The Year She Stopped Being Crazy for Him novel Chapter 149

He hung his head, utterly defeated. "He ordered me to shut the studio down. He pulled his funding."

Quinn ran a hand through his hair in deep frustration. "I asked him why, but he wouldn't give me a straight answer. He just said keeping this place open would destroy our family."

He looked up at Natalie, only to find her staring blankly through the glass windows at the building across the street.

Following her gaze, he heard her quiet, steady voice. "Tell your dad I'm quitting."

Natalie knew she hadn't actually won. Even though they survived the first attack through sheer preparation, it was only the beginning.

If she stayed, she would only drag Quinn down with her.

"Why?!" Panic flashed across Quinn's face. He grabbed her wrist, stepping closer. "Don't do this. I'll figure it out. It hasn't reached that point yet—we already beat the first wave, didn't we?"

Across the street, inside the Carlson Group headquarters, a tall figure stood silhouetted against the floor-to-ceiling windows of the CEO's office.

When his secretary walked in to deliver his coffee, she noticed her boss staring intensely at the building opposite theirs.

She spoke softly. "Ms. Sutton said there's a new development with the project and wanted to know if you'd like an update."

The secretary was fully aware of their special dynamic. She had never seen a standard project manager granted the privilege of direct, unscheduled access to the CEO.

But Hassan virtually green-lit every single request Gardenia made.

Today, however, something was off. He remained motionless by the window, completely ignoring her.

Curious, she took a few steps closer to see what he was looking at.

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