"What the fuck?!" Lisa spun around, her heart racing as she tried to figure out who had just yanked her away from ire.


    "Quiet, or she''ll spot you," the woman hissed, throwing Lisa a stern re. "Follow me."


    Lisa stood her ground, frowning. "Where and why?"


    The woman sighed dramatically and stepped closer. "Don''t you remember me? I''m Gretta. I invited you to golfing a month ago. Ring a bell?"


    Lisa squinted, thinking back. Then it hit her. "Gretta! Yeah, I remember. But what the hell are you doing here, and why did you just ruin my n?"


    Gretta rolled her eyes, grabbing Lisa by the arm and carefully pulling her out of the club, making sure ire didn''t notice them sneaking out. Once they were outside, they hopped into Gretta''s car. Gretta quickly told her driver to go, and as they sped away, Lisa''s irritation bubbled over.


    "Alright, Gretta, what''s the big idea? Why''d you drag me into your car?" Lisa demanded, crossing her arms and ring.


    Gretta turned to her, her expression serious. "What you were about to do back there was wrong, Lisa."


    Lisa scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Didn''t expect you to be so kind to ire. What, you like her now?"


    "Oh, please." Gretta waved her hand dismissively. "I still can''t stand ire. But your n was stupid. You could''ve ended up in jail! Do you really want that?"


    Lisa hesitated, her defiance wavering as she thought about it. Her hands dropped to herp, and she sighed. "Honestly, it''d be better than watching ire live her happy little life. She ruined mine, Gretta. My wedding, my career, and now my public image? I have every right to go through with my n."


    Gretta''s eyes narrowed. "Okay, let''s say you did stab ire, but she survives. Your life would bepletely ruined. If you want revenge, you''ve got to be smart about it."


    Lisa frowned, curiosity piqued. "And what exactly are you thinking?"


    A sly smile spread across Gretta''s lips. "I''ve got a better n. Trust me, I''d love nothing more than to see ire fall. I''m sick of her seeding at everything."


    Lisa watched as Gretta''s expression turned dark, a sneer curling her lips as she thought of ire. Then Gretta''s gaze returned to Lisa, and she stretched out her hand. "Together, we can bring ire down. So, what do you say?"


    Lisa nced at Gretta''s outstretched palm, her own lips curling into a smirk. She shook Gretta''s hand firmly. "Deal. Let''s bring ire down."


    The sun had barely peeked over the horizon when ire heard a knock on her penthouse door. She groaned, ncing at the clock. It was only 6 AM. Who could be here this early?


    Dragging herself out of bed, she shuffled to the door and opened it to find Matthew standing there, grinning like he''d just won the lottery. In one hand, he held two cups of coffee, and in the other, a paper bag that looked suspiciously like it contained pastries. "Good morning, sunshine!" Matthew chirped, stepping inside without waiting for an invitation.


    ire raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing here, Matthew? And at this hour?"


    He shed her a mischievous grin. "I''m ready for the prototype showing today! Figured I''d bring breakfast."


    ire stared at him, then nced at the clock again, just to be sure she hadn''t misread it. "The meeting doesn''t start for another three hours. You do know that, right?"


    "Better safe than sorry!" Matthew replied with a wink, cing the coffee and pastry on her dining table like he owned the ce.


    ire shook her head, a smile tugging at her lips despite herself. "You''re impossible, you know that?"


    "Part of my charm," he said, flopping down on one of her dining chairs. "Come on, sit. We can have breakfast together. You don''t want this croissant to get cold, do you?"


    Realizing she was already up, ire decided she might as well get ready for the day. Besides, she was curious to see what the team had put together after that whole Venus debacle. She headed to her room to freshen up, calling back to Matthew, "Don''t eat all the pastries while I''m gone!"


    "No promises!" he called back,ughing.


    After a quick shower, ire joined Matthew at the table. The croissants were still warm, and the coffee smelled divine. They ate infortable silence for a bit before ire broke it with a question that had been on her mind.


    Matthew was already halfway through his coffee, casually flipping through one of her magazines. ire grabbed her own cup and took a sip, the warmth of the coffee waking her up a little more.


    "So are you nervous about today?" Matthew asked eveing her over the rim of his cunCòntens bel0ngs to N?(v)elDr/a/ma.Org


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    Q Search...


    what they''ve done. It needs to be perfect."


    "It will be," Matthew assured her confidently. "The team knows what''s at stake."


    After breakfast, they decided it was time to head to Metacortex. As they made their way to ire''s office, the early morning quiet of the city slowly gave way to the usual hustle and bustle. ire nced over at Matthew, who was sipping his second coffee of the day. "Are you going to that event Alex is holding?" ire asked casually, though she was genuinely curious.


    Matthew thought for a moment, his brow furrowed. "I don''t want to, but I will. Someone needs to make sure Alex doesn''t do something stupid."


    ire chuckled. "You''re going to y babysitter?"


    "More like a safety," Matthew quipped, grinning. "Someone has to keep you out of trouble."


    They reached her office, and as usual, Matthew made a beeline for her desk, plopping down in her chair like it was his own. ire followed, shaking her head in amusement.


    "You know, Matthew," ire said with a teasing smile, "maybe this office should just be yours. You''re here enough."


    Matthew grinned back at her. "You''re too kind, ire. But honestly, my office at Cryptonic is more than enough. Though... I wouldn''t say no if you offered," he added with a yful wink.


    "Dream on," ire shot back with a smirk.


    The morning flew by, and soon it was time for the meeting. As the team gathered in the conference room, ire''s demeanor shifted into full-on business mode.


    The team unveiled the Cortex 2.0 prototype, exining every detail with precision. ire listened intently, her expression serious and focused. Every so often, she''d nod or ask a pointed question, her mind clearly racing through every possibility. When tho procontation finally


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    ire stood up, her tone professional as she addressed the room. "I''m satisfied with the result," she said, her voice carrying a note of approval "You''ve all worked


    incredibly hard on this project,


    especially after the incident with


    Venus, and I appreciate your


    dedication. But remember, this stays


    confidential. We can''t risk this


    getting out-too much time and


    money has already been lost."


    The team nodded, a look of pride and excitement crossing their faces. It was clear they were as eager as ire to see Cortex 2.0 seed.


    "Oh, and I''ll be announcing Cortex 2.0 myself," ire added. "Let''s make sure everything is perfect before we go public."


    The room buzzed with excitement as the meeting ended. As everyone filed out, ire couldn''t help but feel a surge of satisfaction. The team had delivered, and now it was up to her to make sure everything went smoothly from here on out.


    Back in her office, ire walked over to the window, gazing out at the city below. She could only hope the rest of the week would go as nned, with no more surprises or interruptions. She''d had enough of thosetely.


    Matthew joined her a momentter, leaning against the doorframe with a knowing smile. "Looks like everything''s on track."


    ire nodded, still staring out the window. "Let''s hope it stays that way."