LOGINAvery’s POVI walked into Monochrome headquarters. The building still felt new, still unfamiliar in the way new spaces do. The team was already settling in. Boxes were unpacked, each team desk was organized and work had resumed. Two days after the launch. Two days since he asked me for dinner, and nothing. No calls, no messages, no explanation for his disappearance, just silence. Maybe he’d changed his mind. Maybe ‘soon’ didn’t mean what I thought it meant. Maybe it was just something he said. Maybe I’d misread everything.I pushed the thought away and tried to focus on work. I took the elevator to my floor, the design team floor. It was already buzzing with activity. People were working.I walked through the offices, greeted my team, checked in on projects, my usual routine but something felt off.People were looking at me differently. It seems they’d been talking about something, speculating or maybe they knew something. I walked past a group near the coffee station. Three jun
Wyatt’s POVI landed in New York at midnight. Rain streaked across the window as the plane taxied. Cold air hit my face when I stepped off the plane, sharp enough to cut through the exhaustion already setting in my bones.I went straight to Sterling Industries headquarters. The building was almost empty, just a few lights still on and the cleaning crew moving through the hallway like shadows. I dropped my bag at the desk when I got to Richard’s office, loosened my tie, and rolled my sleeves.This would be quick. One day two at most. Fix what needed fixing, smooth things over and get back to California, back to her.I turned on the desk lamp and opened the first file. That was when things started falling apart.Page after page of a mess, numbers that didn’t add up, contracts marked ‘pending’ with no follow-up, emails unanswered, meetings rescheduled, then cancelled, then abandoned completely.I went through one file then another. By the fourth file, my jaw had already tightened.And
Avery’s POVThe music became slower and softer. People were still watching us. After what had just happened. After Wyatt’s ‘soon’ and my instinctive retreat into his chest. I turned my head and met his eyes. I tried to read what he was thinking.“Dance with me,” he said, his voice low, meant only for me.I hesitated.I should’ve said no. I should’ve stepped back, created space, reminded both of us where the line was supposed to be. That would’ve been the smart thing to do, but I didn’t.“Okay,” I said finally.We moved toward the open space, blending in with the other couples, but I could still feel every eye in the room, watching not even trying to hide it.His hand settled at my waist, steady, and mine rested on his shoulder, light at first, then firmer. Neither of us pushed too far. His thumb brushed rough against my waist, not enough to draw much attention, but enough I felt it.We moved together. The music filled the silence between us, but I was aware of everything else, the
Avery’s POVThe opening event was everything I’d hoped for.Monochrome’s new headquarters officially launched.The space was filled with designers, investors, and industry people. The energy was buzzing but elegant. Champagne glasses in hand, soft music threading through conversations. Everything was perfect.This was it.Proof that Monochrome had survived. That we’d come out stronger. That everything Daniel and Maison Delacroix did hadn’t been enough.I moved through the crowd. Greeting guests, thanking people for coming, playing the part of a confident CEO.Wyatt was there. He’d arrived early. He helped with last-minute setup like he always did, making sure everything was perfect. Now he moved through the event like he actually belonged here.Which, in a way, he had. He’d made this building happen. Pushed it through and made it real.But it wasn’t just that.He stayed close. Not in a way that drew attention. Not hovering. Just…there, always in reach.Even when I wasn’t looking, I kn
Wyatt’s POVI picked up Avery at her old office. The moving truck was already half-loaded, boxes stacked together near the curb, her team moving in and out of the old Monochrome branch.She stood off to the side, watching it all with a quiet kind of satisfaction on her face.Today was the day. Monochrome’s official move into the new headquarters.“Ready?” I asked her when she got in.“More than ready.” She shut the door and glanced back at the truck. “I’ve been waiting for this part for weeks since the last walkthrough.”I started the engine. “The part where everything becomes real?”She nodded. “Yes.”The drive was easy. No pressure, no weight hanging between us the way it had few weeks ago.She talked about the move like she’d been holding it in for weeks. How each department would settle, which teams would clash, who’d try to claim spaces that weren’t theirs.I listened, letting her talk as we drove.“You’ve been around a lot,” she said suddenly, glancing at me. “More than some of
Wyatt’s POVWe got in the car and I started driving. Avery stayed quiet for a few blocks, her gaze fixed outside the window, her hands resting loosely in her lap.“Wyatt,” she said finally, her voice steady in a way that immediately put me on edge. “I need to tell you something.”My grip tightened on the wheel. “What is it about?”“Pull over. Somewhere we can talk.”I found a quiet street, pulled over, and turned off the engine. The silence that followed felt heavy, pressing in from all sides.“A few weeks ago,” she began slowly, turning to face me, “I got a call. From someone, a female.”“A warning,” she continued when I didn’t respond. “The person told me not to trust you. That you don’t do anything without a reason. That whatever you’ve told me about helping…there’s more to it.”Cold chill ran down my spine.“Did they say who they were?” I asked, forcing my voice to stay even.She shook her head. “No, the line went dead before I could ask who it was.” “At first, I thought it was
Wyatt’s POVThe motel was exactly the kind of shithole I expected, the kind of place the asshole would stay. Peeling paint, broken neon signs and cars that looked abandoned for months. My contact leaned against his sedan in the parking lot, smoking.“Room 12.” He flicked the cigarette away. “I trie
Nate’s POVI stood in front of the mirror adjusting my tie for the third time today in my perfect tailored tuxedo in a perfect venue with perfect weather.Everything was perfect except the tight knot in my stomach that wouldn’t go away.My father was still in the hospital, still recovering from his
Avery’s POV“Do you still love him?”The question sat between us, unanswered. I looked at Wyatt and I saw tension in his jaw, the way his hands had balled into fists at his sides, after leaving mine.“No.” The answer came out bluntly and with all honesty of me. “I don’t love him. I hate him for wh
Avery’s POV“Wyatt...”His name dropped from my mouth soft and broken, like a prayer I didn’t know I was saying.Tears pulled in my eyes despite my effort to be steady. Relief washed over me that it hurt physically, holding the breath from my lungs.He was here, he actually came.He took steps clos







