitting there, Noah's eyes staring back at me like a goddamn ghost , I thought, a wave of rage rising in my chest that I carefully suppressed. The audacity of this bastard to walk into MY building, MY office.
Mateo sat with perfect posture, his hands resting casually on the armrests of the visitor's chair. Noah's eyes stared back at me from a face that was undeniably his son's. It was... unsettling. I'd known of Carmen and her children for years, of course - very little happened in Noah's life without my knowledge - but seeing this living embodiment of my husband's betrayal sitting across from me made my stomach clench with disgust.
"You've certainly made yourself comfortable in the Sterling family rather quickly," I said, adjusting the sleeve of my charcoal Armani suit while silently calculating how much damage this interloper could potentially cause. "I'm curious - what exactly do you want from us?"
His smile was polite but revealed nothing. "Mrs. Sterling, I simply want to understand the legacy my father left behind. To know the world he built."
"The world I built," I corrected him, keeping my voice level while my blood boiled. "Make no mistake about that, Mateo. Noah played his role, but this family's empire has always been shaped by my hand." You little shit, trying to claim what's mine through your father's dick.
"Of course," he conceded with a slight nod. "I meant no disrespect."
I studied him for a moment longer, my jaw clenched so tight I could feel a headache forming at my temples. Unlike Blake, whose emotions had always been transparent to me, this young man was harder to read. Trained, perhaps. Prepared for this meeting in ways I hadn't anticipated. That made him dangerous.
"You suddenly appear, expecting to be welcomed into this family?" I let skepticism color my tone, while mentally cataloging the various ways I could destroy him if necessary. "The timing seems... convenient."
"I understand your caution," he replied. "But I assure you, we're not here to disrupt what you've built. My sisters and I simply want to know our father's family."
Bullshit , I thought, imagining how satisfying it would be to tell him exactly what his whore of a mother was to Noah - nothing but a convenient hole when he needed release from the pressures of our marriage.
"Your mother knew exactly what she was doing," I said, the words sharp despite my controlled delivery. "Carmen was well aware that Noah was married when she became involved with him."
A flicker of something - anger, perhaps - crossed his features before disappearing. I felt a small thrill at having finally cracked his composure, however briefly.
"My mother gave Noah comfort when he needed it. She never asked for anything from him or this family."
I allowed myself a small, cold smile. "And yet here you are." Like fucking rats coming out of the woodwork now that there's money to be had.
"Because my father wanted us to know his family," Mateo answered, his composure impressive. "Before he died, he expressed regret at keeping us separate."
I straightened a pen on my desk, aligning it perfectly with the edge, using the movement to mask the tremor of rage in my hands. The thought of Noah confiding in this woman, in these children, made me want to smash everything in sight.
"In this family, Mateo, everyone has their place. A position I determine." I looked up, meeting his gaze directly. "Blake may have emotionally decided to divide his shares, but sentiment doesn't run this company. I do." And I'll be damned if I let some whore's offspring take what I've built.
"I'm not here to challenge your authority, Mrs. Sterling."
"Good," I replied. "Because you would find that... unpleasant." I would crush you and those bitches you call sisters without losing a minute of sleep.
A silence stretched between us, neither willing to break eye contact first. I'd mastered this game long before he was born. My heart pounded with the primal satisfaction of confronting an enemy face-to-face.
"Tell me," I finally said, "how do your sisters feel about this new family connection? I understand they haven't been as... eager to integrate as you have."
Mateo hesitated for the first time. I suppressed a victorious smile, sensing weakness.
"They're cautious. They don't feel the same connection to the Sterling name that I do."
"I can solve that problem," I offered, my voice deliberately soft while visions of financial ruin and public humiliation for these interlopers played through my mind. The threat lingering beneath my words was clear enough.
"That won't be necessary," he replied quickly. "We'll handle our family dynamics ourselves."
I stood, signaling the end of our meeting, a rush of power flowing through me as I prepared to dismiss him. "In the Sterling family, loyalty isn't given because of blood. It's earned through actions." I stepped around my desk, enjoying the slight height advantage my heels provided. "Remember that, Mateo."
He rose, matching my stance with unexpected grace. "I understand perfectly, Mrs. Sterling."
After he left, Leon entered through the side door, having observed the entire exchange. My façade cracked the moment the door closed.
"Did you see that smug little fucker?" I hissed, dropping into my chair. "Sitting in my office like he belongs here?"
Leon raised an eyebrow, unfazed by my language.
"Keep him away from anything of actual importance," I instructed without preamble. "Let him see the surface operations, nothing more. If he gets within ten feet of our actual financial records or tech division, I want to know about it immediately."
Leon nodded.
I said,"What do you make of him?"
"He's well-mannered," he conceded. "Educated. The women in the family seem quite taken with him."
I moved to the window, watching Manhattan's skyline, my empire laid out before me. "He needs watching. Blake's recent decisions have already weakened my position. I can't afford another division of power."
"He seems determined," Leon observed. "There's something of Blake's confidence in him."
"All the more reason to be cautious," I replied, my stomach twisting at the comparison between my son and Noah's bastard. "Blake's sentimentality has created this fucking mess. I won't allow it to grow worse."
My phone chimed. James's name appeared on the screen with a message about dinner plans. I quickly typed a response explaining my schedule had changed and needed to cancel, though the truth was I couldn't bear to see his face right now .
I set the phone down, turning back to Leon. "Relationships are distractions. Emotional entanglements divide focus." I'd learned that lesson early and applied it ruthlessly, though the hollow ache in my chest sometimes made me wonder what I'd sacrificed. "I've regained control of this situation. No one will stand in my way now."