𝗭𝗔𝗥𝗔

𝗧𝗪𝗢

Kunle closed the boardroom door behind him and let out a slow breath. He kept his face calm until he reached the empty hallway. Only then did he allow himself to react.

“Wow,” he muttered under his breath. “So that’s the new CEO.”

He walked toward the elevator, his long strides controlled but irritated. The moment he’d placed the report on the table, he had known the woman at the head of the boardroom wasn’t the type to offer a warm welcome. But he hadn’t expected that level of sharpness.

𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘦𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘳 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘶𝘰𝘶𝘴.

Her voice echoed in his head.

Kunle chuckled humorlessly. “Efficient, ma’am. But sure… let’s pretend I’m the problem.”

He pressed the elevator button. The doors slid open, revealing an empty space. He stepped inside and leaned back against the mirror panel, rubbing a hand over his jaw.

Zara Adeyemi.

He had heard the rumors. The feared daughter of the late Chief Adeyemi. The girl who had turned into a woman with a reputation for shutting down arguments with one sentence. The heiress who had been raised with expectations heavy enough to crush an average person.

But rumors didn’t do her justice.

Kunle replayed the moment she walked in. Tall, poised, and dressed like she was born in power. Her confidence had filled the room, even before she spoke. She looked like someone who had never been told “no” in her life.

But it wasn’t her beauty that bothered him. It was her attitude.

“She didn’t even ask for the report,” he grumbled. “Dismissed me like I was an intern.”

And yet… he couldn’t deny that something about her had caught his attention. Not in a romantic way—God forbid—but in a 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘦𝘹𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘮? kind of way.

Kunle worked hard for everything he had. He came from nothing. No famous name. No family empire. Just his brain, discipline, and stubborn drive. He wasn’t used to being treated like a nuisance.

Especially by someone who didn’t know him.

He checked his watch.

He still had to drop the revised logistics numbers with the data team. Even though Zara hadn’t requested that report, he knew the board would need it later.

He stepped out of the elevator into the open-plan floor. The other staff were quiet, focused on their screens. Some glanced up at him briefly.

One of his closest colleagues, Tolani, rolled her chair toward him. “You okay? You look like someone insulted your ancestors.”

Kunle dropped the file on his desk. “Close enough.”

“Oh? So you met the new CEO?”

“Yes.”

“And…?”

Kunle loosened his tie a little. “She’s…”

He paused, searching for the right word.

“…intense.”

Tolani laughed. “I heard she’s tough.”

“Tough is fine. I respect tough.”

He sat down.

“She’s more like… rude.”

Tolani raised a brow. “Rude?”

“Yes. Rude, dominating, and very sure of herself.”

He flipped open the laptop.

“Too sure.”

Tolani smirked. “She’s pretty, though. People say she’s stunning.”

Kunle paused, remembering her.

Her sharp eyes.

Her perfect posture.

Her smooth skin and the way she commanded attention without trying.

“She is,” he admitted quietly. “But that’s not the issue.”

“So what’s the issue?”

“She looked at me like she already decided I was beneath her.”

He rested his arms on the table.

“No respect. No curiosity. Just judgment.”

Tolani let out a low whistle. “And you didn’t say anything back?”

Kunle gave her a flat look. “You want me to lose my job on my first week?”

She laughed. “Fair point.”

Kunle took a deep breath and tapped his keyboard.

He wasn’t scared of Zara.

He wasn’t impressed either.

He had worked under difficult bosses before. He knew how to survive them. But something told him Zara Adeyemi wasn’t just another boss.

She had this fire in her eyes—cold fire, dangerous fire—like she had already decided anyone who didn’t bow quickly enough would become her enemy.

“Well,” he muttered. “If she thinks I’ll cower, she’s mistaken.”

He didn’t plan to challenge her, but he also didn’t plan to let her walk all over him.

“She might be the CEO,” he said under his breath, “but I’m not scared of her.”

Still, a small part of him wondered…

Why did her dismissal get under his skin so much?

He shook the thought away. Work first.

Feelings later. Problems never.

But as he typed, he felt it again—an unwelcome curiosity about the woman upstairs.

Zara Adeyemi.

Beautiful.

Bold.

Sharp-tongued.

And already on his nerves.

“This week will be long,” he whispered to himself.

He didn’t know how right he was.

————————————————————————————————

ZARA (POV)

Zara closed the door to her office behind her and let out a slow breath. Finally, some space to think. The boardroom had been tense, but controlled—just like she liked it. She sank into the black leather chair behind her massive oak desk, letting her heels rest on the soft rug beneath.

Her office was a reflection of her: sleek, powerful, and unapologetically sharp. Floor-to-ceiling windows let the city light spill across the room, the skyline of Lagos a constant reminder that this empire was hers to run. The walls were painted a deep charcoal gray, offset by a single abstract painting in bold red and gold—her father’s favorite colors. A few shelves held neatly arranged awards, photographs of the Adeyemi Holdings headquarters, and a small stack of business books. Nothing frivolous. Everything purposeful.

Her desk was minimalist. A polished tablet rested next to a golden pen, a neat leather-bound planner, and a small black sculpture of a lion—symbol of authority and courage. Even the coffee mug bore the simple engraving: CEO.

She leaned back, stretching her legs under the desk. For a moment, she allowed herself a flicker of satisfaction. She had walked into that boardroom and made it clear she wasn’t here to be a figurehead. She had made her presence impossible to ignore.

And yet… one thought refused to leave her mind. Kunle Lawson.

Even from the far end of the boardroom, he had stood out. Tall, calm, deliberate, unflinching. His eyes had met hers with a kind of quiet defiance that made her chest tighten, only slightly, because she would never admit it aloud. He hadn’t cowered. He hadn’t flinched. Not even when she had dismissed him.

𝘉𝘰𝘭𝘥. 𝘋𝘪𝘴𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘧𝘶𝘭. 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘶𝘰𝘶𝘴.

Zara’s fingers drummed lightly on her desk. He had dared to meet her eye. He had dared to speak back without fear. Most people didn’t survive five minutes in this office without learning quickly to stay in line.

𝘕𝘰𝘵 𝘩𝘪𝘮,she thought with a smirk. 𝘏𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥. 𝘞𝘦’𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵.

She reached for her tablet and opened the logistics report he had left behind. She scanned the numbers quickly, already noticing where he had excelled and where he had overlooked minor details. Perfect. Flaws. The perfect combination to challenge someone without overtly undermining them. She would make him work, push him, corner him, but she would never break him outright.

Her smirk widened. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘧𝘶𝘯.

Her office was quiet except for the hum of the air-conditioning and the distant sounds of the city. She allowed herself a rare moment of satisfaction as she imagined their first real interaction, beyond the boardroom tension. She would test him. Tease him. Make him realize who was really in charge.

Zara leaned back, letting her eyes drift to the skyline. The empire was hers, yes, but this new challenge; the audacious, calm young analyst was hers to control. And control was what she did best.

Her phone buzzed on the desk. A reminder: tomorrow, strategy meetings with the department heads. She would see him again. And when she did… he would learn, the hard way, that Zara Adeyemi did not tolerate insolence.

Not in her empire. Not in her office. Not anywhere.

And maybe, just maybe, she would enjoy every second of it.