The CEO's Regret: Darling, Don’t Leave Me novel Chapter 43

Chapter 28: Colleagues or Rivals.-1

Clara

The meeting room was spacious, too bright for the kind of conversation knew was going to happen. Screens on, projected shots, open schedules, and Ethan sitting in front of me, not next to me… In front of

It was the first meeting, there was the CEO of the company, Mr. Nicanor and next to him, the majority investor of the company, Mr. Fernán Valdez.

The man puts us in context again, and when Fernán Valdez speaks of crisis, he does not speak of numbers in the red… Talk about mismanaged power, the company is called Roth Infrastructure Group V&R. A giant in high-profile urban development on the East Coast. Residential skyscrapers, financial complexes, renovation of industrial areas, public-private partnerships.

Projects that redefine entire cities.

But inside… It’s fractured, V&R doesn’t need creativity, it doesn’t need expansion, it needs order.

The CEO, Nicanor Ramirez, inherited the position from his father six years ago. Brilliant engineer.

Visionary. Ambitious. But surrounded by a divided board and directors who have been defending their own internal fiefdoms for decades.

I have studied it as necessary.

The problem is not that the company does not generate money, the problem is that it generates too much… and no one knows exactly where it is fleeing.

Duplicate apartments, inflated contracts. Outdated processes… A heavy hierarchical structure that delays key decisions. And a silent struggle between the old guard and the new executive team.

When Fernán Valdez – the majority investor and real financial brain behind the group – decided to step in, he didn’t look for traditional advisers. He sought strategic reconstruction.

That’s where I come in with my company, we must find where control is being lost… and then, recover it.

And then, that’s where Blackwood Enterprises, Ethan’s company, comes in

They don’t specialize in internal structure – although they can work it well – they specialize in high-impact execution, acquisitions, government negotiations, logistics optimization in complex markets.

Where I design the systern, he implements it without it collapsing. Where I reorganize, he negotiates.

Where I dismantle obsolete structures, he ensures that the building does not collapse in the process.

In short, that was what Fernán Valdez saw. And that’s why my ex-husband and I, we’re here.

As if the universe needed to remind us of our natural position; opposition.

The main investor was at the head of the table. Meticulous man, sharp eyes, zero patience for corporate

Chapter 234

egos

Alexander, he was with me, he was on my right. Ethan leaning slightly forward, hands clasped. Impeccable. Serene… Too serene.

I started.

“The conceptual phase is already validated. The structural design remains as approved in the initial proposal. It does not require adjustments at this stage.”

Ethan intervened without waiting too long.

“It requires logistical adaptation,” he corrected. “The vendor they selected has no operational history in this type of foreclosure in New York.”

I didn’t raise my voice.

“He have a history in similar international projects.”

“Not in this city.”

“That doesn’t make him incompetent.”

He held my gaze.

“It makes him inexperienced in local regulations.”

The tone was neutral.

“Blackwood can integrate one of its usual suppliers without altering the creative line,” he continued. “It would minimize risks.”

It would minimize risks.

Translation, replacing a decision of mine.

I felt the urge to defend every point. Not out of pride… for consistency.

“The contract states that Sinclair leads strategic direction and execution,” I replied. “If every technical decision is going to be rethought, then we are not collaborating. We are absorbing.”

Silence.

Alexander glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. He did not intervene. He let me hold the point.

Ethan didn’t change his gesture.

“No one is absorbing anyone,” he said. “We are optimizing.”

“Optimizing is not displacement.”

That’s when Mr. Fernán put both hands on the table.

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