Adrian moved with the quiet efficiency of a man who had spent years learning how to solve problems his family created without giving them the satisfaction of watching him struggle.
Within a week, he'd arranged a private meeting with a competing shipping conglomerate, negotiating terms that would allow the Marchetti company to diversify its contracts away from total dependence on the Cole family — a safety net that had nothing to do with Marcus's approval and everything to do with protecting Elena's family regardless of what happened to his father's finances. He worked late into the nights on the arrangement, spreadsheets and contracts spread across the study desk, Elena bringing him coffee she suspected he forgot to drink until it went cold.
"You didn't have to do this," Elena said, revi
