35

I TRY REALLY HARD NOT to grind my teeth in frustration. Leaning over to murmur in Teagan’s ear, I school my expression to remain fake-interested. “I thought you said we’d be out of here in thirty minutes.”

She grins and answers me through closed teeth. “I have no control over these guys.”

Teagan failed to mention that we were attending a mediation today. This isn’t just a meeting to discuss my report. The attorneys for the step mother are on the telephone and a mediator person is in the other room, talking to them and then coming in and out of this meeting room that we’re in to negotiate. As far as I can tell, they’re getting nowhere.

Speak of the devil, the guy who’s acting as the referee in this mess walks back into the room.

“Okay. I have a response for you. As you know, you’ve asked for the initial public offering of the company to be delayed until the issue of share ownership is resolved. I recommended to the acting CEO that they do so.” He pauses to make sure we’re all paying at