Regina's POV The office buzzed with energy, but none of it reached me.I sat at my desk, staring blankly at my screen, pretending to read an email I'd opened five times already. My heart was still racing from the boardroom ambush. Mary had come in swinging with half-truths and sugar-coated insults, and Nicholas... he just sat there."What the fuck..." I thought in my mind. This pure silence was deafening!I wasn't expecting a sword fight on my behalf, but damn. A word? A glance? Anything!?Instead, he nodded at the end of Mary's little performance and moved on like I was invisible. Like the dagger hadn't landed.I bit my lip, forcing down the heat in my chest. This wasn't about emotions. It was about power.And I was done giving mine away."Regina," a voice called from behind me.I turned to see Jenna approaching, her expression unreadable."Hey," I said, trying to sound normal."Got a minute?" she asked, already walking toward the break room.I followed, tension knotting in my stoma
Regina's POVI couldn't sleep last night. Nicholas hadn't come home. No text. No call. Just silence.I tossed and turned, staring at the ceiling in his apartment, wondering if I was losing him, not again By morning, my eyes were swollen. My phone had no new messages. My heart had nothing left to hope for.I dragged myself out of bed, pulled my hair into a messy bun, and forced myself into a pencil skirt. The real estate world didn't care about your broken heart. Deals didn't wait for tears to dry.When I arrived at work, the whispers started again. Louder now."She's the reason the Carter deal almost fell apart...""...caught crying in the break room last week...""...Nicholas hasn't looked at her in days."I kept walking. Mary shot me a smug smile as I passed her desk. That witch had been on a power trip since Nicholas pulled back. And now she was bold enough to wear the same red lipstick I wore last week.In the conference room, I was the last to enter. Nicholas was already seated a
Regina's POVI couldn't breathe.The moment I saw the video on Nicholas's phone, everything around me blurred. The hallway, the murmurs, even his voice faded out.Just me and the screen. And the gut-punch of betrayal threatening to drag me under.He lowered the phone. "Regina, I swear to you—it's not what you think."I blinked at him, once. "Then explain it."Nicholas looked torn and he hesitated, "Wrong move." I growled. My heels clicked hard against the marble as I turned and walked—no, stormed—toward the exit. I didn't care who saw. Let them whisper. Let them have their scandal. Again.He caught up to me at the parking lot. "Regina, listen—Geneva was over a year ago. It was before I even met you."I froze. "Then why lie about it? Why hide it?""I wasn't hiding anything," he said, exasperated. "That video's edited. Whoever sent it wants to break us apart."I stared at him. My voice was ice. "And why would someone have a video of you half-naked in a hotel room in Geneva to begin wit
Regina's POVI didn't sleep. How could I? That text haunted me all night.By morning, my body felt like lead, but my mind was sharp. Angry-sharp. Ready-for-war sharp.Nicholas left before sunrise, headed straight to Legal. He didn't say much—just kissed my forehead, told me to trust him, and disappeared in a swirl of tailored suit and tension.I stared at my coffee for ten minutes before I finally moved. This wasn't the time to sulk. Or cry..It was time to act. And I had my own cards to play.I walked into the office just after nine, dressed like I had nothing to hide—sleek black pantsuit, red lips, hair slicked back. The kind of look that said: "Try me, and I'll bury you with a smile."The whispers started again, but I didn't flinch.Mary was waiting by the elevators like she was the queen of spite. She gave me a sugary smile."Morning, Regina. Sleep well?"I didn't stop walking. "Better than you will tonight."Her smile dropped."Small win." My brain thought.At my desk, a folder wai
