Chapter 4 Mirabella's POV

~ Mirabella ~

I surveyed the room with a single glance, taking in the sea of shocked faces. Dora, my assistant, stood off to the side with a knowing smile, her arms folded across her chest.

"My apologies for the late arrival. The press was... an obstacle," I said smoothly, ignoring the blatant disbelief in the room as I sauntered to a seat off to the side-one where I could oversee everything without being too close.

Don't look, Mirabella. Don't.

But from the corner of my eye, I saw him.

Ethan.

Still standing. Mouth slightly open. Eyes locked on me like I was a ghost. A blank expression painted his face.

Good.

Clearing throats followed, and one of the men-his name tag read Richard-spoke up. "Mirabella... I wasn't expecting to see you here. None of us were."

Dora stepped beside me, handing me the tab for the presentation. I began scrolling through it, but at Richard's words, I paused and scoffed.

"That's Miss Carter to you, Richard," I said, my voice blank as I handed the tab back to Dora. "Thank you. It's fine."

The tension in the room thickened-almost suffocating.

Ethan finally sat down, his mouth now shut, but he seemed completely disconnected. His brows furrowed, his gaze vacant.

"Shall we proceed?" I asked, sweeping my gaze across the room.

A female board member gave a curt nod. "Indeed. Let us proceed."

But then, a man near the main table raised a brow. "Miss Carter..." His words were forced. "You're required to be at the head table, with Mr. Robert. Your seat is beside his."

I looked toward Ethan's chair-still refusing to meet his barely veiled, pleading gaze-and raised my chin.

"My seating arrangement will have no effect on the outcome of this meeting. However, bringing up irrelevant matters will. I'm not sitting there. Please proceed."

The man let out a grunt, barely masking his frustration. I caught the mutter under his breath, unmistakably aimed at me.

I knew him.

"Liam, isn't it? Dr. Liam?" I asked, uncrossing my legs and standing, a practiced smile on my lips.

He didn't look up, instead burying his face in the document before him, his cheeks beginning to flush under the room's watchful silence.

"Watch your tongue around me, Dr. Liam," I said coolly, my voice low but sharp. "Trust me, if I wanted to ruin your career, I could. Don't give me a reason."

The room froze again. Dora, ever efficient, tapped her tab, patiently waiting for the moment to pass.

Ethan's fingers began tapping rhythmically against the table-nervous. Good. He should be.

"Miss Carter," Ethan finally said, his tone careful. "I apologize for my teammate's attitude. It won't happen again. Please, sit."

I looked at him-really looked-and saw the way he tensed under my gaze.

He hadn't changed much. A little more rugged now, with the stubble he was clearly trying to grow. But still the same bastard underneath it all.

"Make sure it doesn't," I muttered under my breath, just loud enough for him to hear. "You can't even keep your team or your company in check."

Then I returned to my seat.

Thankfully, the rest of the meeting went on without another hitch. No one dared challenge my authority again. When Dora wrapped up, I stood, watching as the board members filed out one by one, each bowing slightly before leaving.

Dora approached.

"Great job," I said softly, a genuine smile breaking through the façade.

She returned it. "I'll meet you at the hotel."

With a nod, she exited the room.

And just like that... the calm cracked.

Ethan was still there staring at me very intensely.

He stood from his chair, eyes locked on mine, each step he took closing the space between us. I should've shut him down right then-but as much as it sickened me to admit, I needed him.

"Mia..." he whispered when he was just a few feet away.

My neck snapped toward him, a cold frown tightening my features. Mia?

Four years ago, I would've given anything to hear him call me that. But he hadn't. He'd thrown me out instead.

"It's Miss Carter," I reminded him, voice clipped.

He flinched slightly and ran a hand through his hair, clearly thrown off. "How?" he asked, his voice barely a squeak.

I crossed my arms, lifting my chin. "How did I get here?" A hollow smile curled my lips. "Guess I couldn't let my degrees in Computer Science and Software Engineering go to waste, hm?"

He stared at me-eyes searching mine like he was trying to find a version of me he remembered. Then he stepped closer, regret swimming across his face. "Let me-"

"Don't."

My tone sliced clean through the air, and he went silent.

I watched him for a moment, weighing whether to say it. But Theo's face flashed in my mind, and suddenly, there was no hesitation.

"Ethan Robert."

He straightened at the use of his full name. There was a flicker of hope in his eyes. "Yeah?"

It was ironic. The power shift. The begging. The control.

"You want me to sign the merger with your company?"

He blinked, confused. "I thought you already agreed to the deal?"

I smiled. Slow. Calculated. "No. There's one more condition you need to meet."

His brow furrowed deeper. "Which is?"

I took a breath, letting it sit heavy between us.

"You need to take a test. In an hour."

His confusion morphed into concern. "Test? What kind of test?"

This was it. The moment I'd waited four years for.

"The kind that determines whether my son lives."