Chapter 45

"What did you just say?" Brinley's eyes flared,excitement sparking through her like a live wire.

Corbin slid his phone into her hand, the screen glowing with a government notice. "A five-hundred-acre racing-themed complex is set for the outskirts of Bleron, with bidding open to every company...

"Racing-themed..." Brinley whispered, her fingertips brushing over the bolded words as her breath quickened, chest rising and fallig in a rush.

The project fit her to perfection, like someone had carved it straight out of her own ambitions.

Across the long table, employees exchanged surprised looks, baffled by why their composed,untouchable boss suddenly burned with such fierce light in her gaze.

Only Brinley grasped the weight of what stood before her-and how sharply it could tilt the course of her company's development.

"Enough for now. We'll take a break!" She sprang to her feet and swept the jacket off her chair. "Corbin,email me the full project dossier right now. I want every policy, every planning map, down to the smallest detail."

"But what should we do with the rest of today's agenda..."

"Push everything back." Brinley spoke with flint in her voice, steady and uncompromising. "We cannot afford to lose-this project must be ours!"

During the ride back to Hillcrest Villa, she stayed on the phone with her assistant, racing through specs and timelines while the car sped smoothly along the road.

The Bluetooth console kept flashing with Austin's incoming calls, but without so much as a glance, she declined each one. <