New beginning: Billionaire love story

Chapter 231 Another Big Project

Claire held the phone to her ear, her eyes narrowing as she stared at the sketches Abigail had just sent over. The robot design was detailed-really detailed. Claire let out a deep breath, feeling the weight of the project settle on her shoulders. This was going to be more complicated than she'd anticipated.

Abigail's voice crackled through the phone, sounding slightly concerned. "Claire? What do you think? You've been quiet for a while."

Claire snapped out of her thoughts and cleared her throat. "The sketches are...nice, Abigail. Very detailed."

There was a pause at the other end of the line before Abigail's voice came back, a little less confident. "Just nice? You sound like you're holding something back."

Claire smiled, appreciating Abigail's straightforwardness. "Well, they're a bit complicated. But that's not the real issue here."

"Oh?" Abigail's curiosity was piqued. "What's the issue, then?"

Claire leaned back in her chair, staring at the ceiling as she explained. "Metacortex is going to build this robot from scratch. We can't rely on any other company because no one's willing to take on the project with such a tight deadline." There was a rustling sound on the other end of the line, and Claire could almost picture Abigail sitting up straight, eyes wide. "Are you serious? Why the sudden decision?"

Claire sighed, rubbing her temple. "It's not like we have much of a choice. Every company I approached turned us down. They all said the same thing: the timeline is too short."

Abigail let out a low whistle, then surprised Claire by offering, "Well, if that's the case, I'll help out. I mean, I did graduate with an engineering degree, so this stuff isn't exactly foreign to me."

Claire raised an eyebrow, impressed. "You really want to help? This isn't going to be easy, you know."

Abigail chuckled. "Easy isn't really in my vocabulary. Plus, it sounds like fun. Count me in."

couldn't help but smile. "Thanks, Abigail. I

we start?" Abigail asked,

"I need to pick the right people

me know what's

said, grateful for the support. "Thanks

to you

Alexander's name in her contacts. She knew she needed to inform him directly about the situation, even though talking to him wasn't exactly on her list of favorite things to do. Taking a deep breath, Claire dialed his number. The phone barely had a chance to ring

tone. "Hello, Alexander. I have something important to

had just taken a sip of his

straight into the issue. "No company is willing to take on our robot order because of the short deadline. So, Metacortex is going to handle it ourselves. We'll build it

a brief silence on the other end of the line before Alex responded, clearly surprised.

unshaken. "Absolutely. I've got the best team in

you're in charge of the tech, so I'll stay out of it as long as it meets

she was about to end the call, Alex's voice softened, catching her off

expecting the shift in tone. She quickly composed herself. "I'm fine, Alexander. Busy, but fine." There was a small pause before she added, "I'll let you know

said, his voice returning to its usual firmness. "Keep me

her phone for a moment, a mix of emotions swirling in her chest. Shaking it off, she set her phone down and focused on the task

stared at his phone screen, a slight frown on his face. He set the phone down on his desk, letting out

were ringing, keyboards were clacking, and there was a low hum of voices as people hurried in and out of the room. It

stood at the center of it all,

her voice cutting through the