The Williams Group was a business empire of such staggering scale that trying to buy it out at a bargain was nearly impossible.


    Besides, Ste was a part of the Williams Group herself. Any trouble for thepany would only hurt her as well.


    The Williams Group couldn''t be touched, but thepanies under Israel''s control were a different story. Those were fair game.


    Though the three Williams brothers all worked for the family group, each of them managed severalrgepanies of their own. It allowed them to diversify, spreading out risk for the family. Officially, though, these businesses were their private ventures. Their profits and losses didn''t show up on the Williams Group''s books.


    Now, Ste and Aurora were in the same boat. Thepanies they managed would be their own private assets, just like the brothers. Whether thosepanies thrived and made it to the stock market, or crashed and burned, would depend entirely on their own abilities.


    The Williams brothers were so well-known in the business world precisely because thepanies they ran had all gone public and grown to impressive sizes. It proved they were more than just trust fund kids living off the family fortune.


    Ste thought Joshua''s idea made a lot of sense. She turned to look at him, taking in his sharp profile.


    "Joshua, do you have a n?"


    He nodded. "I do, but first we need to figure out exactly what went wrong with the Richards Group. Only then can we fix it properly."


    "I''ll have Aicken look into it right away," Ste offered.


    Joshua shook his head. "Instead of sending Aicken, why not just ask Haynes? He and Foreman are close friends. If something''s gone wrong at the Richards Group, Haynes will definitely want to help. Honestly, there''s probably no one who knows the ins and outs of their situation better than him."<fn2885> Original content can be found at fin?novel</fn2885>


    Ste saw the sense in that. This was no time to be worrying about personal grudges.


    "Alright. I''ll call Haynes as soon as I get back to the office."


    She hesitated, then nced over at Joshua again.


    "Joshua, I remember you mentioned you used to work in business before. What exactly did you do? You seem to know a lot."


    As she learned more about the business world, Ste found herself harder and harder to fool.


    Joshua''s hands tightened slightly on the steering wheel, but he quickly replied wouldnt say


    that


    impressive: 1 just have a knack foring up with odd ideas, that''s all."  s


    Ste could tell he didn''t want to say more, so she let it go.


    The rest of the drive passed quietly. Joshua focused on the road, his longshes casting shadows that hid his expression.


    If Foreman wanted to take the credit, so be it. Joshua didn''t really care. In fact, he was d Ste wouldn''t owe Foreman any favors after this—it was better that way.


    After all, one lie always led to another. Foreman seemed to be following the same path Rachel è once took. The higher you climb, the harder you fall. The more Ste trusted him, the more devastating it would be when she discovered the truth. Joshua was curious to see just how Foreman would manage to dig his own grave.


    to s


    Back at the office, Ste wasted no time-she picked up the phone and dialed Haynes.


    His voice was low and guarded. "Star, you seem awfully concerned about Foremantely."


    Ste had nothing to hide. Calmly, she replied, "Back when Rachel and Jasper tried to set me up, Foreman was the only one who stood by If it weren''t for him, I would''ve been ruined my reputation, everything. I''d have been finished."


    belongs to s


    Haynes fell silent, knowing he couldn''t argue. He''d been in the wrong back then.


    Ste continued, "You know I don''t like owing anyone. Now that Foreman''s


    After a moment, Haynes replied quietly, "I understand."


    An hourter, there was a knock at Ste''s office door.


    A tall, lean figure stepped inside-Haynes hade.