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
I pulled into the underground garage. My hands were still shaking as I parked in a visitor spot. I sat there for a moment. Engine running. Breathing hard. Then I got out. The elevator ride up felt endless. I watched the numbers climb. My reflection stared back at me in the gleaming steel—hair loo
Edward's POV The boardroom table gleamed under the Thursday morning light when I walked in. Fresh paper stacked at every seat. Coffee going cold in the mugs. The air felt tight. Every chair was full. Edmund at the head. Catherine, beside him. Vincent, across from her. Mitchell, leaning back. Maria
"Yes." "Great." He stood. Meeting adjourned. "We'll reconvene Monday afternoon to assess the response and determine next steps." Papers shuffled. Chairs scraped against the floor. People stood and began filing out in quiet, tense order. Vincent lingered near the door. Caught my eye. Opened his mo
“I’m sorry,” she said, voice sugary-sweet. “Did you need something from my friend, or are we just rehearsing for a gossip column?” Silence followed. They ducked their heads and shuffled off. Elena smirked. “Still got it.” I shook my head, a small laugh escaping me before I could stop it. “You’re t







