Her anger rose again. She’d managed to suppress it for the most part during the meeting, but only just. She hoped she came off as brusque and cold, not angry. Anger was read as weakness when it came from a woman.

She closed her eyes, squeezing the bridge of her nose, and took several deep breaths. She wasn’t angry with Ted, after all. “They’re so short-sighted! If we back out now, someone else will step in with a better position to renegotiate. All that money will go to another firm.”

“Don’t I know it. And the new terms will be even more enticing for whoever swoops in and takes over, since the others will be desperate to keep the deal afloat.”

“And for us, it could mean the difference between staying a minor player for another year and bringing the company up to the next level. If we don’t go seal this, we might never get another chance like it again.”

“I hear ya.”

She laughed. “At least I have one person on my side.”

“Oh, don’t worry. There are plenty of us. I could name like ten or fifteen right now. We were actually saying that if they…” He shook his head. “Never mind.”

“If they what?”

He bit his lip, glancing to the side. “I don’t know if I should tell you this since it’s just rumors at this stage, but basically, some people have been muttering about the board forcing you out. Bill’s heard them, and some of the other assistants have, too. A bunch of us agree that if they do that, we’ll leave with you.”

She’d been afraid of something like this. Sure, she’d started the company, but once she gave up majority control, she put herself in this exact position. She’d known going into this deal that it could end up this way if things went poorly, but that didn’t make it any easier to hear now. She was paid to take risks, and this had been her biggest risk yet, but that didn’t mean they would be happy with her if it fell apart. In fact, it would give them the precise opportunity they needed to force her out entirely, if that’s what they wanted.

“I’m sorry, Ryann.”

She waved at him dismissively. “It’s fine, Ted. We both knew this was a possibility. And hey. We’re not sunk yet. We have a week.”

“How soon can you leave for London?”

She was suddenly struck by the thought of her other obligations. She was in a Valentine’s themed hotel halfway across the country planning a wedding, of all things. The discrepancy between the two situations was stark. On the one side—her entire career. On the other—the best baker and caterer. The comparison was laughable.

“Well, I guess the sooner I can go, the better,” she said.