Chapter 2 - THE REAL ESTATE AMBUSH
By 8:00 AM the next morning, my legal team hadn't just sent Daniel a letter; they had delivered a tactical nuke straight to the front desk of Vanessa’s brokerage.
I sat at my corner office on the fortieth floor of the Northstar tower, watching the fog roll over Puget Sound through floor-to-ceiling glass. My phone rang. It wasn’t Daniel. It was Richard Sterling, Senior Partner at Sterling & Vance, and coincidentally, the man who handled Northstar’s corporate litigation.
“Mara,” Richard chuckled warmly, his rich baritone carrying absolute amusement. “I saw the file cross my desk this morning. A corporate audit flag on an executive suite booking for an ex-wife and a twenty-four-year-old dependent? You’re ruthless.”
“It’s not ruthlessness, Richard, it’s standard compliance,” I replied smoothly, signing off on a maritime insurance waiver. “Mr. Sterling attempted to utilize company-affiliated perks for unauthorized third-party dependents under fraudulent domestic pretenses. Northstar takes compliance very seriously.”
“Oh, I know. And speaking of compliance, your husband’s little family vacation just hit a massive roadblock. Vanessa is currently screaming at our front desk receptionist downstairs, demanding to speak to the CEO.”
“Send her up to me,” I said instantly, a cold thrill sparking in my chest. “Let’s see how much she likes real estate negotiations when she’s standing on my turf.”
Fifteen minutes later, the double doors of my office swung open with a dramatic bang. Vanessa strode in, looking like a desperate hurricane wrapped in a Chanel knock-off suit. Her face was flushed, her dyed blonde hair slightly disheveled, and her eyes blazing with pure, unfiltered venom.
“You absolute sociopath!” Vanessa shrieked, slamming both palms down onto my mahogany desk. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done? You’ve humiliated Claire! She’s been crying for an hour because our boarding passes are flagged as fraudulent!”
I didn’t flinch. I didn’t even look up from my tablet immediately. I slowly finished reading a compliance report, tapped the screen to lock it, and finally raised my eyes to meet hers.
“Good morning, Vanessa,” I said, my tone dripping with icy politeness. “It’s customary to make an appointment when visiting a corporate office. But then again, boundary issues have always been a bit of a family specialty for you, haven’t they?”
“You think this is a game?” Vanessa sneered, leaning over the desk so close I could smell her designer perfume mixed with pure panic. “Daniel is packing his bags right now to leave you. He told me last night that living with you is like sleeping next to an executioner. He’s choosing us. He’s always chosen us.”
I smiled, standing up slowly. I adjusted the cuffs of my tailored blazer, towering over her by a good three inches thanks to my Louboutins.
“Let him choose, Vanessa,” I whispered, stepping around the desk until I stood mere inches away from her. “Take him. Put him in your house, pay for his lattes, listen to his mid-life crisis complaints about how difficult it is to be a kept man. But before you pack his bags, you might want to ask him whose name is on the mortgage of the vacation home he thinks he’s retiring in.”
May you like
Vanessa’s breath hitched. Her bravado flickered, replaced by a sudden, chilling realization. “What... what are you talking about?”
“Ask him,” I repeated softly, handing her my business card with a flick of my wrist. “And tell him my attorney will be dropping off the preliminary asset freeze paperwork by noon. Have a safe cruise.”
