In my world, power isn’t negotiated—it’s possessed.

I don’t notice women the way other men do. I notice leverage. Risk. Threat. Sutton Prescott became a problem for me years ago, long before she ever knew my name. She closed a door I expected to walk through, cost me ground I didn’t anticipate losing, and walked away thinking it was just business. It wasn’t.

When my company acquires Prescott Compliance & Strategy, I make one condition clear: she stays. Sutton is smart, ambitious, disciplined, and far too confident in her ability to navigate spheres of power designed to crush people like her.

She doesn’t realize I’ve already figured out her routines. Her tells. The way she pushes back when she should yield. I tell myself this is containment. That keeping Sutton close is logical. Necessary. Neutral. I let her believe this is a temporary arrangement. She thinks I’ll get bored and move on to the next thing I decide to claim. But nothing will prepare her for how wrong she truly is.