The iron Queen weakness

The boardroom was still buzzing when she returned.

She swept in, taking her seat at the head of the table. Silence fell instantly.

"Sarah. Continue." She said with a cold expression. 

Sarah Chen stumbled through the rest of her presentation. The other executives followed, each more nervous than the last.

Two hours passed. The meeting dragged on. Yet, Matilda showed no sign of tiredness. 

Matilda's phone remained silent. Good. Atleast, he has learned not to interrupt a meeting or so she thought.

Just a few minutes after thinking he won't call. Her phone buzzed again, she ignored it and then it buzzed again. She stared at the caller ID, it states " bar guy." 

"Babe?" Alaric's voice. "I'm downstairs. They won't let me up."

She closed her eyes. Took a deep breath.

"I told you...."

"I brought you food. You didn't eat breakfast." He cuts her off.

"I'm in a meeting."

"I don't care. Come get me."

The room was silent. Twenty-one pairs of eyes watched her.

" Is that a command or a request?" She furrowed her brows. 

A low chuckle sounded on the other end. "A request, babe."

"Wow, you have the audacity." She smirked.

​Matilda stood up abruptly, buttoning her blazer. "Meeting adjourned."

Everyone was relieved. They don't care who called the Boss but he or she is definitely a life saver.

The lobby was chaotic 

The head receptionist, Claire, was standing firmly between him and the elevators. "Sir, as I've explained, no one enters the executive tower without an appointment."

​"I'm not asking for an appointment. I'm asking you to buzz her."

​"I cannot interrupt Ms. Hart."

​"She's expecting me."

​"Your name isn't in the registry, sir."

​Alaric sighed, running a hand through his dark, messy hair. Then his eyes caught Matilda emerging from the private elevator bank. He has never been stopped for questioning in his life before!

​She cut through the lobby like a monarch reviewing her troops. Staff members scrambled out of her direct path, dropping their gazes.

​"Ms. Hart!" Claire stammered as Matilda approached. "I am so sorry. This man was attempting to bypass security..."

​"He's with me." Matilda's voice was absolute ice. "From now on, he does not wait. He does not book appointments. If he arrives at this building, he comes straight to my floor. Is that clear?"

She walked through the lobby like a queen entering her court. Heads turned. People scrambled to get out of her way. No one wants to get close to her in any way.

She stopped in front of the reception desk.

Ms. Hart," Claire stammered. "I'm so sorry, this man...."

"He's with me." Matilda's voice was ice. "He's always with me. From now on, he doesn't wait. He doesn't need an appointment. He walks through those doors like he owns the building. Is that clear?"

Claire went pale. "Yes, Ms. Hart. I'm so sorry..."

​"You were doing your job, Claire," Matilda cut in, her tone shifting from dangerous to professionally fair. "Now update the security protocol."

​"Right away, Ms. Hart."

The lobby went silent.

​"Why do you insist on disrupting my work day?" she demanded, leaning against the mirrored wall.

​Alaric held up the paper bag with a warm, infuriating smile. "You didn't eat, babe.".

News of Matilda being involved with a man spread through the company like wildfire. It wasn't long before the story reached the press, and by the next morning, every major entertainment outlet had published it.

The headlines were everywhere.

But one question remained unanswered:

Who was the mysterious man?

*******

The matte-black Pagani pulled into the underground garage at Hart Global, its engine echoing through the garage before finally going quiet.

She pushed open the gull-wing door and stepped out in four-inch Christian Louboutin heels.

Before stepping into her private elevator, she glanced down at her phone.

the headlines were merciless:

​'The Iron Queen's Secret Lover Stops Multi-Billion Dollar Meeting for Lunch' ​

'Who Is Matilda Hart's Mysterious Penthouse Boy?' ​

'Hart Global Stocks Tremble as CEO Keeps a Stray' 

She clutched her phone as she read the headlines, her fingers tightening around it. After reading the last line, she slipped the phone back into her purse.

The private elevator doors opened directly onto the executive floor. The second her heels hit the marble, the ambient noise of the office died instantly. Forty corporate analysts, vice presidents, and legal advisors shrank back toward their cubicles, holding their breath as Maltilda swept past.

Low murmurs spread through the crowd as she walked past, followed by curious glances.

​"Look at her," a senior director sneered under his breath to a colleague, holding a mug of espresso. "Running a Fortune 500 company while housing some gold-digging leech. She's probably paying his rent while he...."

Matilda halted her steps.

The entire floor went dead silent. Even the hum of printers seemed to stop, everyone froze afraid to make a sound. 

The senior director's face drained of color as she halted inches from him. "Repeat what you just said."

​"M-Ms. Hart... I was just... I was reading the news," he stammered, his hands trembling. "It's ridiculous what the media is calling him..."

​Without a single word, Matilda reached out, grabbed his hand, and bent his pinky finger straight backward. 

"AAAH!" The director screamed, clutching his injured hand as he collapsed to his knees. Tears streamed down his face, his body shaking from the pain.

Before he could catch his breath, Matilda leaned down, her grey eyes devoid of any emotion. 

​"If I hear your pathetic mouth utter his name again," Matilda whispered against his ear, her grip mercilessly holding his broken hand, "I won't just fire you. I will buy out your mortgage, seize your family's assets, and ensure you never work in this hemisphere again."

​She released him, and he slumped onto the floor, clutching his hand.

​"Security," Matilda said smoothly, not even bothering to look back. "Escort him out. Anyone else who wants to discuss my personal life can leave their resignations on Matthew's desk before noon."