Lucía did not turn around immediately.
Her hand remained on the steel handle while Adrián’s words echoed through the boardroom.
“When I get back from Miami, I will consider taking you to sign at the registry office.”
Consider.
After eight years, he still believed marriage was something he could offer whenever it suited him.
Lucía slowly looked over her shoulder.
—Don’t bother.
Adrián frowned.
—What?
—When you come back from Miami, there won’t be anything left for us to sign.
For the first time, the smile disappeared from his face.
Chloe shifted in her chair.
—Ms. Bennett, I think you’re misunderstanding the situation. Mr. Cárdenas is only taking me because of work.
Lucía looked at her calmly.
Three days.
Chloe had worked there for exactly three days.
And already she was talking to Lucía as if she were a troublesome employee who needed to know her place.
—Then I hope you enjoy the trip.
Lucía opened the door.
Adrián called after her.
—Lucía.
She stopped.
—Don’t make me chase you over something this ridiculous.
That sentence finally killed whatever remained.
Lucía smiled.
—You won’t have to.
Then she walked out.
The elevator doors closed behind her.
Only when she reached the underground parking lot did she allow herself to breathe.
Her phone immediately vibrated.
Fourteen missed calls.
Three from Adrián.
Two from Human Resources.
Nine from a number saved simply as:
Grandfather.
Lucía stared at the name.
Then she called back.
Rafael Salazar answered on the first ring.
—Did he sign?
Lucía leaned against her car.
—No.
Silence.
Her grandfather did not ask whether she was okay.
He already knew the answer.
—Then the deadline has expired.
Lucía closed her eyes.
—Yes.
Eight years earlier, Rafael Salazar had opposed her relationship with Adrián.
Not because Adrián had come from a less powerful family.
Not because his first office had been a rented room with four desks and a broken air conditioner.
Rafael had opposed it because he had seen something Lucía refused to see.
Adrián loved ambition.
He loved success.
And Lucía had never been certain whether he loved her separately from everything she did for him.
So she had hidden the truth.
Her full name was not merely Lucía Bennett.
It was Lucía Elena Bennett Salazar.
The only granddaughter of Rafael Salazar, founder of Salazar Global Holdings.
One of the largest private investment groups in northern Mexico.
When Adrián needed money to launch his company, Lucía had arranged for one of her grandfather’s subsidiaries to provide the capital.
Adrián believed an anonymous investment fund had believed in his potential.
In reality, Lucía had believed in him.
And she had risked everything to prove it.
What Adrián never knew was that Salazar Global still controlled 51 percent of the voting shares.
There had been only one condition.
If Lucía legally married Adrián before her twenty-ninth birthday, those shares would be transferred into a marital trust.
They would control the company together.
Equals.
But if the marriage did not happen before the deadline…
Every one of those shares would return exclusively to Lucía.
Her birthday was tomorrow.
The civil registry appointment at noon had been his last chance.
And Adrián had canceled it to take Chloe to Miami.
Rafael’s voice softened.
—Come home, Lucía.
She stared through the windshield.
—I gave him eight years.
—And now you know what those eight years bought you.
She said nothing.
Her grandfather continued.
—The truth.
Back in the boardroom, Adrián tossed the torn resignation letter into the trash.
—Meeting over.
Nobody moved.
His CFO, Martín Vega, remained seated.
—Adrián.
—What now?
Martín removed his glasses.
—You shouldn’t have torn that letter.
Adrián gave a humorless laugh.
—She’ll be back tomorrow.
Nobody answered.
That irritated him.
—Lucía gets emotional sometimes. Once I return from Miami, I’ll talk to her.
Chloe smiled from beside him.
—Exactly. She just needs time to calm down.
Martín looked at Chloe.
Then at Adrián.
—You really don’t understand what just happened, do you?
Adrián’s expression darkened.
—Explain it.
Martín opened his laptop.
—You gave Aura to Chloe.
—Temporarily.
—Aura doesn’t belong to you.
The room became silent again.
Adrián stared at him.
—Excuse me?
Martín turned the laptop around.
A legal registration appeared on the screen.
AURA SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE.
Original creator: Lucía Bennett.
Intellectual property holder: Lucía Bennett.
Adrián’s jaw tightened.
—She developed it while working here.
—Under a licensing agreement.
Martín scrolled down.
—A licensing agreement that ends immediately if Lucía leaves her executive position.
Adrián stood.
—Call Legal.
—Legal already called me.
—And?
Martín hesitated.
—Her resignation became effective when she delivered it.
Adrián glanced toward the trash bin.
The two torn pieces of paper suddenly looked much more important.
His phone rang.
His mother.
He answered.
—Mom, I’m busy.
Her voice came sharp and panicked.
—What did you do to Lucía?
Adrián froze.
—What are you talking about?
—Rafael Salazar’s office just canceled tomorrow’s dinner with our family.
Chloe stopped smiling.
Adrián slowly sat back down.
—Why would Rafael Salazar care about Lucía?
There was a long silence.
Then his mother whispered:
—Adrián…
—What?
—Please tell me you know who she is.
His fingers tightened around the phone.
—Who who is?
Before his mother could answer, every screen in the conference room suddenly changed.
An official corporate notice appeared.
EMERGENCY SHAREHOLDERS’ MEETING.
9:00 A.M. TOMORROW.
Below it was one name.
Requested by majority voting shareholder: Lucía Elena Bennett Salazar.
Someone gasped.
Chloe stood up.
Adrián stared at the screen.
—Salazar?
Martín looked at him with open disbelief.
—You were with her for eight years and never knew?
Adrián’s phone vibrated.
A message from Lucía.
He opened it.
“You said our little piece of paper could wait.”
A second message appeared.
“Unfortunately, the shareholder agreement could not.”
Then an attachment loaded.
Adrián opened it.
His face lost all color.
It was the official agenda for the next morning.
Item one:
Termination of Aura licensing rights.
Item two:
Suspension of CEO authority.
Item three:
Vote on the removal of Adrián Cárdenas as Chief Executive Officer.
Chloe whispered:
—Adrián…
He did not hear her.
He was staring at one final line.
Majority shareholder recommendation: REMOVE.
For the first time in eight years, Adrián finally understood what Lucía had meant when she said there would be nothing left for them to sign.
She had not been threatening to end only their relationship.
She was taking back everything she had built while he was busy giving her place to someone else.
