The cab ride back to her apartment felt longer than usual. Mira sat silently, staring out the window, her thoughts buzzing. The meeting had ended in a disaster she hadn't anticipated. Not only had the client—Noah—publicly embarrassed her by pointing out flaws in her presentation, but his presence alone was a constant thorn in her side.
Why did it have to be him? Of all people, why did fate tie them together in this ridiculous way?
As soon as she stepped into her apartment, she threw her keys on the counter and collapsed on the couch. Her phone buzzed—another email from her boss. A polite but pointed warning: "Mira, I need better coordination next time. Clients this important demand precision."
She groaned and buried her face in the cushions.
Meanwhile, across the city, Noah was replaying the presentation in his mind. Despite the tension, he hadn't missed Mira's intelligence. There was something about her fire, the way she defended her ideas, that stayed with him long after he left the meeting.
"Troublesome woman," he muttered, sipping from a glass of wine in his hotel room. "But damn, she's brilliant."
For the first time in a while, he found himself intrigued.
Back at Mira's apartment, she opened her laptop to research. She needed something—anything—to get back on her boss's good side. As she typed, her eyes landed on Noah's face in an article headline: Heir to the Wilder Group Makes Surprise Return to Country.
Her heart dropped.
He was that Noah Wilder?
A billionaire? Her former enemy was not only a source of her humiliation but now possibly her key to fixing her career.
The thought made her nauseous.
But then again, wasn't this what her job was all about? Handling difficult clients—even if they were from her past?
She didn't have time to overthink it. Tomorrow, she'd apologize, swallow her pride, and find a way to make this work.
Because if she didn't, her job—and everything she'd worked for abroad—might slip right through her fingers.
And somewhere, deep beneath the resentment, a new emotion was beginning to stir… one Mira wasn't ready to admit just yet.