Page 6 of Titus

Nat and I walked toward the complex, so I could decide if it was right for me, and based on location alone, it was. Set just off the main stretch of Fashion Island, it felt clean and modern, but quieter. I loved that the complex seemed intentional without being loud about it. Like wealth and power that didn’t need to brag.

That was me. That was exactly where my vision was leading me as I realized it was time to step up in my world.

As we stepped inside, the shift was immediate. I took in the atmosphere my clients would feel the second they walked through the doors. A fountain sat at the center of the foyer—minimalist, sculptural, the kind of piece that looked effortless but probably cost more than most people’s cars.

I glanced around, noting how the open space was lit by incandescent light filtering down from above. It cast the perfect glow across the area, catching on surfaces and throwing soft reflections across the polished stone floors.

Refined elegance...everything I needed to bring this vision and new place of business to life for my company, Veléz Global.

I exhaled slowly, already feeling it settle into my chest.

“It’s like the architect built it for me,” I chuckled. “Perhaps, Bree Grayson had something to do with this?”

Nat smirked. “Bree and Alex’s firm designed the other skyscraper. You know, the one I saw you drooling over before I brought you into this one?”

“Of course,” I laughed. “Why wouldn’t their firm design the most dominating building on Fashion Island?”

“Exactly,” she smiled. “Now, back to you, Cat.” She pointed toward the glass doors we had just walked through. “The clients walk in here,” she said softly, lowering her voice a bit, “and obviously, they’ll already trust you before you even speak.”

I nodded in approval because this wasn’t about impressing people; it was about making them feel like they were already part of something exclusive. That all of their luxurious and exclusive events would be handled and managed by an event architect who took it more seriously than they did.

“You’re already beaming,” Nat said, turning toward the elevators. “Just wait until you see the space. You’ll be able to visualize yourself in it instantly.”

The doors opened into a wide, unfinished floor, and I immediately understood what Nat was speaking about.

This is me.

I stepped in slowly, heels quieter against the raw surface, my eyes instinctively moving… visualizing my team and me working flawlessly in this space.

Floor-to-ceiling windows lined one side, flooding the space with natural light. The ocean stretched beyond them, softened by distance, just enough to feel like a backdrop instead of a statement.

I walked in further, already visualizing the space for my company. Directly in front, there would be a cream-colored wall with my company name in steel, backlit by gold lighting, where clients would be greeted by my receptionist sitting behind a stone desk.

Client seating would be positioned in the open space behind it, featuring comfortable leather sofas and offering a perfect view of the ocean, providing more comfort than a portrait of the ocean ever could.

Then, naturally, my office would claim the corner without hesitation, featuring glass walls that enclose it with minimal framing.

“Already redesigning the place in your head?” Nat teased, breaking through the silence.

I glanced back at her. “This screams everything that I am in business,” I stated factually.

She laughed. “I know, and that’s why I had to bring you here before anyone else found out it was going up for lease.”

I exhaled. “Thank God,” I said, glancing around the area, still visualizing myself working in this space.

Although I loved my office on Melrose, located above a charming boutique, it was time to move on. It’d served my team and me well, and I owed everything to that space—I was where I was because of it. However, when dreams outgrow their beginnings, growth becomes necessary, and that’s why I was with Nat, who’d called to insist I see this new space before it was listed for lease.

“My team is going to lose their minds,” I said with a laugh.

“Because it’s too expensive?”

“Because their work environment will no longer just be charming.” I looked around again. “We’re not going to continue to be the scrappy team pulling off miracles in a cramped war room anymore.”

Nat smiled slowly. “Spoken like a true visionary.”

I answered her smile with one of my own, “I wouldn’t be here today if I didn’t think like that in business.”

“Lord, girl,” Nat said. “I wish you were in real estate with me. We would own all of Southern California.”