Chapter 85 The Business Heir Pt2
CHAPTER EIGHTY FIVE
Valenticia's POV~
We locked eyes in a moment, and he gave me a quick businesslike nod, but I saw the tiny flicker of something softer underneath it all.
I sat down across from him and shook hands with his VP. "Good to see you, Rachel."
“You too,” she responded with a smile. "Excited for this one."
It started right away, and we went through the proposals as they came up on a screen. Helix desired the exclusive rights to our graphene sensors on their devices, and in return, was willing to give us priority shipping slots during busy seasons. My team pushed for a better deal because it seemed overly restrictive.
“Exclusivity hamstrings us,” I said, stating our position. “We need the flexibility to sell to other partners as well.”
Stefan drew closer with his voice never rising above the same easy pitch. “Takes some getting used to, but it gets volume for each party. What if we limit it to two years and then re-evaluate?”
I thought his idea was clever, but it was still a hindrance. “One year instead. And you won’t pay any delays of more than five percent.’ ”
He paused, then nodded. "Agreed."
As those around the large room whispered among themselves and took notes, Rachel inserted herself next. “On pricing, your quote’s a little too high. Can we bring them down 10 percent?”
“Mark,” my sales lead replied, without skipping a beat. "Not without volume commitments. Attach it to orders of more than a million units.”
To and fro for another hour, rising tension as we hit sticking points and tempers just tipped into the high range when Helix’s lawyer completely disrupted each clause. I maintained my cool tone and noted the problems. "This language remains vulnerable to liability for us. Fix it, or we walk."
Stefan had been watching the whole time, but being fully aware of what I was doing, and it made my pulse pick up a bit, so I pushed that thought down and concentrated.
Two hours later, after an intense negotiation session, we had a draft agreement that everyone could live with, and handshakes went around the table. “Good work,” Stefan told the group. "We'll finalize by Friday."
People began to pack up, and my staff were the first out the doors, talking about next steps on their way. I paused for a second to pull together my notes, and I heard footsteps. Stefan had entered. He’d come to the chair, his hands in his pockets, and the crisp CEO edge went softer now as he gazed into my eyes a little longer.
"Valenticia," he said quietly. "That was well handled. You keep a tight ship these days.”
“Thanks,” I said, getting to my feet and putting my tablet in my bag. "You too. The deal works out well for us both.”
He changed his weight, as though he were going to say something else, and there was no one left in the room at that point but us two. "Listen... dinner? Tonight. Not business. Just to catch up on things."
His words were there, so plain, and yet heavy with everything unsaid, and I felt something inside me, feelings that had been in some long-slumbering part of me creeping their way up. We’d been through so much then, hiding in safe houses, late-night planning sessions, and the marriage, whatever it had been, fake or not, felt real as we stole moments like laughs over bad coffee or his hand covering mine during a storm. But it ended for a reason, with trust broken, and when he met Natasha, at least that’s what I thought, and doubts simmered even as space began to heal over those old wounds.
I looked him in the eye and stayed firm, but polite. "Stefan, I appreciate it. Really. But no. We're good as partners. Let's keep it there."
He barely resisted at all, just nodded with a little sadness in his eyes. "Fair enough. Door’s open if you change your mind.”
“I won’t,” I said, and inside feelings stirred, hurt that collided with relief that I didn’t want to linger on. I spun around and walked over to the door, my heels clacking loudly against the floor beneath me.
I could feel his warm gaze on my back behind me, and now the elevator dinged as I got to it. I rode it alone, pressed the button for the lobby and breathed out slowly as the doors closed.
Outside, the city air smacked into me with cars honking and people walking past on the sidewalk, so I called a cab and climbed into the back seat. “Clawford Building,” I said to the driver.
As we pulled away from the curb, my head was reeling. This deal had actually meant real progress for the company, but Stefan’s ask had surfaced things from my past in ways that I wasn’t prepared. But I picked this path for myself to judge my business and grow it on my own terms, and whispers from people or not, I took care of them, one day at a time.
Lena was already waiting for me at the elevator early in the morning at work. "How'd it go?"
“Deal’s on,” I nodded. "Prep the review contracts."
She grinned widely. "Knew it. You're unstoppable these days."
I chuckled softly because what she said was true at that time. "Team effort all the way." But I felt it on the inside, unstoppable, maybe I was actually beginning to believe this.
The remainder of the day melted away in phone calls to suppliers and emails to the board, and by evening, the energy of the office had subsided as most people headed their separate ways. I stayed late to give the Helix draft one final review, reading it through to make sure that all of the numbers added up just so, and sitting there in my chair, glimpsing a bright future.
Driving home later that night, the city lights rushing by, and Stefan’s face appearing in my memory for a moment, dinner, catching up, that little hope in his voice. Part of me was curious about it, but I shrugged and turned on the radio.
That night, I slept like a baby, dreaming of boardrooms packed with ideas instead of old shadows from the past. It felt like progress.