Her Presence

“ Who are you talking to?” I asked again.

The words came out sharper than I intended, partly from suspicion, partly from something I didn’t understand—an emotion I didn’t want to name.

She froze instantly.

Absolutely still.

As if I had caught her stealing the crown jewels from a museum. Her entire body went rigid, and her eyes widened, almost guilty… almost terrified. The shock on her face wasn’t mild—it was the kind that sucker-punched me right in the gut. That expression alone told me more than any spoken explanation.

She was hiding something.

And not something small.

Her breath hitched as she opened her mouth as if to speak, to explain, to lie— I couldn’t tell which. I studied every twitch of her face, the slight panic in her eyes. She looked cornered, like she had been caught doing something she desperately didn’t want me to know about.

Before she could get a word out—

A loud, dramatic voice echoed from behind me.

“**Zayne!**”

I stiffened.

Of course.

Caleb.

My twin brother.

He walked in as if he were entering a runway, not a private space. The moment his eyes landed on Anna, his steps slowed. His gaze dragged up and down her body in a way that made something ugly twist inside my chest.

I didn’t even think before reacting.

I shoved him back lightly with a hand to his chest.

“What the hell are you doing here? Get out.”

Caleb raised both hands in defense, unfazed, a smirk creeping onto his lips as he peeked around me to stare at her again.

“Is *this* your bodyguard?” he asked, eyebrows raised, as if he’d just discovered a hidden treasure.

I hated the way he was looking at her.

Like she was attractive.

Like she was… desirable.

I didn’t know why it bothered me.

It *shouldn’t.*

She was just a bodyguard. My employee. Someone beneath my attention. Someone who irritated me half the time.

And yet…

But Caleb didn’t stop.

“Damn,” he muttered under his breath, “she’s beautiful.”

A hot, sharp stab of discomfort shot through me.

I didn’t know why—annoyance? irritation? jealousy?

Jealousy?

No. No. Absolutely not.

I immediately shook my head internally, as if physically trying to throw the thought out.

Jealous? Over *her*?

Ridiculous.

Caleb stepped closer again, leaning slightly to get a better look at her, and I instinctively shifted, blocking his view. His brows shot up in amusement, noticing the move.

I ignored him.

Instead, I turned back to her.

She was still frozen. Still staring at me like she was afraid I had heard too much. I held her gaze for a long moment. Too long. Something about the way she looked—nervous yet composed, defensive yet vulnerable—made something tug uncomfortably in my chest.

I didn’t like that feeling.

So I broke eye contact first.

Without another word, I stepped away and walked toward the door. But before leaving, I made the mistake of glancing back at her.

She exhaled.

A long, deep exhale of relief.

As if my leaving meant safety.

As if she had escaped something.

Her lips parted slightly, and she quickly shut her mouth—fast, as if realizing too late she had reacted.

It bothered me.

Way more than it should.

Why was she sighing like that? Why was she relieved? What exactly was she hiding so fiercely that even my presence made her panic?

I forced myself to step out of the room.

But Caleb followed me like a persistent shadow, running his mouth endlessly.

“So that’s Anna, huh?” he asked, tone far too entertained.

I ignored him, but he kept talking.

“She’s stunning. Elegant. Strong. I like her face. And that voice? Damn. Where did you even find her?”

“**Caleb, you’re twenty-eight years old, not eighteen,**” I snapped, unable to control my irritation. “**When will you stop this playboy shit?**”

He grinned, brushing imaginary dust from his designer jacket.

“All I can say is that I’m the opposite of you,” he said dramatically. “The day I hear you have an illegitimate child, I’ll climb a fence and repent.”

He laughed loudly at his own joke and walked off, still chuckling.

I didn’t laugh.

Not even close.

His words shouldn’t have struck a nerve—they were just Caleb being Caleb—but something about them hit deeper than I expected. Maybe because the idea felt… strangely close to something I couldn't put my finger on.

I stood there, completely still, while the hallway around me faded into the background. My mind was no longer focused on Caleb’s stupidity.

It kept circling back to the room.

To her voice.

To her reaction.

To the way she froze.

To the way she looked like she had been caught doing something forbidden.

Who had she been speaking to? Why did she react like that? Was it a lover? Someone she was hiding? Someone important?

I clenched my jaw.

It shouldn’t matter.

Her personal life was none of my business.

But the thought wormed into my mind anyway, persistent and irritating:

*Does she have a lover?*

I didn’t know why the thought bothered me so much.

It was six years ago.

Six years since that night.

Six years since the only moment of weakness I ever allowed myself.

Six years since I had pushed that memory deep into a locked corner of my mind.

She didn’t recognize me—of course she didn’t. And I didn’t expect her to. That night had been a mistake. A blur. Something I had forced myself to forget.

But now…

Her presence…

Her voice…

Her reactions…

Everything felt like pieces of a puzzle I didn't remember building.

As I headed down the hall to my study, my mind kept replaying her face. The fear. The panic. The way she clutched her phone. The way she tried to regain her composure but failed miserably.

Something was wrong.

Something big.

But until I figured it out, I would watch her more closely.

Much more closely.

And I hated that I wanted to.