Chapter 76The Shareholders' GambitThe next day, in her office, Ximena stood in front of her mirror, fixing her blazer and inhaling and exhaling at the same time in order to calm her racing heart.Before Miguel entered, there was a soft knock on the door, Miguel had walked into the room. Gorgeous in his black suit and tie, she could notice from his look that they had both had little rest."Ready for this?" He asked; his voice was a mix of concern and encouragement.Ximena looked at him in the mirror and could afford a small smile. "As ready as I'll ever be. You?"He pulled her closer and grabbed her shoulders gently. The heat from his touch started to flow all the way down to her tailbone. "With you beside me? Bring it on."She looked at him, drawing closer, enough that their lips were almost touching. At that moment the weight of the day’s load disappeared and there was only them. Ximena moved closer, closing the gap between them and both of their mouths touched gently in a comforti
Chapter 77Tania’s POVYou know that feeling when it seemed like it was just this close to reaping everything you ever wanted? It feels like all of your plans fall into place, and finally - but there's still this little thing there that tells you, well, something's gonna go wrong. That was me, having worked hard to be where I was, but there in the back of my mind was this nagging fear.But I had a plan. I always did.Sitting in my car, I watched the office building of Antonio's Group through the tinted windows. I had done my homework. I knew every move Ximena was making, and I wasn't about to let her steal my man again.She really thought that just because she was all dolled up in some sort of suit, just because her name was on the bottom of some company logo, she could just waltz back in and take what was mine. No. Not happening.I gave up so much for Miguel. And for what? So I could be pushed aside like I was nothing because of that three-year contract marriage? It should have been
Chapter 78Making It RightHe sat at his desk, staring at the reports in front of him, but not really focusing on them. As had become too customary, far too much lately, his mind whisked back to Ximena, haunted by how it all went wrong in their marriage and just how badly he had failed her. The absence of Ximena hit him terribly; he missed everything about her, and that gnawed at him.He'd wanted to set it right, needed to, but every time he did it was like the gap between them opened wider.Then, just then, the door was raped by a knock, and that jerked him back to the present. His heart went into overdrive as Ximena walked in. Her blond hair slicked back, her blue eyes keen and wary.It was the mantle of authority she wore now, an assured businesswoman that he had once thought couldn't survive without him. He knew better."Miguel," she said coolly and lowly. "We need to talk."He rose, unable to shake off the feeling that this wasn't a conversation which was going to go exactly as
Chapter 79The MoleThe next morning, Ximena sat at her desk looking out the window at the city’s silhouette in the Mexico City fog. It was quite clear that she almost did not look at it a second time.She found herself back in Miguel’s office and was drowned in the memories of that kiss.Their gentle pressure against her own lips, the grasping of her shoulders, some part of her waking up.And she kissed him back.She touched her lips one more time with her fingers as if to remove the bad memory that was just formed. She shouldn't have done that. That was wrong. It didn’t matter, it was just a flaw. She scolded the inner soul but she knew that it wasn’t completely true.She felt like kissing him. She hated to admit it, but she still had feelings for Miguel - feelings she could not stop no matter how hard she tried to bury them. But she was going to try not to fall into that trap again. She had let him hurt her once. And she was not going to let him do it again.You don't get to make
Chapter 80Tania’s POVI sat at the bar, tracing my fingers around the rim of my glass of wine, trying to steady myself. It's usually the low hum of conversation, clinking glasses, soothing me, but tonight nothing felt right. The red wine in front of me tasted bitter, not as rich and indulgent as it should taste. I wasn't sure whether it was the wine or just the taste of failure creeping up my throat.It was all supposed to go so smoothly: take down Antonio's Group, prop up Vega Investments, and at the end of the rainbow, I would have it all: Miguel, the company, and the satisfaction of watching Ximena disappear. Of late, though, things had felt out of my grasp.Most especially Miguel.I sighed deeply, having taken another sip of my wine, and tried to push those thoughts away. He'd been pulling away from me ever since Ximena reentered his life, and I hated it. Because of her, Miguel broke up with me.Every time I saw that look in his eyes when he said her name, I felt like I was los
Chapter 81TensionThe twinkling city lights of Mexico City were in the distance as Ximena sat at her desk, her eyes red and burning from staring at financial reports for hours. The numbers blurred together, but that pit in her stomach stayed sharp. Antonio's Group was in serious trouble, and it was up to her to figure out a way to fix it.But it wasn't the company that kept her awake. It was everything: Miguel, Tania, Vega Investments circling them like vultures. She couldn't afford to have feelings to distract her, yet neither could she manage to turn them off completely. Not after that kiss.Her fingers strayed to her lips, still sensing the heat of Miguel's touch. She pulled away because she knew it was wrong. They aren't the people they used to be anymore-too much happened, and she couldn't just fall back into his arms like nothing is any different.But her heart still ached, and to add to that, it weighed upon her shoulder. 'Concentrate,' she consoled herself, 'you have a com
