Chapter 12 - The Disclosure Issue.
Emily read the memo twice before putting her phone away.
She did not want Lily or Sophie to see another change in her face.
"Mom, are we going home?"
Sophie asked.
Emily looked toward the ballroom doors.
"Soon."
Margaret came outside.
"Olivia postponed the wedding."
Emily nodded.
"I heard."
Margaret looked at the girls.
"Can I take them to the garden for a few minutes?"
Emily hesitated.
Then she nodded.
"Stay where I can see you."
The girls followed their grandmother toward a courtyard filled with white hydrangeas.
Emily immediately called her chief operating officer, Nina Park.
"Tell me exactly what the team found."
Nina's voice came through clearly.
"Mercer Urban listed Grant Hospitality as a committed pilot customer in the revised deck."
Emily looked through the glass toward Thomas Grant.
"Is it committed?"
"Not according to the diligence call this morning."
Emily closed her eyes.
"Who confirmed that?"
"Grant Hospitality's general counsel."
Nina continued.
"They have had preliminary conversations, but there is no signed pilot agreement."
Emily's stomach tightened.
"Anything else?"
"The deck labels the relationship as contracted recurring revenue beginning next quarter."
Emily looked toward David across the lobby.
He had not seen her yet.
"Who submitted the deck?"
"David Mercer."
Emily exhaled slowly.
This was no longer a private argument about an absent father or a secret loan proposal.
It was a business representation that could affect employees, investors, and another company.
"Pause all contact with Mercer Urban."
Nina hesitated.
"Already paused."
Emily nodded.
"Good."
"Do you want legal to send a notice?"
Emily looked toward Thomas again.
"Not until the committee reviews the full file."
She ended the call.
David appeared beside her almost immediately.
"Who were you talking to?"
Emily kept her phone at her side.
"Work."
"About me?"
She studied him.
"Why would you assume that?"
His expression gave him away.
Emily's voice dropped.
"What did you put in the Carter Rowe deck?"
David went still.
"What are you talking about?"
"Grant Hospitality."
His eyes flickered toward Thomas.
That was enough.
Emily felt a wave of disappointment stronger than anger.
"David."
He stepped closer.
"We had verbal support."
"From whom?"
"Thomas liked the platform."
"That is not a contract."
David lowered his voice.
"It was going to become one."
Emily stared at him.
"You listed future revenue as committed before there was an agreement?"
"It was a forecast."
"The diligence team says it was labeled contracted."
David's face tightened.
"Your people are looking for reasons to reject me now."
Emily shook her head.
"They found the slide before they knew our personal history."
He looked toward the ballroom.
"Olivia cannot hear about this today."
Emily's expression hardened.
"I am not telling Olivia anything."
David looked relieved too quickly.
She continued.
"But Thomas's legal team already knows."
The relief vanished.
"What?"
Emily nodded toward Thomas.
"Your company triggered a verification call."
David's breathing changed.
"When?"
"This morning."
He looked genuinely shaken.
Emily lowered her voice.
"You need to speak to your board and your counsel before you say another word about the financing."
David looked at her with a mixture of anger and fear.
"You're trying to destroy my company."
Emily's reply was immediate.
"No."
She stepped closer.
"I am telling you to stop making the situation worse."
David looked toward Thomas, who was now speaking to someone on his phone.
"If Grant pulls away, the board will panic."
"Then tell your board the truth before someone else does."
David shook his head.
"You don't understand what I built."
Emily's eyes hardened.
"I understand exactly what it costs to build something."
She gestured lightly toward the hotel around them.
"That is why I know pretending a foundation is stronger than it is never saves it."
David stared at her.
Then Thomas walked toward them.
His expression was calm enough to be alarming.
"David, my general counsel just called me."
David did not speak.
May you like
Thomas stopped in front of him.
"Why is my company listed as contracted revenue in your investor materials?"
