Claimed After Divorce by My Brother's Best Friend novel · Chapter 12 of 24

Chapter 12: Investor Call

The Thatcher Nutrition boardroom had a glass wall.

From the elevator I could see Gilbert through it, standing at the head of the table with a clicker in his hand.

On the big screen behind him, nine small windows showed nine faces.

Investors, joining by video for the national launch call.

On the table in front of each chair sat a glossy folder with a pink flower on the cover.

Bloom.

I didn't knock.

Dalton walked in on my left, and Imogen on my right, and in the crook of my arm I carried my mother's notebook and a battered green binder.

The binder was my thesis lab record from college.

It had been in my brother's hall closet for eight years.

Gilbert stopped mid-sentence.

"As you can see from the third quarter," he said, and then he saw me, and his voice went on without him for a second and faded.

Around the table, six board members turned in their chairs.

"Della," Gilbert said. "This isn't a good time."

"It's a perfect time," I said.

I walked to the end of the table and put the binder down on the polished wood.

I opened it to the first marked page and turned it around so the camera could see.

"Good afternoon," I said to the screen. "My name is Della Brennan. For six years I've been Della Thatcher, but I never changed the name on my own research."

One of the faces on the screen leaned toward its camera.

"I'm told you're about to put Bloom in four thousand stores," I said. "I wanted you to know where the formula came from."

"Della." Gilbert's smile held, but it had gone stiff. "She's my wife. She's had a difficult week. She helped on the early stages, and we have always been grateful."

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