The Woman Trapped in a Sexless Marriage - Chapter 33: Chapter 33
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"It's a creative dessert shop," I said, setting down my coffee and pulling a stack of documents from my tote bag. I slid them across the table toward Julian. "Here's the proposal I drafted. Take a look."
Julian picked it up, flipping through the pages with practiced efficiency. Within minutes, he had absorbed the entire concept. He handed it back with a nod. "Solid idea. Definitely worth the investment."
A thrill shot through me at his approval. "We'll start with a soft opening. If the response is good, we scale up." I gestured to the papers. "I've got a few potential locations, but nothing's finalized yet. Since you're the investor, I figured the final call should be yours."
Julian arched a brow. "You want me to choose?"
I nodded firmly.
Right now, all I had was creativity—no capital. Julian was the boss, and I was just the one executing the vision.
But according to Brian, Julian seemed intent on giving me full operational control. How could I not be grateful? To show both respect and sincerity, I'd decided to let him pick the location.
Julian spread out the renderings on the table, his sharp gaze assessing each one. Finally, his fingers tapped one decisively. "Here. Madison Avenue."
The image showed the shop at night, glowing warmly amid the bustling street—striking and inviting.
I leaned in, noting the reference number. "Got it. Your call, Mr. Valentin."
A flicker of amusement crossed his face. "Then let's move forward with the soft launch soon. Don't worry about costs—Valentin Group will cover everything."
What I didn't realize? The Madison Avenue location was barely twenty meters from Valentin Group's headquarters.
Blissfully unaware, I just felt relief at the agreement. "I won't let you down," I said solemnly.
Then I remembered the profit split. "Oh—during the trial period, we'll do 70-30 in your favor. Once the shop stabilizes, we can adjust to 60-40. Does that work? I can also run free ads for you in-store, if you're interested."
Since I wasn't putting up much capital, Julian was shouldering all the risk. I had to offer more to keep things fair.
Julian didn't answer right away, his eyes lingering on me instead. A prickle of unease crept in. After a beat, I forced myself to speak. "If the split still feels off… we can do 80-20. But that's my absolute bottom line. I still have to support myself—and my son."
Businessmen prioritized profit, and Julian was no exception. I'd finally secured backing—I couldn't let negotiations ruin it.
"You have a son?" Julian finally asked after a long silence.
Damn it. Why had I let that slip?
I nearly bit my tongue. His gaze was still fixed on me, so I scrambled for an excuse. "Yeah. His father runs a business out of town." Then I quickly steered the conversation back. "But never mind that. Are you okay with the split? I can adjust if needed."
My tension must have been obvious because Julian chuckled.
He took a slow sip of coffee, his expression unreadable. "You don't need to concede so much. A 50-50 split is fine."
"Fifty-fifty?" I almost choked. Since when did capitalists turn down extra profit? Had I just hit the jackpot?
Julian picked it up, flipping through the pages with practiced efficiency. Within minutes, he had absorbed the entire concept. He handed it back with a nod. "Solid idea. Definitely worth the investment."
A thrill shot through me at his approval. "We'll start with a soft opening. If the response is good, we scale up." I gestured to the papers. "I've got a few potential locations, but nothing's finalized yet. Since you're the investor, I figured the final call should be yours."
Julian arched a brow. "You want me to choose?"
I nodded firmly.
Right now, all I had was creativity—no capital. Julian was the boss, and I was just the one executing the vision.
But according to Brian, Julian seemed intent on giving me full operational control. How could I not be grateful? To show both respect and sincerity, I'd decided to let him pick the location.
Julian spread out the renderings on the table, his sharp gaze assessing each one. Finally, his fingers tapped one decisively. "Here. Madison Avenue."
The image showed the shop at night, glowing warmly amid the bustling street—striking and inviting.
I leaned in, noting the reference number. "Got it. Your call, Mr. Valentin."
A flicker of amusement crossed his face. "Then let's move forward with the soft launch soon. Don't worry about costs—Valentin Group will cover everything."
What I didn't realize? The Madison Avenue location was barely twenty meters from Valentin Group's headquarters.
Blissfully unaware, I just felt relief at the agreement. "I won't let you down," I said solemnly.
Then I remembered the profit split. "Oh—during the trial period, we'll do 70-30 in your favor. Once the shop stabilizes, we can adjust to 60-40. Does that work? I can also run free ads for you in-store, if you're interested."
Since I wasn't putting up much capital, Julian was shouldering all the risk. I had to offer more to keep things fair.
Julian didn't answer right away, his eyes lingering on me instead. A prickle of unease crept in. After a beat, I forced myself to speak. "If the split still feels off… we can do 80-20. But that's my absolute bottom line. I still have to support myself—and my son."
Businessmen prioritized profit, and Julian was no exception. I'd finally secured backing—I couldn't let negotiations ruin it.
"You have a son?" Julian finally asked after a long silence.
Damn it. Why had I let that slip?
I nearly bit my tongue. His gaze was still fixed on me, so I scrambled for an excuse. "Yeah. His father runs a business out of town." Then I quickly steered the conversation back. "But never mind that. Are you okay with the split? I can adjust if needed."
My tension must have been obvious because Julian chuckled.
He took a slow sip of coffee, his expression unreadable. "You don't need to concede so much. A 50-50 split is fine."
"Fifty-fifty?" I almost choked. Since when did capitalists turn down extra profit? Had I just hit the jackpot?
End of The Woman Trapped in a Sexless Marriage Chapter 33. Continue reading Chapter 34 or return to The Woman Trapped in a Sexless Marriage book page.