CHAPTER 15 ~ NOTHING MORE

LOUIS'S POV

The corner office buzzed with the low hum of city life, even from the twentieth floor. I sat behind my desk, scrolling through figures on my screen, but not really seeing any of them as something lingered in my mind.

"She hugged me." It was brief, warm. Sudden and then she pulled back like she touched fire.

I should have forgotten it by now but I can't get it off my mind.

The soft knock on the door didn’t startle me, it was sudden and unexpected but only one person knocked like he owned the place.

"Come in." I said, without looking up.

Tommy strolled in with a cup of coffee in each hand, he placed one on my desk before slumping into the chair opposite me. His suit jacket was unbuttoned, tie loosened like always.

"I heard from Lidia that Flavia came in this morning," He said casually, before sipping his coffee. "You showed her the vacant floors?"

I didn’t reply reply because I can already tell where this is going.

"You did, didn’t you?" He grinned. "You gave her a space, didn’t you?"

"She picked one." I corrected.

"Damn, man." He whistled. "Prime corner suite in your flagship building? You do know how that sounds, right?"

I looked up slowly. "How does it sound?"

"Like you’re going soft, like there is more to this." He stayed while staring at me.

I reclined in my chair and crossed my arms. "I offered her a space, that’s all."

"For free." He added.

"She offered to pay." I mean even if I offer the entire building out for free, it's not going to affect me financially.

Tommy raised an eyebrow. "Did you accept?"

"She was stubborn about it, she insisted. So yes."

"Uh-huh." He tilted his cup at me. "You know what I think?"

"No, but I’m sure you are going to tell me."

"I think you are catching feelings, you like her."

I let out a dry laugh. "Don’t be ridiculous, Tommy."

"Oh, I’m dead serious. The Louis I know doesn’t do gestures, you don’t just hand out million-dollar office space to women you supposedly don’t like." That part is true but it doesn't mean that I like her.

"She needed a base, somewhere to work. That’s all it was and the space was sitting empty. It made sense."

Tommy leaned forward, resting his elbows on my desk. "And that explains why you were practically breathing fire at the gala when Carter had her laughing?"

I stiffened, jaw ticking. I hate everything that guy stands for.

He noticed my reaction, of course he did. "Don’t even try to deny it," He went on. "You glared at the poor guy like you were ready to shove him off the rooftop." Well, he is lucky I didn't.

"He was flirting with my wife in front of investors, in front of everyone."

"She’s your contractual wife and she wasn’t doing anything wrong. You acted jealous."

"I acted disrespected," I snapped. "There’s a fucking difference."

Tommy smirked. "You sure about that?" He asked but I didn’t answer, because the truth was, no, I wasn’t sure. Not entirely.

It had pissed me the hell off, the way Carter leaned in, the way Flavia’s lips curled when she laughed at something he said. The way she touched his arm but I told myself it was about optics, that it undermined our agreement and that it made me look weak.

But maybe… just maybe, it had felt like something else too. A flicker of possessiveness I had no right to. "I don’t like her," I said flatly. "This isn’t about feelings, I just don't condole disrespect."

Tommy gave me a long, knowing look. "You keep saying that, like you’re trying to convince yourself more than me."

I picked up the coffee, took a slow sip, as I stared out the window.

"She’s not like Emily," Tommy said quietly.

My fingers curled around the cup involuntarily. "Don’t start." I warned.

"She’s not," He said again. "Flavia’s sharp, grounded and she doesn’t play games. Plus she hasn’t run."

I looked at him, eyes hard. "Emily didn’t run."

He sighed. "She left, Louis. A few weeks before your wedding. No proper goodbye, just a text. You can dress it up however you want, but she ran." Maybe she ran and vanished but there has to be a reason right?

"She had her reasons." I said tightly.

"She left you." I didn’t want to have this conversation, not now. Not ever.

"I don’t give a fuck about Emily," I said, voice flat. "And I’m not interested in relationships. Not with Emily, Flavia and not with anyone." Tommy studied me, brows drawn.

"You know," He said slowly, "you are not nearly as numb as you pretend to be."

I stood, pacing toward the window, needing distance from the chair, the desk, and most importantly from him because I know exactly where he is driving at.

"She doesn’t like me," I said, keeping my back to him. "Whatever the hell you think this is... it’s nothing. Flavia can’t stand me. She makes it very clear, every time we talk."

"Maybe because you push her."

"It’s mutual." I pointed out.

"You don’t have to keep fighting her just because it’s familiar," He said, his voice gentler now. "You married her, Louis. Contract or not, you see her every day. If there’s even the smallest part of you that wants more, why not give it a shot?"

I turned around slowly. "Because it’s not about that. She’s... complicated. She looks at me like I have failed her before and she’s waiting for me to fail her again. And frankly, I don’t care enough to prove otherwise."

"Don’t care?" Tommy scoffed. "You are lying to yourself, man."

"You know my history with women is not that great, I think it's better like this." This is not my first marriage and to make it even worse, this one is contractual and she hates me, so there is really no need trying. It's already doomed from jump.

"Well, you don't have to let your history scare you from giving Flavia a shot, she might be the one." He stated but it's not as easy as he made it sound.

I walked back to my desk, plopped into the chair, and opened my laptop like the conversation was over but he didn’t move.

Finally, I muttered. "She hugged me yesterday."

Tommy blinked. "Seriously?"

"Yeah, after she picked her office. It was brief, quick but... she looked happy."

He smirked. "And that’s bad?"

"It was weird," I said. "We don’t do... that, we are always fighting."

"And yet, you let her." Well, she took me unawares.

"I didn’t know she was going to do it, it just happened."

Tommy leaned back in his seat again, hands behind his head. "You know," He said. "Maybe this whole thing won’t end the way you expect. You might actually like her, Louis. For real."

I shook my head. "Even if I did, which I don’t, it wouldn’t matter. She’s already made it abundantly clear that she wants nothing personal from me. She even insisted on paying for the office."

"That didn’t stop you from giving it to her."

I didn’t respond.

"She makes you feel something," Tommy said after a pause. "And maybe that’s what scares you."

I closed the laptop slowly and looked at him.

"I’m not scared," I said quietly. "I’m just not interested." I clarified.

He gave me a long, thoughtful look, but didn’t push further before he stood and walked toward the door, pausing at the frame.

"Just think about it," He said over his shoulder. "You are not as heartless as you want everyone to believe, especially not with her." And with that, he left.

I sat alone in my office, staring at the empty coffee cup. Flavia is complicated, smart, beautiful, and angry at me for reasons best known to her and that's what hurts me, why does she acts like we have met before I met her as an event planner.

If I am being honest, she does look familiar but I can't place it. I don't know if we have met before or what she was to me but maybe that is the problem. Maybe I am missing something.

"Flavia Walter." The name doesn't ring a bell but the face is a little familiar. "Who are you? What exactly am I missing?"

I stayed, cracking my head, trying to figure her out but I couldn't. Maybe I don't know her because if she was important, I guess it won't be this difficult to figure her out.

"Come in." I called when I heard a soft knock and my secretary stepped in. "What is it Lidia."

"I wanted to remind you that your next meeting is in five minutes."

"Thanks, I will be in the board room soon." She stepped out.

I am glad I have this meeting because thinking about Flavia is driving me crazy, she's just too complicated to deal with right now. I grabbed my laptop and stepped out of my office for the meeting and by the time I got there, everyone was already waiting including Tommy.