After regaining my composure, I put on a serious face to tell him that I meant business. “You can’t be…”
The moment I turned around, I realized that Anthony was already standing right in front of me. Instantly, I got tongue-tied.
A corner of his lips quirked up, and he squinted his eyes seductively. I could feel this warm breath on the back of my neck when he continued to inch closer. Immediately, my mind turned blank completely, and I did not remember what I wanted to say anymore. He managed to change the topic sneakily, leaving me at a loss. As he approached me, I could catch a whiff of his scent, which had a hypnotizing effect on me.
All of a sudden, someone knocked on the door before things spiraled out of control.
Anthony’s expression instantly changed. The moment he noticed Stella standing by the door, he returned to his seat and said calmly, “Come in.”
While I was tidying up my clothes, Stella had already entered the office.
After greeting Anthony, she shifted her gaze to me with a hesitant look on her face as though she was not sure if she should speak in front of me.
By right, that should be her least concern since I was a shareholder of the Featherstone Corporation.
“Go on.” Anthony put on his usual professional look.
Stella lowered her eyes and passed a document to him. As he was flipping through the pages, she explained, “We have had verbal agreements with all the persons in charge of these projects early this year, but all of them called in the afternoon and expressed their intention to cancel the collaboration with us. Many have confirmed that they’re withdrawing from our partnership, whereas Mr. Rosenthaler is still trying his best to convince a few more to stay with us. But according to his secretary, Mr. Rosenthaler is not confident that he could turn things around, and he hopes that our company could step in and manage the situation as soon as possible.”
Anthony knitted his brows, and his expression turned grim as he replied, “Got it. Schedule a meeting for me tomorrow. Get all the department heads to attend it.”
Once again, I recalled what Emery told me. I asked Stella, “Are these the existing projects in J City or the new ones in K City?”
The Featherstone Corporation had a strong presence in J City, and the entire construction industry depended on them. Hence, it was unlikely for these companies to burn bridges with them so easily.
“The new projects, Mrs. Featherstone,” Stella answered.
A line formed between my brows. It looks like Emery was right. Those people in K City have started making their moves now because they are jealous of Anthony.
Anthony took a glance at me and closed the file. He then turned to Stella and said, “You can leave now. I’ll call you when I need you.”
“All right.” Stella then walked out of his office.
Anthony immediately turned his attention to me the moment Stella shut the door. “Tell me what you know.”
“Hmm?” I froze for a bit and gave him a confused look.
Anthony sighed and said, “You’ve distanced yourself from the Featherstone Corporation for quite some time, and you don’t know much about the construction industry either. Therefore, you wouldn’t have asked Stella that question all of a sudden unless you heard something from someone. We’ve been married for ten years, Sienna, so I can read your mind easily.”
Hearing that, I let out a laugh. I was pretty sure he could still read my mind even if we were not married since he was good at doing that. “All right, you got me. I came here to discuss this with you.”
This sabotage was no laughing matter. I placed my hand on his and looked at him seriously. “I know you’re a capable man, but can you not push yourself past your limits at this point? You’ve just relocated the company’s headquarters to K City. Why don’t you strengthen the company’s foundation first before considering the financing project? Since you agree that something’s amiss with the GW Group too, why don’t we take a step back and reevaluate our options?”
Anthony’s eyes darkened as he squinted them. Then, he went deep in thought before asking, “What did Emery say to you?”
Although he did not sound annoyed, his tone was intimidating nonetheless. I twitched my lips and answered matter-of-factly, “She’s only worried for us.”
Anthony kept mum for a moment and walked to his desk. “I’ve been managing this corporation for years. Do you really think I’m unaware of the concern Emery told you?”
After a brief pause, he started looking for some documents from a drawer under his desk. Then he walked up to me and tapped on the documents. “Construction and trading are the two major sources of income for the Featherstone Corporation. Before shifting my focus to K City, I’ve established my connections here, so by right, everything’s good to go. Yet, take a look at all these documents. They all turned their backs on me. Even those who have yet to leave are merely staying temporarily because of the Moores. They might not end up signing the contract with us too.”
