LOGIN"Finish that sentence." My voice cut across hers. A beat passed. A shift crossed her eyes. Then she said it anyway. "Cleaned houses for people like us." The room went completely quiet. "My mother." I stopped. "Worked with her hands for people who believed that made her less than them. People exac
Alicia’s POV The pen was in my hand. I hadn't moved since the door closed. The page in front of me, the same line, and now I knew someone had been observing me return to it, watching long enough to count each return. I had spent three years believing he never saw the parts that weren't performed.
"He also mentioned Vera Sorel has made her attendance at the follow-up conditional on yours," I said, letting the other piece of the weight land between us. "He wanted me to know that." The pen halted in her hand. She took a breath, slow, through her nose, and the line of her throat moved once befo
Edward's POV Phillip arrived at twenty past ten. He settled into the chair across my desk and set his coat on the arm of it. The draft was already in his hand before he opened his mouth. "Signed and filed as of this morning. Your name on the minority position. Clean." He set a single folded page
"I don't know." "You said it to him. Not here." The pause that followed remained too long to be casual. "What are you afraid of?" I didn't rush it. "That I'm seeing it right. And it still falls apart anyway." She shook her head slightly. "That's not uncertainty. That's you refusing to close y
Alicia's POV Elena didn't turn when I came in. She was at the counter, spoon hovering over a bowl she hadn't touched in a while. The kettle had gone cold long enough to feel intentional. My bag hit the floor by the door. She didn't look at it. "You came back wrong." "I came back two days ago."
"I know! Isn't it brilliant?" Elena made a noise from her desk. Something between a laugh and a groan. "Brilliant is not the word I'd use," I said. "You just don't get avant-garde marketing." He said it seriously. Like this was a real tragedy. "You're absolutely right. I don't." He grinned. "Th
Edward’s POV The elevator doors opened with a soft chime. I stepped onto the marble floor, shoes hitting with unhurried precision. Heads lifted. Pens stopped mid-stroke. Phones went still. Recognition. Routine. Expected. Monday night's silence still clung to me. The empty mansion. The trace of he
Edward’s POV The revolving doors of Valentine Tower spun behind me as I stepped into the lobby. Marble. Glass. The low hum of controlled efficiency. The investor meeting had run long. Three hours of posturing, reassurances, and carefully worded commitments. But it was done. The deal was locked. M
“I understand,” I said. She didn’t respond. Didn’t look up again. I stayed standing. Didn’t sit. Didn’t move closer. “But we need to talk.” Her jaw tightened. Just barely. “No. We don’t.” “Alicia—” “Edward.” She said my name like a warning. Like a line I shouldn’t cross. Her eyes lifted again.







