Aria's POV

*Present time*

"I have good news and bad news. Which one do you want first?"

My assistant Sofia said as she walked into my office, holding a cup.

I sat my pen down and leaned back in my chair.... every piece of information I could get at this point was extremely important to me

"Bad news. That way the good news hits harder."

She gave me a small smile. "Well, the bad news is…..the espresso machine at the coffee shop broke. So I brought you regular coffee."

She placed the foam cup on my desk like she was delivering tragic news.

I sighed. "Seriously? That’s the bad news?"

She shrugged. "It felt bad at the time."

I let out a deep breath because at this point, I was exhausted.

As I walked across the hallway earlier this morning, I noticed half of my staff was gone.

I guess that’s what happens when your business is on the verge of bankruptcy. With thousands of lawsuits piling up, I was barely surviving.

Even the loan I got from the bank had backfired. The shipment sank before it even got here.

All I had left now was to find private investors.

I took the cup and opened the lid. "Alright, hit me with the good news."

Her smile widened. " The investors are on their way ."

My hand froze before I could take a sip of my coffee

"What investors?" I asked, slowly lowering the cup.

"Remember when Aiden dropped by? He said if we needed anything, we could reach out to him."

"Sofia?" I asked, looking up at her.

"Well….I sent him an email and I told him how bad things had gotten here and he said he has some friends who are leaving the country Soon. They're looking to invest in small businesses, and he’d be sending them here to have a look."

As soon as Sophie finished speaking, I nearly started dancing in my seat. Honestly, Aiden has been my biggest help since I started my brand. But as grateful as I am, I’ve never liked the idea of constantly leaning on him. Over the years, he’s been a great friend….but I still can’t ever seem to fully relax around him.

My gaze shifted back to Sofia, who was nervously biting the inside of her cheek.

"Talk," I said, sensing there was more.

"Okay... the real bad news is that he sent the response two hours ago. But with how terrible the office cell service has been today, we didn’t see it in time. Which means the investors are already here. Well, to be exact…..they’ll be here tomorrow morning "

"what !.... That means I have to put together a whole presentation right now "

"Already on it …..you'll have something on your desk in ten minutes "

Sofia said curtly

"thank you so much please do that "

I grabbed a hairband from my drawer and pulled my hair up. It helped settle my nerves.

"Now I just need to figure out how to tell my boss I'll be late tonight."

Sofia snorted and I shot her a look, but she only grinned and headed to the door.

Just before she stepped out, she paused, then pushed the door wide open.

My heart swelled.

Sofia only left my door open like that when my boss was coming.

“You have incoming,” she said with a little grin.

But I knew exactly who it was.

“Hi, Miss Sofia!” a small, chirpy voice called out.

I couldn’t even see her head from behind my desk, but I smiled wide anyway.

“Hi, Miss Hope. You look beautiful.”

Soft giggles filled the room and just like that, the most beautiful four-year-old in the world came around the corner, standing in front of me with all the confidence in the world.

Hope.

I named her that because I had her at a time when living felt impossible. But the moment she wrapped her tiny hand around my finger and stopped crying, something inside me shifted. She became my lifeline.

“What, I don’t get a hug? Or even a hi?” I asked, pretending to sound upset.

“No, you don’t,” she said, folding her arms with a little pout.

God, she was so cute.

“What did I do wrong?”

I asked, folding my arms to mimic her little stance.

Her eyes widened just a little.

“I told you I wanted to wear the purple dress, but you packed the blue one instead… How am I supposed to see my uncle now?” she said, frowning hard.

“In the blue dress,” I replied calmly.

She scrunched her face so tight, I had to bite back a laugh.

“Okay, how about this ice cream and pizza for dinner tonight. No broccoli,” I said.

Her eyes lit up.

“What about the other vegetables? Are they off too?” she asked, eyes hopeful.

“Yes. Wear the blue dress, and we’ll have pizza and ice cream. Deal?”

“Fine…..Pinky promise?” she said, holding out her tiny finger.

I hooked mine around hers and pulled her into a tickle attack. Her giggles filled the office like sunshine.

When I finally stopped, she gave me a sweet kiss on the cheek.

“Now let’s go for lunch. He’s waiting,” she said, already halfway to the door.

I hated that she was this fond of Aiden but my hands were tied he'd been here since the day she was born so I'm really trying my best to be understanding of there relationship .

~~~~

"As a girl with extremely curly hair, hair products have always been a big deal to me. So when I started ROOTED, it wasn’t just about business...it was personal."

I’d spent the whole night writing a perfect pitch, one that hit all the numbers and buzzwords. But as I stood there, staring at the people who could decide the future of my company, I realized something.

This was my last shot.

If they didn’t invest, ROOTED would be gone.

So I ditched the papers and spoke from the heart.

One of the investors leaned forward, hands folded.

"We noticed there are some pending lawsuits... claims that your products cause cancer?"

The room went still and I heaved a sigh , I had hoped they wouldn't find out about that

"Those are false," I said calmly, but firmly. "I use my products on my daughter. I use them on myself."

Which was true. Every formula I’d made had been tested on me first. I trusted my work. That’s why those claims never made sense. Still, I knew I had to look into it more deeply. Something wasn’t adding up.

They exchanged quiet whispers. Then the man in the center finally nodded.

"You’re a small business," he said. "And we saw the video of you using the product on your daughter. It looked genuine. Mr. Aiden vouched for you said you’re reliable and your product has the potential to triple returns. So, we’ve decided to invest."

I could barely breathe. My heart pounded with a mix of hope and disbelief.

They said yes.

"I'm sorry, sir. You can't go inside," a voice snapped from the hallway.

We all turned toward the commotion and when the door opened my world stopped

The minute he walked in, all the air left my lungs.

His eyes found mine like he’d been waiting for me.... like he never forgot his way .

The more I looked at him, the more everything slipped away.

Even the most basic things… like how to breathe.

It’s been five years.

Marcel.

There was a glint in his eyes, something between mischief and… relief?

but still I whispered his name without thinking.

"Marcel..."

He smiled. Like he heard me.

But then his next words crushed every piece of the twisted emotion that was blooming in my chest.

"I'm sorry, but you can't invest in this company without my permission."

His said but his gaze was still focused and locked on me , it took me a minute for his words to settle on me

"What?" I asked, barely able to speak.

He stepped further into the room, cool and confident like he knew the room would bend for him he walked towards me without breaking eye contact till he was standing toe to toe with me lifting my Chin up to look at him

"I'm your new CEO, sweetheart. I bought your company."

And just like that….my breath caught in my throat.

I wasn’t sure if I wanted to scream or fall into his arms.