\u201cFine,\u201d I said calmly. \u201cHave fun.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the morning, he left euphoric. I put on a new Dior dress \u2014 dark blue, elegant, fitted, yet reserved. Makeup and hairstyle \u2014 flawless. The mirror reflected a new version of me: confident, radiant, powerful.<\/p>\n
At the luxury restaurant, Mikhail Petrovich greeted me.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnna Sergeevna, what an honor.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you. Ready to discuss our future plans.\u201d<\/p>\n
Inside, the hall pulsed with suits and spectacular dresses. Business was discussed warmly as I got to know the leaders. Some were already whispering that I was the new owner, though it hadn\u2019t yet been officially announced.<\/p>\n
And then he appeared \u2014 Dmitri, impeccable, in his best suit, fresh haircut, radiating confidence. His eyes scanned the crowd.<\/p>\n
We met each other\u2019s gaze. Confusion. Then fury. He rushed over.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you doing here?\u201d he whispered in my ear. \u201cI told you this place isn\u2019t for you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGood evening, Dima,\u201d I said coldly.<\/p>\n
\u201cLeave! Now! You\u2019re embarrassing me,\u201d his voice low but venomous. \u201cAnd what\u2019s this? Another one of your little mouse rags you mock me with?\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2026but I didn\u2019t get the chance to answer. An older man, with a glass of red wine in his hand and the vice president\u2019s badge on his jacket, approached with a broad smile.<\/p>\n
\u201cMiss Volkov, we were just discussing the financial recovery strategy. So glad you arrived. Dmitri, I assume you\u2019ve already congratulated her on her new position?\u201d<\/p>\n
I turned my head slightly toward Dmitri. His gaze went blank. He blinked a few times.<\/p>\n
\u201cHer\u2026 her position?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, he didn\u2019t know?\u201d the vice president interjected, unaware of just how much truth he was pouring into that wine. \u201cWell, it seems you\u2019ve missed the last few important meetings. Anna is the new majority owner of our fund and, consequently, of TradeInvest. We were informed today.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dmitri seemed to run out of oxygen. His lips moved without sound. I looked at him with the same calmness you\u2019d give a man who once slammed the door in your face, but to whom you\u2019ve since bought the house.<\/p>\n
\u201cExcuse me,\u201d I said calmly. \u201cI should join the board.\u201d<\/p>\n
I left him there, between crystal glasses and the shame beginning to drip down his starched collar.<\/p>\n
The evening was a success. The company\u2019s reorganization plan was approved. I publicly announced my intention to personally lead the restructuring, and for the first time in my life, I was listened to, not merely tolerated.<\/p>\n
The next day, Dmitri waited for me in the kitchen. With dark circles, no Swiss watch. In his hand, a coffee \u2014 the one I always used to make for him.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnna\u2026 can we talk?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can start with your resignation.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said nothing more. Just nodded, defeated.<\/p>\n
I watched him walk out the door. No luxury car. No superior air. Just a man who forgot that sometimes, the little gray mouse is in fact the lion in sheep\u2019s clothing.<\/p>\n
That day, I remembered my grandmother\u2019s words from the countryside:
\n\u201cA good girl shows herself in hard times. But in good times\u2026 she rises.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cFine,\u201d I said calmly. \u201cHave fun.\u201d In the morning, he left euphoric. I put on a new Dior dress \u2014 dark blue, elegant, fitted, yet reserved. Makeup and hairstyle \u2014 flawless. The mirror reflected a new version of me: confident, radiant, powerful. At the luxury restaurant, Mikhail Petrovich greeted me. \u201cAnna Sergeevna, what an honor.\u201d […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":889,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1309","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tappyli.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1309","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tappyli.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tappyli.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tappyli.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tappyli.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1309"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/tappyli.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1309\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1311,"href":"https:\/\/tappyli.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1309\/revisions\/1311"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tappyli.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/889"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tappyli.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1309"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tappyli.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1309"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tappyli.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1309"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}