“I’m attracted to you too.”
Vivian’s heartbeat betrayed her.
Ethan continued:
“That’s also unfortunate.”
“Why?”
“You’re trying to buy my runway.”
She laughed.
“Fair.”
Neither moved closer.
That restraint felt more intimate than if they had.
Vivian looked toward Mia.
“Maybe we should wait until nobody’s suing anybody.”
“Good policy.”
“Is anyone suing anyone yet?”
“Give it a week.”
They both laughed.
The week brought worse things.
Grant Hollis called an emergency board meeting.
Official reason:
Midwest Hub execution risk.
Unofficial reason:
Vivian.
The board meeting took place in New York.
Vivian flew commercially.
Partly because her jet remained under maintenance review.
Partly because she wanted no one saying the airfield had trapped her emotionally inside a private bubble.
She presented the facts.
Lake Union.
Fuel pressure.
Monitoring.
Emergency aviation.
Runway Two.
The board listened.
Then Grant presented numbers.
The proposed hub could create 3,800 direct jobs.
Another 7,000 indirect.
State incentives worth $240 million.
Supplier commitments.
Projected enterprise value increase.
He did not lie.
That was the problem.
Bad choices often came attached to good spreadsheets.
One director asked Vivian:
“What do you propose?”
“Pause acquisition.”
“For how long?”
“Sixty days.”
“Then?”
“Redesign around continued airfield operation.”
Grant laughed.
“You can’t build the current manufacturing footprint while preserving both runways.”
“Then change the footprint.”
“At what cost?”
“We don’t know.”
“That means more.”
“Probably.”
Another director asked:
“Are you proposing we spend tens of millions to preserve seven emergency flights per year?”
Vivian thought of Laura’s checklist.
Nobody dies because we were in a hurry.
She answered:
“I’m proposing we stop pretending the only value on that land is ours.”
Grant leaned back.
“There it is.”
“What?”
“Morality play.”
Vivian looked at him.
“No.”
“Governance.”
“You used a lender relationship to pressure a seller without board disclosure.”
“You interfered with supply.”
“You monitored my meetings.”
Grant’s expression hardened.
“All within delegated acquisition authority.”
“Maybe.”
“Not anymore.”
The board voted.
Six to five.
Against Vivian.
Acquisition pressure would continue.
Vivian remained CEO.
For now.
She left the room with her position intact and almost no control over the specific deal.
That surprised Ethan.
“You lost?”
“Yes.”
He handed her a beer outside his hangar that evening.
Mia was sleeping at a friend’s house.
The airfield was quiet.
Vivian sat beside him on overturned crates.
“I’m not used to losing.”
“That might be healthy.”
“I knew you’d say something terrible.”
He smiled.
“What happens?”
“Lake Union keeps pressure.”
“Board expects a signed purchase agreement in thirty days.”
“And if I refuse?”