LOGIN"I don't want to go back to what we were," she said. "I'd burn it down before I let that happen." Her chin lifted slightly. "So whatever this is," she said, "it has to be something we've never been." "From the ground up." The air between us had changed. Nothing had moved to change it. My finge
Edward's POV A flight of stairs. Elena's door was ajar when I reached the landing. I pushed it open and stepped inside. She was at the window. Coat still on. I shrugged mine off and set it on the chair by the door. The click of the latch made her shoulders tighten once before they released. "Y
Thursday. The registry doors opened before I fully reached them, air still adjusting around the gap, carrying paper dust and ink heat and the low sound of decisions being processed without ceremony, none of it pausing for me. My name came almost immediately. Not because I was expected—because the
Alicia's POV Apartment light warmed the room before I crossed the threshold. Elena stood at the counter, spoon tracing slow circles through a pot resting on low heat. Steam rose in thin strands, breaking apart under the ceiling light before it could gather into anything defined. My shoes paused b
Edward's POV I didn’t remember walking into the estate. I remembered the gate. Then nothing clean after that—just fragments of motion stitched together without pause. Headlights fading into the drive. The slow roll of tires over stone. The way the house lights adjusted as if it had already antic
The car didn’t stop at the main entrance. It passed the glass frontage of the building, continued past the visible entry point, and turned into the service approach that only functioned as an entrance once the guard stepped aside. No signage. No announcement. Just controlled access. I didn’t que
Edward's POV The gates opened before I reached them. Metal yawned, obedient, unaware its master was coming apart. I pulled through. Gravel cracked under the tires. Too loud, too sharp. Everything feels too loud since she left. The estate glowed as it always did: calculated lighting, perfect symm
Alicia's POV The table was set, warm light spilling from the overhead fixture onto plates and glasses already waiting. My father sat at the head, hands folded, watching us with that quiet smile he always wore when we were all together. Lily sat beside him, already grinning at something. I carrie
Alicia's POV The apartment was dark when I heard the key in the lock. I didn't move from the couch. Didn't turn my head. Just sat there. Knees pulled up. Arms wrapped around them. Been like that for hours. The door opened. "Alicia?" Elena's voice. Sharp. Worried. Footsteps. Fast. Then she
Edward’s POV Leo stood by the window, tablet in hand, running through the afternoon's schedule. "Mitchell's assistant called again. Wants confirmation for the quarterly review." "Push it to next week." "Sir, they've already pushed twice." "Then they can push again." Leo made a note. Moved on.







