d nothing but a layer of cold, hard ice over her heart. It was a quiet, sterile space on a floor far removed from the chaos of the trading desks, a bespoke cage with a view. H

Journal her assistant had placed on her desk. She alrea

h practiced efficiency, navigating through encrypted

EMEN

ese drafted by Armand's most ruthless attorneys. Every

ns, the non-disclosure terms that had governed e

ation

y, any termination request from her would trigger an immediate and invasive review. All assets provided to her under the agreement-including the money and the a

ps. He had thought of everything. It wasn'

ed a new

ination of Ag

No accusations. She simply cited Section 9, Article 2, and fo

email addressed to Armand's lead counsel, c

d she was carrying lifted from her shoulders. It was t

lked in, his face a mask of professional concern. He was a tal

n the one she'd seen online. Armand was sliding a diamond the size of a small iceberg onto the finger of a woman nam

e seconds, her heart giving a single, pai

ant." Her voice w

tears, or perhaps a tantrum. "Jodi, Mr. Taylor wanted me to assure you t

d her lips. "It does. Because I've changed my mind." She gestured t

m Grant's face. "You

r tone polite but firm. It was a voice he had never heard from her be

not the pliable, quiet woman he was used to deal

he non-essential projects she managed. She would leave no loo

uzzed. A bl

then answered

ced with the easy confidence of old money and an Ivy League ed

the oldest banking fortunes in New York

call. This was a deployment. Armand was sending

. Prescott," she sa

hat, Jodi. It's just an engagement, not a vow of celibacy. T

over her skin. They all saw her the same way. A petulant child, a line i

n extinguished years ago r