EVERETT’S POV
“Mr. Ashbourne…Mr Ashbourne?”
I looked up slowly, irritation already coiling tight in my chest. Twelve faces stared back at me, varying degrees of discomfort and expectation etched into them.
The quarterly projections glowed on the screen behind them, numbers I’d reviewed a hundred times before this meeting even began.
“Yes?” I muttered flatly.
One of the older board members cleared his throat as he tapped his fingers on the desk. “If we could have your attention, this deal is crucial to Ashbourne Enterprises’ expansion into…”
“I know exactly how important the deal is,” I snapped, cutting him off. The room grew tense, and I could almost taste their discomfort. “I don’t need it spoon-fed to me like I’m new here.”
“You just seemed a little distracted,” one of the three w
