Noah
Victoria requested a meeting a few days later, her assistant reaching out through Priya with a request for a brief, private conversation before the finalized merger paperwork officially closed out our companies' business relationship entirely.
I agreed, curious despite myself, and met her at a quiet café near the office rather than either of our respective headquarters, neutral ground for whatever conversation she felt necessary to have before we formally parted ways professionally.
She arrived precisely on time, as always, though something in her usual polished composure seemed slightly softer than I remembered from our previous encounters.
"Thank you for meeting me," she said, settling into the seat across from me. "I wanted to clear the air before everything finalizes next week
