Chapter 4

The invitation to the Wainwright Charity Gala arrived a week after our strategy meeting. Normally, I would have dreaded such an event—another opportunity for Eleanor Foster to parade her superiority and for Zach to showcase his indifference. But this time, a quiet determination settled over me as I slipped into the midnight blue gown Lucas had encouraged me to wear.

"You look stunning," Lucas said as I descended the stairs of his penthouse. The admiration in his eyes warmed something long-frozen inside me.

"Ready to face the lions?" I asked, attempting lightness despite the flutter of anxiety in my chest.