LOGINRain continued long after midnight. By the time Damien, Roman, and Vivian returned upstairs to the thirty-second floor, the city outside had dissolved into blurred lights and thunderstorm shadows. The office felt colder now, every hallway too quiet, every reflection against the glass walls unsettling in ways Vivian couldn’t explain. Nothing about tonight felt normal anymore. Not the break-in. Not the mysterious man downstairs. And definitely not the possibility that Clara Whitmore might still be alive. Vivian stood near the windows inside Damien’s office, arms folded tightly while her thoughts spiraled dangerously. “If Clara survived,” she said slowly, “why would someone fake her death?” Neither man answered immediately. Damien walked toward the liquor cabinet near the bookshelf and poured himself a drink with controlled movements. Roman remained near the office doors, sleeves rolled slightly now, his expression thoughtful but tense. Two powerful men. One secret. And both
Nobody spoke. The security officer stood stiffly near the doorway while thunder rolled outside the windows, and for one long, impossible moment Vivian genuinely thought she had misheard him. Clara Whitmore. Alive? That made no sense. Because Damien had said— No. Not said. Implied. Car accident. Death. Buried investigation. Vivian slowly looked toward Damien. His face had gone completely still. Not shocked. Not relieved. Something worse. Like a man watching the past drag itself back from the grave. “What exactly did he say?” Damien asked quietly. The security officer swallowed hard. “He came in asking to speak with someone regarding Clara Whitmore. Said he had information.” Roman stepped closer slightly. “A man?” “Yes, sir.” “What information?” Vivian asked quickly. “He wouldn’t say.” Damien grabbed his coat immediately from the chair beside his desk. “Where is he now?” “In the lobby.” “I’ll handle it.” “No,” Vivian interrupted instantly. Both men looked
Vivian was already standing before Damien finished speaking. “What?” Across the table, Roman’s expression sharpened immediately. Damien’s voice remained controlled through the phone, but she could hear tension beneath it now. “My office was searched.” Searched. Not robbed. The distinction mattered. “When did this happen?” Vivian asked quickly. “Within the last hour.” “Was anything taken?” A pause. “Yes.” Her stomach tightened instantly. “What?” “Get back here first.” Then the line disconnected. Vivian lowered the phone slowly, pulse uneven. Roman watched her carefully from across the candlelit table. “What happened?” She grabbed her coat immediately. “Someone broke into Damien’s office.” Roman’s expression darkened slightly. “And?” “He says something was taken.” For the first time that evening, Roman no longer looked relaxed. Interesting. Very interesting. He stood as Vivian reached for her bag. “I’m driving you.” “That’s not necessary.” “It’s raining,
Roman Ellis was waiting exactly where he said he would be. Vivian spotted him immediately through the glass entrance of Blackwood & Vale, standing beneath the glow of the lobby lights while rain poured steadily outside behind him. One hand rested casually in the pocket of his dark overcoat, the other holding an umbrella as several people passing by glanced at him with quiet recognition. He looked calm. Effortlessly calm. Like the kind of man who never doubted himself. And somehow that made Vivian more nervous than she wanted to admit. The elevator doors opened behind her with a soft metallic sound. Roman turned instantly. Then smiled. Not arrogantly. Not theatrically. Just genuinely enough to make something uncomfortable move through her chest. “You came.” Vivian folded her arms lightly. “You sound surprised.” “I’ve learned not to underestimate Damien Blackwood’s ability to interfere with things.” Her stomach tightened unexpectedly at Damien’s name. Roman noticed imm
The entire office knew. Vivian realized it within thirty minutes of returning upstairs. People tried pretending otherwise, of course. Associates suddenly became fascinated by their laptops whenever she walked past. Conversations stopped half a second too late. Chloe kept giving her dramatic looks from across the litigation floor like she was personally watching a romance scandal unfold in real time. And Damien? Damien became unreadable. Which was infinitely worse than anger. He disappeared into meetings for most of the afternoon, speaking only when necessary, his voice colder than usual during conference calls while the entire thirty-second floor operated under visible tension. Vivian tried focusing on work. Really tried. But concentration became impossible when her mind kept replaying the moment she said yes. Not because she regretted it exactly. But because of Damien’s face afterward. Or rather— the complete lack of expression on it. That unsettled her more than shout
The atmosphere inside Damien Blackwood’s office turned suffocating after Chloe’s announcement. Roman Ellis was downstairs. Waiting. Refusing to leave without seeing Vivian. For a long moment, nobody spoke. Chloe stood awkwardly by the glass doors looking like she regretted entering the office at all, while Vivian remained frozen beside Damien’s desk, painfully aware of the dangerous silence settling across the room. Then Damien smiled. Not warmly. Not pleasantly. The kind of smile that made senior associates reconsider career choices. “Interesting,” he said quietly. Vivian immediately straightened. “Damien—” “No,” he interrupted calmly, “actually, this should be interesting.” His composure unsettled her far more than anger would have. Because Damien only became this controlled when he was furious enough to hide it. Chloe cleared her throat nervously. “I can ask security to remove him if you want.” Damien’s gray eyes never left Vivian’s face. “No,” he said softly. “