Chapter 82 Miguel was at his desk staring at the time on the clock as the minutes elapsed. He had no clue of the outcome of this meeting with Ximena. Everything that had happened after the kiss, the tension, the visible attraction, and the unknown bothered him. She had wanted to meet him in her office and had not been talking about the company all this time, so it was about him. He could feel it.He was nervous, not an emotion he was familiar with, especially not with Ximena. But now? Everything was different. She was different. She was not his wife; she was the woman he had an affair with, and wanted to reconcile with.His cell phone rang on the desk. From Ximena: "I'm ready. Come now."He breathed in deeply and stood up and no matter what he had in store for him he walked towards her office.Ximena sat behind her desk, her spine rigid, her eyes pinpointed and tired. She looked up when he entered the room and for a second there was a spark, some kind of light in her eyes.“Miguel,
Chapter 83Ximena sat at the head of the conference table. A heavyweight silence fell upon the room. Her team was there, Carlos and Robert, a couple of other key executives all donning faces as solemn as the situation they were in. She was elsewhere, though. Still, her mind could not get off what Miguel had told her last night.Behind it all was Tania: the leaks, the sabotage. Since the instant Tania had reappeared in Miguel's life, Ximena had known that she was trouble, but she had not known what to expect, how grave her betrayal would be. Now, with the company near collapse, there was little time left to stop her.We've ascertained that the leaks came from Tania's side," he said, finally breaking the silence. "But we do not have concrete evidence we can take to the board. We need concrete, irrefutable evidence.Ximena frowned; tapping her fingers on the table. "Tania is not going to make this easy. She's already threatening to expose the company and with that, bury us if we don't
Chapter 143: A Dangerous PropositionXimena had barely settled into her chair when the sound of heels clicking against the marble floor drew her attention. She looked up to find Tania sauntering into the office, swaggering with confidence around her like a shield. Miguel glanced from Ximena to Tania, an eyebrow furrowing in silent question as to what was bringing her this time. "Good morning," Tania said, a breezy light, through her eyes darted between them, shining with a glint of determination."What do you want, Tania?" Ximena asked icily, leaning back in her chair, arms crossed. Tania smiled slightly, undaunted by Ximena's overt hostility. "Relax. I'm not here to cause trouble. As a matter of fact, I think you'll want to hear what I have to say." Miguel straightened, already wary. "We're listening."Tania leaned in closer, lowering her voice as if the walls could hear her. "I can help you take down Vega." Ximena allowed a bitter laugh to escape from her lips and shook her he
Chapter 142: A Calculated RiskBack at the Antonio's Group the next day, Miguel leaned back in his chair, still reeling over the tense café meeting he had with Amanda. Ximena paced restlessly across the room, arms crossed tightly over her chest. "I still don't trust her," she said, her voice a bit shrill. "She just comes out of nowhere, asking for a job, and suddenly she has all the answers? It doesn't sit right with me."Miguel nodded. His fingers drummed against the desk. "I understand. But Amanda's information corresponds too well with what we already know about Vega's financial moves. If she's lying, it's a damned calculated lie." Ximena stopped pacing, swinging to face him. "And if she's not lying? What's to stop Vega from retaliating the minute we act on her intel?"Miguel took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair. "Nothing. Yet, if we don't do anything, Vega wins by default. We've come too far to turn back now." Ximena shook her head. For a moment, frustration flas
Chapter 141: Trust ShatteredAcross from Henry sat Miguel, impassive. The older man leaned back in his chair, his impassive demeanor belying the tension in the room.Standing across the room by the window, Ximena clasped her arms tightly over her chest as she glared at the man she once considered a part of the trusted board membership.The evidence against him lay sprawled across the desk between them, staring in its simplicity yet damning in implications. "We know you've been accessing confidential files," Miguel began, his voice measured. "Files that were altered to mislead us and weaken Antonio's Group. Do you deny it?"Henry adjusted his tie, with a flicker of annoyance crossing his features. "This is a serious accusation that you're making, Miguel, and I would advise you to be very careful with claims that you make without real evidence."Ximena took a step forward, her voice slicing. "We have all the evidence we need. Clara traced the access directly to your office. And these f
