👑 Major Shake-Up: The Fallout Begins

The tenth floor of Forrester Creations, the company’s executive hub, usually hummed with the controlled energy of high fashion. This morning, however, the air was thick, charged with the pre-dawn silence of an impending catastrophe. The glass walls of the office reflected the cold, hard ambition of its current co-CEO, Steffy Forrester Finnegan.

Steffy stood by her desk, impeccably dressed, her posture rigid. She wasn’t reviewing reports; she was preparing a detonation. Her decision had been calculated, ruthless, and necessary. The target: Daphne, the highly competent but increasingly aggressive Head of Public Relations, who had spent the last year subtly undermining Steffy’s leadership while attempting to solidify her own power base within the company.

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💥 The Firing

The earthquake hit precisely at 9:00 a.m.

Steffy summoned Daphne to the office, along with the HR manager, a nervous middle-aged woman named Cynthia. Daphne walked in confidently, expecting a discussion about the new spring line strategy. Instead, she was met with a glacial calm that belied the storm.

“Daphne, sit down,” Steffy said, her voice completely devoid of emotion. “Effective immediately, your position as Head of Public Relations is terminated.”

Daphne’s confident smile dissolved instantly. “Terminated? Steffy, what are you talking about? My ratings are the highest they’ve been in three quarters! Is this a joke?”

“This is not a joke, Daphne. This is a consequence,” Steffy countered, sliding a termination packet across the polished desk. “Your attempts to manipulate market strategy and discredit my decisions have been noted. Your loyalty is to your own ambition, not to the Forrester legacy. You are out.”

Daphne snatched the packet, her face cycling through disbelief and immediate fury. “You can’t do this! I have contacts, I have leverage! You’re making a huge mistake, Steffy! This will blow up in your face!”

“The only thing blowing up here is your career, Daphne,” Steffy stated, rising to signal the conversation was over. “Cynthia will escort you to your office for thirty minutes to collect personal items. Security will monitor the removal. Good day.”

Daphne realized too late she never saw this coming. She had underestimated the daughter of the Forresters—a mistake no rival ever made twice.

👑 The Comeback

The whispers started immediately, but the chaos peaked an hour later when Steffy issued her second command.

She called a full executive meeting. As the shocked staff gathered, Steffy stood before them, announcing the swift termination and replacement.

“Daphne is gone. And I have taken swift action to ensure the core of our creative ethos remains intact.” Steffy paused for maximum effect, her eyes scanning the room, before turning toward the door.

And then, Hope Logan walked in.

Hope looked surprised, slightly overwhelmed, but resolute. She had been away from the company, focused on her own Hope for the Future line, but now she was back in the epicenter of power.

“Hope is returning to Forrester Creations immediately as the new Head of Public Relations and Vice President of Creative Strategy,” Steffy announced, her voice ringing with finality. “Her focus will be repairing the damage done to our brand’s image and refocusing our vision on integrity.”

The unexpected return sent a shockwave through the halls. Ridge Forrester, who had entered late, stood utterly stunned, his mouth slightly agape. He had not been consulted; this was entirely Steffy’s move.

Brooke Logan, seated beside Eric, looked equally speechless. Her daughter was back in the company’s upper ranks, but under the direct, absolute control of Steffy. The move was a brilliant maneuver—it elevated Hope while simultaneously ensuring Steffy held all the key creative power.

💣 The Fallout

The confrontation came moments later in Ridge’s private office.

“What in the hell was that, Steffy?!” Ridge demanded, his voice tight with controlled fury. “You fired Daphne—a key executive—and replaced her with Hope without so much as a conversation with me or Eric? That is not how a co-CEO operates!”

“I handled a threat to the Forrester legacy, Dad,” Steffy countered, her posture unwavering. “Daphne was undermining us. And frankly, Hope’s presence ensures the Brooke/Logan faction feels represented while placing a loyal, but controlled, voice in a key position. It was a clean, swift power move to stabilize the company.”

Brooke followed Ridge in, her eyes accusing. “You used my daughter, Steffy! You placed her in a role she didn’t ask for just to neutralize the influence you feared!”

“No, Brooke. I gave your daughter a promotion and a platform,” Steffy said coolly. “The company needed a major shake-up. We needed Hope’s heart back in the building. One firing. One comeback. One power shift that changes everything. And the best part? You can’t complain about Hope being here. The fallout has begun, but I am the one in control.”

Steffy had won the day, consolidating her power with a ruthless efficiency that would have made Bill Spencer proud. But the silence she created was brittle, and the consequences of her move—pitting Hope against the resentment of the remaining staff and exposing the deep rift between her and her father—promised an explosive future.