Release Me (3 page)

Allie made sure she was the first to arrive. The emergency board meeting wasn’t scheduled to start for another half hour, but she wanted to give herself plenty of time to get the lay of the land. Of course she’d been in the Ingram Media conference room numerous times over the years, but that had always been to attend events as Richard Sinclair’s daughter, not for an official meeting of the board of directors, and certainly not as their new majority shareholder. Holiday parties and photo ops were a far cry from the proceedings about to take place on the thirtieth floor of the Ingram Building.

She walked the length of the room, her eyes drifting over glossy mahogany. Allie knew she had a lot to prove to the people who would be assembling around that table. As her fingertips trailed along the high back of each leather chair, she found herself picturing the crowd that would be arriving in a matter of minutes. Some were lifelong friends of her father’s, who she suspected would still see her as a little girl in blond curls and frilly dresses. Some were powerful leaders of the city’s most successful businesses, who she feared would view her as grossly unqualified to hold a position she’d only earned through nepotism. And while the former might like the idea of an Ingram remaining on the board, their business savvy would no doubt push them to side with the latter.

But as daunting as it was to imagine facing that audience for the first time, it wasn’t what had her pacing the room.

It was him.

Allie made her way to the windows that looked out across the Michigan Avenue Bridge.

As she watched the Chicago River flow into Lake Michigan, she thought about the last time she’d seen Hudson Chase. It was the morning she’d uncovered the truth about his plan to take control of Ingram Media. She stared unseeingly at the gray horizon and her thoughts began to drift back to that day. Hudson standing in his foyer, a towel slung low around his hips as water dripped onto the hardwood floor. He’d begged her to let him explain, but what explanation could have possibly justified his lies and betrayal? She’d refused to hear him out, and while in her heart she knew it had been the right decision, the look on his face as the elevator doors slid closed that morning had haunted her ever since.

Behind her the conference room door opened with a soft click and the low murmur of voices told her the other board members had begun to filter into the room. But instead of greeting them and engaging in the sort of sympathetic small talk that had consumed the past few days, she remained by the windows, enjoying the last moments of calm before the eventual storm.

There was a sudden flurry of activity outside the meeting room, and instinctively she knew he had arrived. A wave of anxiety rolled through the pit of her stomach, but she took a deep, calming breath. These board meetings, while infrequent, would be inevitable. The sooner she got used to seeing him in this setting, the better.

She turned around, and a moment later Hudson Chase strolled into the boardroom. The hum of quiet conversation ground to a halt and all heads turned as one to assess the corporate raider who’d quietly amassed the second largest percentage of Ingram shares right out from under their noses.

The sight of him nearly took her breath away. Wearing a charcoal suit, white shirt, and silver-gray tie, he looked every bit the powerful, in-control CEO. But Allie knew the passion that burned behind those eyes, and when she looked at his dark, unruly hair, she knew he’d run his fingers through it just before stepping into the room. He moved with measured grace, his muscles flexing beneath his perfectly tailored suit. Allie knew every inch of that body intimately, how it felt beneath her touch, how it moved over her . . . inside her. She knew the man, not the corporate myth. He was the one who she’d fallen for. He was the one who’d broken her heart.

She had meant to look away, to show him nothing more than a passing indifference, and yet she was utterly transfixed as she watched some of the most powerful players in Chicago greet him with a mixture of wary fascination and awe. Even as the outsider, Hudson still commanded the room, offering his hand to some, a curt nod to others. His demeanor was courteous and professional, but there was an air of casual confidence about Hudson that sent a clear message to those in the room. He was a man who got exactly what he wanted.

Well, not this time—not when it came to her.

As if feeling the intensity of her stare, Hudson turned and his gaze met hers. The corner of his mouth lifted in an almost involuntary smile, then quickly faded. Yet despite his sobering expression, there was nothing he could do to hide the intense longing in his blue eyes. Allie felt it hit her like a physical blow, her entire body responding to the sight of him.

