로그인Alicia's POV The wellness room on sixty-five was empty when I walked in. Glass walls framed the city below. Morning light caught on building edges and turned them bright. This was Edward's floor. His office sat three doors down from where I stood now. I'd been avoiding it all week. Until I could
My pulse kicked. "What did you tell her?" "That you were following the doctor's orders. Resting." "What did she say?" "She said that was good." I waited. Nothing. "And?" "That was it, sir." I sat there. Phone pressed to my ear. Ribs aching. Shoulder throbbing, the full weight of what I'd ju
Edward's POV I woke up to Maria opening the curtains. Morning light cut across the room. Too bright. The adjustment triggered a low throb along the joint. The sling held my arm against my chest like it was personally invested in my humiliation. Everything hurt. Not sudden. Just there. Constant. T
Three decisions needed to be made before the board meeting. I made two of them on the call. The third I wasn't certain about. The risk was higher. The timeline was tight. I said so. The finance director agreed. We moved it to Friday's agenda for committee review. The call ended at four fifteen.
Alicia's POV The drive from the hospital took twenty minutes. I made every light green. Took the turns on autopilot. My hands knew the route even when my head was somewhere else. The hospital smell was on my clothes. I noticed it when I stopped at a red light and the air in the car went still. An
The choice hung in the air between us, raw and bleeding. I had shown her I could want her. I had also just shown her I wouldn't take. She stepped back. Not because I had. Before the air had fully settled between us. One step, clean, her own decision made before mine had finished landing. Her hands







