She Fell for Her Taxi Driver — Then Discovered He Was the Billionaire CEO She Never Expected to Love
Chapter 4
Daniel returned to Reed Meridian headquarters Monday morning.
The first thing his staff noticed was the taxi company badge still clipped to his jacket.
James stared.
“You’re serious.”
“For now.”
“You cannot walk into a board meeting dressed like that.”
Daniel smiled.
“Watch me.”
The boardroom fell silent when he entered.
Ten executives.
Four investors.
Victor Lang sitting at the head of the table.
Victor stood.
“Daniel.”
“Victor.”
“You finally came back.”
“Temporarily.”
Victor frowned.
“We need to discuss your absence.”
“You can start.”
Victor opened a folder.
“The market is concerned.”
“About?”
“Your leadership.”
Daniel smiled.
“I wasn’t aware I had lost it.”
“You disappeared.”
“I took a sabbatical.”
“You disappeared without notifying the board.”
“That was my mistake.”
Victor glanced around the room.
“Your mistake has consequences.”
Daniel sat.
“What do you want?”
“An executive transition.”
Silence.
Daniel nodded.
“There it is.”
Victor leaned forward.
“The company needs stable leadership.”
Daniel looked around the room.
“And you believe that leadership should be yours.”
Victor didn’t deny it.
“You’re distracted.”
Daniel became still.
“By what?”
“Everything.”
Victor pushed a document forward.
“Your recent absence.”
Daniel glanced at it.
Then smiled.
“You’ve been tracking me.”
Victor said nothing.
Daniel continued:
“How much do you know?”
“Enough.”
That was a warning.
Daniel ended the meeting early.
He called security.
He called legal.
He reviewed internal finances.
Someone had been moving money.
Several subsidiaries showed unexplained losses.
Victor had built a network inside the company.
Daniel needed evidence.
That evening, he met Sophia.
She immediately noticed.
“Something’s wrong.”
“Work.”
“You look tired.”
“I am.”
She touched his arm.
“Come in.”
They sat in her apartment.
For a few minutes, neither spoke.
Then Daniel said:
“I need to tell you something.”
She looked at him.
“Okay.”
“My name isn’t just Daniel.”
She frowned.
“What does that mean?”
He took a breath.
“My full name is Daniel Reed.”
She waited.
“Reed Meridian.”
Sophia stared.
She understood.
Her eyes widened.
“No.”
Daniel nodded.
“You own Reed Meridian Group.”
“Yes.”
Silence.
“You’ve been lying to me.”
“I didn’t want to.”
“You let me think you were a taxi driver.”
“I was driving a taxi.”
She looked angry.
“But you were also a billionaire.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because I wanted to know who people were when they didn’t know I had money.”
Sophia stood.
“So I was an experiment?”
“No.”
“Then what was I?”
“The first person I met who made me forget about the experiment.”
She stared.
He continued.
“I should have told you sooner.”
“Yes.”
“You have every reason to be angry.”
“I am.”
She walked toward the window.
Daniel waited.
Finally, she said:
“I don’t care that you’re rich.”
He looked at her.
“I care that you didn’t trust me.”
That hurt more.
“I do trust you.”
“Then why hide?”
“Because people change when they know.”
“Maybe some people do.”
She turned.
“But you don’t get to decide for me.”
Daniel nodded.
“You’re right.”
She looked at him.
“What happens now?”
“I don’t know.”
She shook her head.
“Neither do I.”
He left.
For the first time, Daniel understood that having billions could not buy the one thing he wanted.
Trust.