Without taking his eyes off her, Hudson murmured something to the gentleman next to him and began making his way toward the windows. Allie’s heart beat faster with his every step, until the sound of the blood roaring in her ears drowned out the rest of the room. Her throat felt dry and tight when she swallowed, and she suddenly wished she’d had the presence of mind to pour herself a glass of water when she’d arrived. Then again, with the way her hands were trembling, she’d have likely spilled most of it on her burgundy dress. In that moment Allie realized she was wearing the same dress she’d worn the first time Hudson kissed her in his office. It seemed more like a lifetime than two months had passed since that first encounter, and yet the desire she felt was undeniable, even now. She fisted her hands at her sides and squared her shoulders. This was it; she just had to get through the awkward pleasantries and then focus on the meeting’s agenda.

Hudson came to a stop directly in front of her. “Allie,” he whispered. His voice was low and rough and washed over her heated skin like a lover’s touch.

“Mr. Chase,” she said, firing the first shot. It was important he understood the terms of their new arrangement right from the start. She felt a surge of satisfaction when her voice remained steady.

Hudson blinked and his expression faltered. He regarded her for a moment and then opened his mouth, but Mr. Weiss appeared at his side before he had the chance to speak.

“I’d like a moment with you both before we begin.” He ushered Allie and Hudson toward the corner of the room, speaking only once they were out of earshot of the rest of the board. “I thought perhaps I should say a few words to begin today’s proceedings. The past few weeks have been stressful in many regards.” He glanced briefly at Hudson before turning his attention back to Allie. “As chairman, your father would normally run the meeting, but . . .”

Mr. Weiss cleared his throat. With all that had transpired over the past few days, Allie hadn’t had much opportunity to think about the toll this had taken on him. He’d been handling everything with his usual calm, efficient manner, but he’d lost his lifelong friend and the stress was written all over his weathered face.

“Assuming neither of you has any objection, that is?”

Hudson gave him a quick nod. “That will be fine.”

Allie waited until Hudson stepped away and then placed her hand on the elder gentleman’s forearm. “Thank you, Mr. Weiss.”

“My pleasure.” He smiled, but when his eyes met hers she saw the sadness he hid behind his professional exterior. “And Alessandra, please call me Ben.”

Calling a man she’d known since childhood by his first name felt awkward, but if she had any hope of convincing the board to see her as more than Richard and Victoria Sinclair’s daughter, she had to start acting like it. She returned his smile and lifted her chin. “Thank you, Ben.”

“Ladies and gentlemen.” He addressed the room as he moved toward the head of the table. “If you’d like to take a seat, I believe we’re ready to begin.”

One by one the other board members took their seats. Hudson waited until Allie had sat on Ben’s right, then pulled out the chair directly across from hers. She could feel the weight of his stare on her, but kept her focus on the charcoal-gray folder in front of her with the words
INGRAM MEDIA
embossed in silver across the top. Allie opened it and scanned the typed agenda as Ben thanked everyone for adjusting their busy schedules to accommodate the urgency of the meeting. At the top of the list was the first order of business: Appointment of Temporary CEO. She shouldn’t have been surprised. As a publicly owned company the transition of power had to be swift and seamless.

Allie traced the foil logo at the top of the letterhead with her finger, and all at once the enormity of what was about to take place hit her. This wasn’t just any company, it was her family’s legacy. Her maternal grandfather had started out selling newspapers on a street corner, and by the time of his death had grown Ingram Media into one of the largest companies in the country. Her father had dedicated his life to continuing that growth, expanding their scope far beyond the printed word, first with cable television networks and later into various online platforms.

Now she was the estate’s sole surviving heir, and in a matter of minutes the board would vote on who should man the helm. For the first time in company history, it might not be an Ingram. Despite how much she hated being used as a pawn in her father’s negotiations, her family’s legacy still meant something to Allie. And following in those footsteps on her own terms was a far cry from the fate that had awaited her just a few weeks ago. In that moment she wanted nothing more than to control her own destiny while at the same time carrying out her grandfather’s mission. But would the board back her in her bid or would they side with the man who’d spent the past several months plotting a hostile takeover of this very company? The question was still echoing in her mind when she heard Ben broach a topic that wasn’t on the written agenda.

