The CEO's Regret: Darling, Don’t Leave Me novel Chapter 29

Chapter 19:1 Lost to Her.-2

It was not a concrete signal. It was a sensation. That silent discomfort that appears when the ground you thought was firm begins to move barely… enough to throw you off.

I entered the room with a sure step. Dark suit, impeccable. The watch adjusted. The right expression. I greeted with a professional, firm gesture. I sat down unhurriedly, taking my rightful place.

Vanessa wasn’t there. It wasn’t her space. She knew when to be there… and when not to.

The table was large, made of polished glass. Documents were neatly arranged in front of each participant.

Projections played on the screen. The air smelled of expensive coffee and important decisions.

We talked first about figures. About losses. About accumulated errors. About a structure that had worked for years, but now showed obvious cracks.

I listened. I nodded. I took minimal notes. Waiting.

When they gave me the floor, I didn’t hesitate.

I explained the diagnosis… I pointed out the failures in the chain of command. The lack of adaptation to the current market. The need to cut unproductive areas and strengthen leadership.

I spoke confidently. With authority. With that voice that leaves no room for unnecessary questioning.

I reformed what I had already proposed before.

“The problem is not the company,” I said. “It is resistance to change. And that is corrected with firm decisions, even if they are uncomfortable.”

Some nodded. Others took note. Okay.

“The restructuring must be immediate,” I continued. “Not gradual. Because the markets don’t wait.”

I felt confident. Control. That’s when the door opened.

I didn’t look up right away. I didn’t need it. I recognized her presence without seeing her

Clara…

The air changed. Literally. Not because she made noise. Not because she was looking for attention. She entered calmly, greeted politely, and took a seat two places away.

She didn’t look at me at first. And that… That was a stronger blow than any direct confrontation.

There was immediate interest. I saw it in their faces. In the way some leaned slightly forward. In how one of them crossed his arms, assessing.

She listened. Everything. She did not interrupt. She did not correct. She did not compete… yet.

When they finished asking me questions, when I defended each point of my proposal with solid arguments, I thought I had left the ground well-marked.

Then someone said:

‘Clara, what do you think?”

She looked up slowly

And for a moment… I felt something I didn’t like to admit.

“I agree in part with the diagnosis,” she began. “But not with the approach.”

And that’s when I knew. Not because she contradicted me. But because she did it without attacking me.

“The company doesn’t need emergency surgery,” she continued. “It needs to regain internal coherence.”

She steered the conversation in another direction. A more complex one. A deeper one.

“It’s not just about cutting,” she said. “It is about rebuilding without the system collapsing.”

She showed different graphics than mine. Medium-term projections. Hybrid strategies.

And as she spoke… I saw them, the business people looked at her differently. Not like just another consulting firm. Not as an alternative option.

They listened to her, they nodded.

One of them smiled. Another took quick notes. The president of the council bowed his head attentively.

I felt something tighten in my chest. I tried to intervene. Adjust. Defend.

“That sounds good in theory,” I said, “but time is against it.”

She looked at me then, directly, without challenge. No irony.

“Time is always against us when the underlying problem isn’t understood,” she replied. “And here, the problem isn’t speed… it’s the disconnect.”

She didn’t raise her voice, she didn’t need to.

She explained a solution that not only solved the present, but also projected the future. That she did not destroy to rebuild, but aligned. That restored meaning to an exhausted structure,

As she spoke, I stopped hearing words. I heard certainties… And the worst…

It was brilliant.

Not because it was complex. But because it was clear, too clear.

When she finished, the silence stretched for a few seconds. And in that silence… I lost.

Not because they said it out loud. Not yet.

I knew it from the way one of the council members turned to her.

“How long would your team need to implement this?”

J

Chapter 19/1140 Her 2

They didn’t ask me anything else.

“We’re ready,” Clara replied. “Even ahead of schedule.”

Assents, crossed glances… Décision.

The president of the council cleared his throat.

“Clara,” he said. “We want Sinclair & Co. to lead this process.”-

The statement landed like a sentence.

“We believe that your approach is exactly what this company needs at this time.”

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify