Chapter 3 High Stakes

ZOE

I awoke to Becca's insistent shaking and her worried voice. "Wake up, Zoe! Don't you have something important today?"

Grogginess clung to me like a heavy blanket. The stress from yesterday's apartment move still weighed on my mind. Without Becca's help, I'm not sure I would have managed it at all.

"I'm up!" I lied, fighting the urge to fall back asleep. Becca's vexed expression told me she wasn't buying it.

"Didn't you say you had a client to close? Don't tell me you've already lost," she prodded.

Her words hit me like a bucket of ice water. I bolted upright, suddenly wide awake, and dashed for the bathroom. How could I have forgotten? Today was crucial. Levi might have tried to ruin my life, but I wasn't going down without a fight.

"Don't forget to brush!" Becca called out, her giggles following me as I frantically prepared for the day.

I rushed through my morning routine and hurried to work. At the law firm where I mediated contracts and business deals, I barely made it on time. As I settled at my desk, a colleague approached me. "Jake came looking for you earlier. He wants you in his office."

Thanking her, I made my way to Jake's office. I knocked on the glass door, watching his expression shift from bright to scowling as he saw me.

"Good morning, Jake," I said, trying to sound cheerful.

"The only good thing about this morning would have been you closing that client," he replied, dropping his pen with a sigh. "We can't afford to lose this quota. If you can't close this deal, you lose your job, Zoe."

With a palpitating heart, I rushed back to my office, grabbing the file with the contract details. Jake had managed to get me a client, one of our biggest potential clients whom no one wanted to dare approach because of his ruthless reputation. I needed to appear in a conference meeting with his associates and close in less than thirty minutes. I pored over the documents, determined to understand every clause and phrase. I had to convince them of the benefits they'd gain by choosing our firm.

When the time came, I walked into the conference room, trying to project confidence. The rectangular, white-painted room buzzed with conversation, but no one paid me any attention. I was to lead the presentation, so I steeled myself for what was to come.

Minutes later, the client I desperately needed to impress walked in with his entourage. I nearly dropped my documents in shock. It was him – the man I'd been with at the club last night. He barely glanced at me before taking his seat opposite mine.

I forced myself to breathe. How could I not have asked his name? It didn't matter now. I had to nail this presentation, no matter what.

Putting on my best business smile, I addressed the room. "Good morning, Mr. Jameson Montague, CEO of the company we hope to partner with. Shall we begin the presentation?"

For the next ten minutes, I explained the deal's context, benefits, and how it would profit Jameson's company. The men in the room seemed impressed – all except Jameson.

"Is that it?" he asked coldly when I finished.

"Yes... what do you mean?" I asked hesitantly.

"How is this any different from the first proposal I rejected? There are no changes, no added benefits. Not to mention your poor presentation," he stated, his gaze piercing.

"If this is all you have to offer, we're done here," Jameson said, standing up and leaving the room.

I chased after him, my job hanging by a thread. He entered a VIP room, and I followed, finding him alone inside.

"You," he said, pointing at me. "Is this why you showed up at the club? To sleep with me, thinking I'd help you close your deal? How low can you stoop?"

"No, you've got it all wrong," I pleaded, my voice quivering. "What happened last night has nothing to do with this. It was a coincidence, I swear!"

"Do you take me for a fool?" Jameson's anger was palpable, his eyes flashing with rage. "You thought I wouldn't know? That I wouldn't see through your desperate ploy? Do you expect me to believe anything you say after this deception?"

"Look," I shot back, my own frustration and fear bubbling over, "I promise you, I had far more serious problems last night than stalking the CEO of a company I'm trying to close a deal with, just to sleep with him on a whim?"

"Lying till the very end," he sighed, pulling out his phone. Moments later, two burly security men entered the room.

"Escort her out," Jameson said nonchalantly, "and make sure she doesn't appear here or at any of our associated companies again. Ever."

As the men approached me, the full weight of my situation crashed down. In trying to save my career, I had not only destroyed it but had potentially ruined any chance of rebuilding it elsewhere. Tears stung my eyes as I realized that in a matter of minutes, I had lost everything I had worked so hard for.

"Please," I whispered, my voice breaking, "you don't understand what this means. This isn't just about a job. It's my entire future."