Julian.

Her head snapped up at the sound of his name, and when it did she met the stare she’d been so carefully trying to avoid. Hudson’s piercing gaze held hers, and in that frozen moment so much passed unsaid between them. Her memories of Julian reflected in his blue eyes, everything from cutting in on their dance to the night Hudson rescued her from his attack.

“As most of you are already aware, Mr. Laurent is no longer with Ingram,” Ben said, tactfully omitting the fact that he was also no longer Allie’s fiancé. The irony was its own form of cruelty. The only obstacle that had stood in their way was gone, but in the end it hadn’t even mattered.

“What’s the fallout?” a distinguished looking African-American gentleman asked from beside her. Allie knew from her research that his name was James Tolman and that he ran one of the largest real estate investment firms in the city.

“Financially, none,” Ben answered. “Luckily, we’re under no obligation since the agreement was terminated from his end.”

Hudson cocked his head to one side in silent question. He knew Julian and the rules of the game well enough to know luck had nothing to do with the man’s sudden decision to relinquish his position. But what he didn’t know was how Allie had mustered every last ounce of strength to call him the night she and Hudson broke up. Confronting Julian in person would have been too risky. Her stomach rolled at the mere thought of looking into the cold eyes that had regarded her with such hatred. And blackmailing her former fiancé wasn’t something she would have likely been able to pull off in person anyway. Hearing his voice had been bad enough, but she’d been angry and hurt, and more than anything else, tired of being pushed around by people who claimed to love her. She’d needed to unleash that anger, and no one was more deserving of the receiving end of that wrath than Julian. He’d been surprised to hear from her, but even more so when she’d laid out her demands. It was simple: get out of Chicago and out of her life. In return she wouldn’t press charges against him for assault and attempted rape. Julian might have lusted for power, but just as she’d suspected, the prospect of time spent in an orange jumpsuit was enough to get him to sever all ties with Ingram.

Allie broke their gaze, feigning interest in a random item on the agenda and making notes in the margin.

“But as you know, Richard had spent the past few months grooming Mr. Laurent to take the reigns after his retirement at the first of the year.”

Her grip on the pen tightened.
After his retirement
. More like after her December wedding. No matter how she grieved her parents, the anger and resentment she felt toward them was never far from the surface.

“Which of course brings us to the first item on our agenda this morning.” Ben glanced down at the papers in his hands. “With the passing of both Richard and Victoria Sinclair, their estate, along with the majority of Ingram shares, is now controlled by—”

“It’s a slim majority, isn’t that right?” a woman two seats down interrupted. Melanie McCormick. On husband four, or maybe it was five now? Allie couldn’t say for sure. But they’d all had one thing in common: twice her age and at least ten times her original net worth. Not only was Melanie’s trackrecord clear, but so was the unabashed appreciation she seemed to have for the newest addition to
Crain’s
Top Ten. While she might have been speaking to Ben Weiss, she never took her eyes off Hudson Chase.

“Yes, that’s correct, Melanie. Mr. Chase holds a significant portion as well. Through Chase Industries, that is.”

Someone at the opposite head of the table cleared his throat. Duncan Wentworth, a man with money older than anyone else in the room, and who not only wielded an indisputable influence, but had probably never worked a day in his life. Allie had met him several times at the country club and had never once enjoyed the experience.

“No offense to young Alessandra here,” he said, no doubt making a point to call her by her first name, “but what the hell does she know about running a company?”

Probably as much as you do
, Allie wanted to say. But a response to his callous remark came from across the table instead.

“No offense, Duncan?” Hudson asked. “The diplomacy in your remark is offendable. Richard Sinclair obviously had enough confidence in his daughter’s capabilities to leave her his entire estate.” He set his pen down on the documents in front of him and eased back into his chair. “And Miss Sinclair’s work at the Ingram Foundation speaks for itself.”