Regina's POVBy the time I got back upstairs, Nicholas was pacing. Where did you go?" he asked, voice low but sharp."To breathe," I said simply, shrugging off my coat. "And to call Jenna." That stopped him."What did she say?" His brows furrowed "They're coming after you," I said. "And me. Hard."His jaw clenched. "I figured.""But there's more," I added. "There's talk about you getting demoted." That seemed to have gotten his full attention.He stood stilled. "What?""Jenna doesn't know if it's real. But if it is, guess who takes the fall for everything?"His eyes darkened. "No. Absolutely not.""Then stop hiding," I snapped. "If this is war, stop playing like you're trying to win by playing nice. These people don't care about honor. They care about optics. Control."He stared at me, then slowly nodded. "You're right."I blinked. "Wait, what?""You're right," he repeated. "It's time to fight back."I wasn't used to hearing Nicholas Walton agree. It was... weird. But satisfying.He t
Regina’s POVNicholas didn’t hesitate. He told the concierge to hold the delivery and send security to check who dropped it off. Then he locked the door and turned to me, jaw tight.“They’re not just watching. They’re trying to rattle you.”I crossed my arms to keep them from shaking. “It’s working.”Nicholas stepped closer. “We need to be smart. We hit back—clean, legal, brutal. But first, I want you safe.”“I’m not hiding,” I snapped. “I’ve been through worse. They don’t get to scare me into silence.”His eyes flashed with something I hadn’t seen before—respect. Maybe something more.But I couldn’t afford to feel anything tonight. Not with Kimberly and Dan circling like sharks, not with HR breathing down my neck, and definitely not with some shady delivery waiting downstairs like a ticking bomb.Nicholas grabbed his laptop. “I’m going to send a statement to the board. Get ahead of the leak.”“About us?”He paused. “Not yet. Just about the dinner. Business-related. Routine. I’ll spin
Regina's POVI was drowning in work.Mary had dumped a pile of last-minute revisions on my desk, claiming it was urgent, but I knew what she was doing. She was trying to rattle me. Make me slip up. I wasn't going to give her that satisfaction.Not again.I kept my head down, fingers flying over my keyboard. My phone buzzed once. Twice. I ignored it.Third time.I finally checked. A message from Jenna."Come down. Now. Just trust me."No emojis. No fluff. Just that.I glanced around. Mary was watching me from across the floor, a little too interested. I didn't care. I grabbed my phone and went downstairs.Jenna was waiting by the loading bay, arms crossed. "You've got a stalker," she said before I could even say hi."What?" I blinked.She nodded toward a black car parked near the side gate. A man leaned against it, sunglasses on. He wasn't part of the usual staff."He's been coming around," Jenna said. "And I have a pretty good idea who sent him."My stomach dropped. "Dan?""Bingo."I
I was supposed to be focused on my work.Mary and Kimberly had been unusually quiet since Nicholas shut her down privately last week. But silence from someone like her never meant peace. It meant planning.I had just finished reviewing the figures for our client pitch when my phone buzzed. Unknown number. My heart skipped. I knew better than to answer random calls after everything with Dan. Still, I tapped the green icon like an idiot."Miss Moore," a familiar voice said, low and oily.Dan.I stood up from my desk and walked fast toward the restroom. "How did you get this number?"He chuckled. "Same way I got that photo. I told you, Regina. You're in a different league now.""I blocked you.""Yet here I am." His voice dropped. "You looked rattled last time. I thought I'd send you another gift.""Another gift? I don't even understand you any--"But before I could continue, he had already hung up. The fuck!Seconds later, my email pinged and an image popped up on the screen. No subject.
Regina's POV The office felt too quiet. Phoned rang and customers were clearly around but even with phones ringing, keyboards clacking, and everyone fake-laughing down the hall, I couldn't shake the silence inside me. Like my instincts were trying to scream—but I had them on mute.Nicholas hadn't texted me since last night.Not good night, not are you okay, not even a thumbs-up emoji.I stared at my phone for the hundredth time today. Still nothing."Whatever." I heaved in. I wasn't going to beg.I pulled my attention back to the project we were finalizing—a massive client pitch that could win the firm a big contract. I'd practically bled over this presentation. If we landed this deal, it would silence every whisper about how I only got here because of Nicholas.The thought made my stomach turn. I earned this. Every late night, every win. Nicholas or not."Regina, conference room in ten," my team lead called out.I nodded, but my throat felt tight. This meeting needed to go well. It