Chapter 140: Breaking the CircleThe tension in Antonio’s Group grew tighter with each passing day. The threat of Henry's betrayal hung in the air; Miguel couldn't help but look over his shoulder, even in private. Miguel paced back and forth across the floor of Ximena's office while his mind reeled with schemes on how to handle their multiplying suspicions. Ximena sat with her elbows propped on her desk, sharp-eyed, going over Clara's findings once again."We need more than suspicion," Ximena said without looking up. Her voice was steady, but her hands had tightened on the edge of the desk. "If we confront Henry without solid proof, we risk tipping off Vega and worse, we could lose whatever leverage we still have."Miguel nodded, rubbing his chin in thought. "You're right. But we cannot afford to let this fester. If Henry's feeding Vega information, then we need to take action well before the quarterly report. We need proof, hard and clear."Ximena sank back in her chair, her gaze
Chapter 139: Boundaries of TrustMiguel couldn’t shake the tension lingering after the latest meeting with Henry. Whereas the older board member did give some critical information, the web of suspicion around them seemed to only thicken. It would seem with every new revelation to deal with that the walls of Antonio's Group closed in; the thin line between friend and foe increasingly harder to define. Determined to protect Ximena and the company, Miguel knew they'd have to tread carefully with every decision.Longer meetings and quieter strategy sessions in the privacy of Ximena's office had run the day. As night fell, she leaned back in her chair, massaging her temples. "I can't shake the feeling that we're running out of time," she admitted, her tone thick with frustration.Miguel watched her closely, his chest constricting where the fatigue was etched across her features. "We'll get through this," he told her with a calm, yet resolved tone. "But we cannot afford to miss one det
Chapter 138: Shadows of BetrayalMiguel could feel the tension radiating through the air as he and Ximena prepared for their next meeting with Antonio’s Group’s core team. Every step toward unmasking the truth was like peeling away from hidden agendas and shadows.They'd tightened every security measure they could, yet it gnawed on him thinking that someone on the inside could be working against them.As they turned toward the conference room, Ximena stopped, staring off into space."The whole thing with Vega.... it's changed everything. I hate that we have to question people we once trusted."Miguel nodded, catching the tumult in her voice. "I know. But until we are sure, we can't take any chances. Vega has made it clear that he will exploit any weakness he finds."They entered the conference room, Ximena taking her seat at the head of the table with confidence belied by the tension in her features. A few board members filed in, one of them Henry who paid silent respect to Ximena b
Chapter 137: Shadows in the DarkEvery word in the email's subject was a promise of retribution, spelling out in detail what was envisioned to happen if Antonio's Group continued to resist the influence of Vega.Miguel's hands clamped down on his desk as if to restrain himself. But his gut was screaming at him, to act now.He strode toward Ximena's office in rapid, determined steps. She was still hunched over her desk going over files under the muted office lights."Ximena," he said low but urgent.She looked up; instant concern flickered in her eyes as she took in his tense expression. "What's wrong?"He showed her the email, watching her face change from shock to steely determination. "So Vega's threatening me now?" she muttered, her tone barely containing the anger. Miguel nodded, his voice equally strained. "It would appear he is becoming desperate. I do not want you here alone-not with these threats hanging over us. We are increasing your security detail immediately."She shook h
Chapter 136: Lines of DeceptionMiguel sat at his desk, his mind heavy with tension since the beginning of the day. First, it was the threatening messages to Ximena, which were unsettling; now he had another angle to contemplate-a batch of documents from Henry.The subject line had read:"For the Protection of Ximena," an unsolicited move by a man who had long kept himself aloof from the politics of business.Miguel passed the documents along to Ximena with a simple message: "Take a look at these when you have a minute."Within minutes, Ximena knocked on his door frame; her eyes were already filled with incredulity. She came in and closed the door behind her, looking at his expression for explanation. "You just sent me those documents from Henry?" she asked, brow furrowed while holding up her phone.Miguel nodded, gesturing her to his desk. "Yes. He says they contain critical details about Vega's takeover strategy, supposedly information he thinks we'll need to counter Vega's next mo
Chapter 135: Lines of TrustMiguel and Ximena worked tirelessly in the days leading up to Antonio Group’s quarterly report. They knew if Vega had any plans to strike, this report's release was the avenue to spread chaos. They made sure they were not going to allow that to happen by revisiting every single security protocol there was: access to sensitive files was tightened, background checks of all their team members were reviewed again, and access lists of all personnel that would be in contact with the report were reassessed.Miguel leaned over a stack of security files, his face tense as he scanned the list of employees with access to the report. "We need to ensure that nobody outside of that list sees anything of the report before it is released. One misplaced file or leak and it's going to spread faster than we will ever be able to contain it.Ximena nodded, her intensity level matching his. "Agreed. We're in the spotlight more than ever right now. Vega's just waiting for us to