Rekindling Old Flames (BWWM)

CHAPTER 3

TWO WEEKS LATER

"Morning, Lilah," Camila says when I enter her office, her gaze staying focused on the papers in front of her.

"How did you know it was me without taking your eyes off the papers in front of you?" I sit on one of the chairs in front of her desk.

"You are the only person in this building who would enter my office before I say, 'come in'."

"Oh." I knocked but didn't wait for her to let me in.

"I know why you're here, but unfortunately, I don't have good news." She finally tears her eyes away from the pile of papers in front of her, taking off her glasses. The look in her eyes only increases my worry tenfold.

"Why is it suddenly so hard to find an investor?" I ask, exasperated. Camila has been trying for the past two weeks to find someone other than Beau to invest in our company, but so far, she has had no luck. I know it was hard to find Beau originally, but I don't understand why it seems more challenging to find someone else this time around.

"I don't know, but I have a feeling someone is preventing anyone from wanting to invest in our company."

I sit up at that. "Why do you think so?"

"When I couldn't find anyone to take a deal similar to the one I'd worked out with Beau, I contacted everyone who was initially interested but had wanted more shares since we were running out of options. But they're not interested at all anymore. I even tried persuading them by adding the percentage of the shares they had originally argued for. They wouldn't budge."

"That's odd. Someone must be offering them a better deal than us."

"Exactly what I was thinking."

"Could any of our competitors be behind it?"

"Maybe. I asked Danny to help. He said by the end of today he should hopefully be able to tell me who is making our potential investors decline our offer."

"You asked Danny for help?" I ask, disgusted at just the mention of his name. "Aren't you guys broken up? Why would he agree to help his ex-girlfriend find out who is trying to ruin her company?" Danny is a lawyer, so it doesn't come as a surprise that he can help find out who is behind the investor problem. He has the connections. But that doesn't explain why Camila would ask him, or why he'd agree to help.

"About that—" She starts, but I raise my hand to stop her.

"You don't need to tell me."

I shouldn't be surprised they're back together. Their breakup lasted longer than I thought it would, but I'm sure they'll break up again soon. It's what they do.

"He apologized for what he did, and I didn't see why I shouldn't take him back if he's sorry."

"I know, the same as always," I huff.

"I know I say this a lot, but Danny and I are—"

"Are soulmates?" I finish for her. "I know, you don't have to tell me again. Just inform me immediately when he tells you who is trying to mess with us." I stand and turn towards the door.

"I will, don't worry." Camila calls after me.

"Thank you, see you later," I say, turning the doorknob and walking out, hoping for a miracle to fix this situation.

***

I park my car in front of Camila's house and walk to her front door. She only got a chance to meet with Danny an hour ago and asked me to come to her place immediately after talking to him. Danny must have found out who was responsible for our troubles. I wouldn't put it past Mr. Antony to be involved. He hates our company and would do anything to see it ruined. According to him, Camila and I are not qualified to be his competitors. He believes women should stay home and raise children, and only men should work. But we see him for what he is—a sad old man who has nothing better to do than bring down independent ladies like Camila and me. Every time he tells us we shouldn't be in the field and at home instead, he only shows how intimidated he is by us. Our company expanding into real estate would be a real threat to him. He has to be behind our inability to find an investor.