Chapter 3 - The Boardroom Surprise
The receptionist directed me to the fourteenth-floor executive conference room. I pushed the heavy oak door open, expecting a panel of intimidating corporate executives who would dismiss me within sixty seconds. Instead, I walked into a sunlit room featuring a panoramic view of the skyline and three empty seats—and one occupied chair at the head of the mahogany table. The man sitting there wore the exact same charcoal suit, had the exact same sharp cheekbones, and possessed the exact same dark blond hair. It was him. The man from the gutter. Julian Vance, senior partner and managing director of Harrow & Finch. My stomach violently free-fell. He looked up from my ruined résumé, his gaze locking onto mine, and for one terrifying heartbeat, I knew my career was over before it even began.