After going through all four documents, I realized that the sum involved in these projects was at least ten million. That was a lot of money.
Without connections and resources, a company could never run a business properly. This was exactly the problem Anthony experienced when he made a foray into K City.
At this point, I knew I should not dampen Anthony’s spirit, but I could not keep quiet and watch the Featherstone Corporation crumble.
I hesitated for a moment but decided to voice out my opinion. “Let’s go slow, okay? Without a strong foundation, the company will collapse easily. We should spend time accumulating our resources and building our connections.”
Anthony shook his head in disagreement. “It’s not as easy as it seems.”
He gave me a sullen gaze and continued, “The Moores has been trying to stop me since they heard that I was venturing into K City, so it’s only normal that my other business rivals are now doing the same to sabotage me as well.”
Of course, I was aware of the dilemma he was in. But I only wanted him to be safe in this trying time as that was my biggest concern.
Noticing the changes in my expression, he grabbed my hands and leaned on the couch. “But you see, I’m still in one piece. Besides, there’s no turning back now, Sienna. Even if I don’t expand my business empire, my rivals would still think of ways to take us down. Instead of waiting to be butchered, I might as well take them down first.”
I was shocked to learn how ambitious he was, but at the same time, I totally understood his logic. Besides, no one could stop Anthony if he was determined to get something done.
Instead of dampening his spirit, I should support his endeavors. But at this point, how could I not be worried?
It’s a dog-eat-dog world out there. Even if you have no intention of defeating your rivals, they will not hesitate to destroy you, and the winner will take it all.
Though I had the same concern as Emery, I decided to keep my opinion to myself and trust Anthony wholeheartedly.
I never believed that women were more inferior to men, but I had to admit that Anthony was more visionary than I was. After Anthony had finished his dinner, I left his office and went home directly.
While I was on my way back to the villa, I gave Emery a call and told her what Anthony said. She remained quiet for quite a long time, just like how I reacted in Anthony’s office.
She then made this remark, “Your man is one of a kind, Sienna.”
A corner of my mouth quirked up. “I think everyone knows that.”
“I’m not trying to kiss his ass,” Emery said in a serious voice. “But with his ambition and courage, nothing’s going to hold him back from conquering the world.”
I could not agree more as that was exactly what I had in mind when Anthony told me his thoughts.
After another round of small talk, I ended the call and looked out the window to calm my mind, but I still could not shake off the uneasiness I felt.
Those who wished to sabotage Anthony had already settled down in K City for decades. Hence, he would definitely have a hard time dealing with them if he wished to take them down.
Something Anthony said earlier also reminded me how lax I had become.
Not only had I kept my hands off the Featherstone Corporation during this period, but I had also turned into a housewife, not having any goals in life.
I did not mind being a housewife if I had all the house chores to keep me occupied, but since Mrs. Eriksen was in charge of all the tasks, I spent my days taking care of Summer and delivering dinner to
Anthony.
If I was already living such a mundane life in my late twenties, what would happen to me in the next ten or twenty years?
I had enrolled in a Master of Laws program last year, but due to unforeseen circumstances, I had to put my studies on hold. Since I could still remember what I had studied before, I was confident that I would be able to resume the course with ease.
Besides, as Anthony continued to expand his business, he would have to confront a lot of legal issues. I would be able to assist him once I obtained the license to practice law.
It’s about time for me to further my studies. This time, I must follow through till the end, and the same goes for my pregnancy as well.
Despite his hectic schedule, Anthony still took some time off to accompany me to the hospital for my regular checkup.
Professor Zidd was pleased to inform me that my uterus had recovered, and he said we could carry out the in-vitro fertilization while undergoing the treatment.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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