Eight
1037 Words
Chapter 8 — The Business Deal
Victoria’s POV
Victoria watched Lorenzo end the call.
Something had changed.
The warmth that had been in his eyes moments ago was gone, replaced by the cold, controlled expression of a man who had just received bad news.
“What happened?” she asked.
Lorenzo slipped his phone into his pocket.
“Nothing you need to worry about.”
Victoria almost laughed.
“That answer is getting old.”
His gaze met hers.
“Daniel wasn't following you.”
“Who was he following?”
“Me.”
Victoria stared at him.
“That doesn't make me feel better.”
“It wasn't meant to.”
She walked toward the conference table and picked up the folder she had brought with her.
“Then let's talk about something we can control.”
Lorenzo raised an eyebrow.
“Business?”
“Exactly.”
She opened the folder.
“Your company wants access to the American market. Hayes International has the infrastructure to make that happen.”
Lorenzo studied her.
“You're offering me a deal?”
“I'm offering you a partnership.”
“And why?”
Victoria met his gaze.
“Because I'm not going to let some stranger dictate who I work with.”
A slow smile appeared on Lorenzo's face.
“There she is.”
“Who?”
“The woman I remember.”
Victoria frowned.
“The little girl who used to chase me around the garden with a cookie in her hand.”
She tried not to smile.
“You deserved it.”
“I probably did.”
She pushed a document across the table.
“Read.”
Lorenzo sat down.
He studied the proposal carefully.
Hayes International would provide distribution and technology infrastructure across the United States, while Valentieri Group would provide European investment and international expansion.
It was worth billions.
But Lorenzo wasn't looking at the numbers.
He was looking at her.
“You prepared this before today.”
“I prepare for everything.”
“I see.”
“You're supposed to read the contract, Lorenzo.”
“I am.”
He turned another page.
“This would make our companies strategic partners.”
“Yes.”
“And we'd have to work closely together.”
“That is usually what partnerships require.”
His lips curved.
“Every day?”
Victoria paused.
“If necessary.”
“Interesting.”
She narrowed her eyes.
“Don't make this personal.”
“I didn't say anything.”
“You didn't have to.”
He chuckled.
For a moment, the tension disappeared.
Then Lorenzo's phone vibrated again.
He looked at it.
His expression immediately hardened.
Victoria noticed.
“What is it?”
He turned the screen toward her.
A photograph.
Her office building.
Taken that morning.
Below it was a message.
YOU SHOULD HAVE STAYED AWAY FROM HIM.
Victoria's blood ran cold.
“This was taken today?”
“Yes.”
“Who sent it?”
“We're trying to find out.”
She stared at the photograph.
Someone had been watching her.
Inside her own company.
The realization made her skin crawl.
Lorenzo stood.
“I'm taking you home.”
“No.”
“Victoria—”
“I said no.”
His jaw tightened.
“You don't understand the situation.”
“And you don't understand me.”
She closed the folder.
“I've spent my entire adult life protecting myself. I don't need a man deciding what I can and cannot do.”
“I am not trying to control you.”
“Then stop ordering me around.”
Silence.
Lorenzo stepped closer.
His voice softened.
“I am afraid for you.”
Victoria froze.
That wasn't what she expected.
Lorenzo Valentieri didn't look afraid.
He looked like a man who could walk into a room and make everyone else nervous.
But now, there was something vulnerable in his eyes.
“I lost you once,” he said quietly. “I'm not losing you again.”
Victoria's heart tightened.
She looked away.
“Don't say things like that.”
“Why?”
“Because I might start believing you.”
Lorenzo reached for her hand.
This time, she allowed him to take it.
His thumb brushed gently across her knuckles.
“Believe me.”
Victoria looked up.
Their eyes locked.
The air between them changed.
Neither spoke.
Then someone knocked on the door.
They separated instantly.
Victoria cleared her throat.
“Come in.”
Her assistant entered cautiously.
“Ms. Hayes, I'm sorry to interrupt, but there's a problem.”
“What kind?”
“The board members are asking for an emergency meeting.”
Victoria frowned.
“Why?”
Her assistant looked toward Lorenzo.
“They received information claiming that Valentieri Group is attempting to take control of Hayes International.”
Victoria's eyes widened.
“That is absurd.”
“There is more.”
Her assistant handed her a tablet.
A news article was already spreading online.
AMERICAN CEO VICTORIA HAYES IN SECRET BILLION-DOLLAR DEAL WITH ITALIAN MOGUL.
Victoria read the article.
Then her eyes stopped on the final paragraph.
Sources claim the partnership may be the first step toward Lorenzo Valentieri acquiring Hayes International.
Her stomach dropped.
“This is a lie.”
Lorenzo took the tablet.
His expression became dangerously calm.
“Someone wants your board to turn against me.”
Victoria looked at him.
“And if they succeed?”
Lorenzo's eyes darkened.
“Then they won't just come after your company.”
He handed the tablet back.
“They'll come after everything you have.”
Victoria swallowed.
For the first time, she realized the danger surrounding Lorenzo wasn't separate from her life anymore.
It had entered her company.
Her reputation.
Her future.
And perhaps even her heart.
Lorenzo reached for his phone.
“Call your board.”
Victoria stared at him.
“What are you going to do?”
He looked directly into her eyes.
“Find the person who started this.”
A faint, dangerous smile appeared on his lips.
“And when I find him…”
His voice dropped.
“He'll wish he had never touched my Cricetina mia.”
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