Vivienne's POV
Three seconds.
That was how long we both sat with the word before either of us moved.
Then Charles pulled out the chair across from me and sat down. Right there in the middle of his shift. No hesitation. No checking whether it was appropriate. Just sat down like he had been deciding to do it for a while and had finally stopped waiting for a better moment.
He folded his hands on the table.
He looked at me.
....
"I knew your name before you told me," he said. "I knew Lumière. I knew the growth numbers and the market position and the story behind the founder." His voice was low and steady. "I had read everything available about you before I walked through that door."
"Why," I said.
"Lumière came to my attention as an acquisition target," he said. "Not a hostile approac
