Terms and Conditions

The next morning, Elena walked into the Wolfe Corporation building with her head held high and her heart hidden beneath a mask she'd perfected long before today.

Not a single strand of hair out of place. Not a single emotion out of line. Her heels clicked against the polished marble, sharp and steady where each step echoing louder than the quiet thrum building in her chest.

The air in the office was crisp with tension. Whispers traveled like electric currents across the cubicles. A few lingering glances shot her way, and although no one said anything directly, the shift was palpable.

It was as if the walls had learned how to gossip. She'd learned a long time ago...if you walked like you belonged, most people wouldn't question it.

Even when your world was quietly falling apart.

Elena adjusted the strap of her leather tote, fingers tightening just slightly more out of habit than needed.

She didn't glance at the stares. Didn't acknowledge the whispers trailing behind her like smoke. She was here to collect her things and that was the official reason.

The explanation that fit neatly into an email and didn't invite questions.

But the truth sat heavier beneath her blouse which is quieter, messier and no one in this building needed to know that part.

Unofficially? She didn't know. Maybe it was pride or maybe it was a refusal to let Cassian Wolfe define her exit.

As she stepped into the elevator, her phone buzzed. A message from HR.

HR : Good morning, Miss Marlowe. For the clarification, there has been no formal termination. Your position remains active. Please see Nadia on Level 18 for details.

Elena blinked, the words on the screen blurring for a moment. "No formal termination?"

Her finger hovered above the digital panel, hesitation curling in her chest like a question she wasn't ready to ask out loud.

The elevator doors slid open with a soft ding, cool air brushing past her like a silent invitation or it's a warning!

She stared at the number pad....18, His floor.

A beat passed.

Then, before she could talk herself out of it, she pressed the button. It lit up beneath her fingertip, sealing the decision she wasn't entirely sure she was ready to make.

.

.

Nadia greeted her with a warm but cautious smile. "Elena, good morning. I assume you're here because of yesterday's... misunderstanding?"

"You could say that," Elena said, keeping her voice neutral.

Nadia sighed. "Cassian never filed any paperwork with HR. Technically, you're still employed. It seems whatever happened was a... personal lapse in protocol."

A personal lapse... from Cassian Wolfe? The thought almost made her laugh. The man practically bled protocol, measured, precise, unreadable. There was no room for lapses in his world. No cracks or no softness.

And yet… this? Her fingers tightened around the strap of her bag, pulse kicking up despite herself.

"What am I supposed to do?" she muttered under her breath, the frustration slipping out before she could stop it. "Just keep showing up like nothing's changed?" Because everything had changed and pretending otherwise was starting to feel like its own kind of lie.

"If you want to—yes," Nadia said gently, her tone calm but not indifferent. "Or you can take some time, no pressure on you."

She paused, offering a small smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "Your updated medical record file came through this morning. Based on that, you qualify for additional support... if you need it."

There was no judgment in her voice—just quiet professionalism.

Elena's stomach twisted. So the file had gone through. Has Cassian seen it?

Nadia was still speaking, her voice even, professional like she'd delivered this kind of news a hundred times before.

"The choice is yours, Elena. But officially, no action has been taken to remove you from your position."

She paused, just long enough for the words to settle.

"If you'd prefer a new assignment, something quieter... I can arrange that."

There was no pressure in her tone... she just give her options, laid out like puzzle pieces. But somehow, it still felt like a test. A way out, or a way back in and the decision suddenly felt heavier than she was ready for.

Elena swallowed hard. She wasn't ready to answer. Not yet....

"I need to think about it."

~~~

She returned to her floor, unsure whether she still belonged there. Her desk was exactly as she left it. The photo frame with the seashells, the coffee mug with chipping paint, the pen she always clicked when nervous—all waiting for her return.

Her phone buzzed again, skittering against the desk's surface. A calendar invite lit the screen.

"Cassian Wolfe has invited you to: Clarification Meeting — 12:00 PM.

Location: Conference Room B."

Elena stared at it, the black and white text feeling heavier than it should. Her thumb hovered, but there was nothing to accept, because it was already there, fixed in her schedule like it had always been.

She drew in a slow breath and let it out even slower.

~~~

At exactly noon, Elena stepped into Conference Room B.

Cassian was already there. Dark suit, sharp lines, every button in place, except for the sleeves, rolled neatly to his forearms, as if precision itself was a habit he couldn't break. A tablet lay on the table in front of him, untouched.

His gaze wasn't on her, or the device.

He was watching the skyline beyond the glass wall, tall steel and glass bathed in the pale midday light like he was weighing something only he could see.

And then, he turned at the sound of her footsteps, gaze locking on hers with the kind of stillness that could make a person forget how to breathe.

"You're early," he said quietly, measured, giving nothing away.

She let the corner of her mouth lift, just enough to pass for politeness.

"You're punctual," she replied, the words smooth, but under them… a blade's edge.

Her pulse didn't match her voice. It was faster and kind of louder, because she wasn't just trading pleasantries, she was testing him.

For the briefest moment, something flickered across his face—there, then gone. Is it regret or fatigue? She couldn't tell.

And that uncertainty gnawed at her more than either answer would have.

"Sit. Please."

She obeyed, the chair cool against her palms as she lowered herself into it. Silence settled between them, which is not empty, but thick. The kind of silence that wasn't absence of sound, but presence of thought. It clung to the air like fog, making every breath feel deliberate.

Then Cassian spoke, his voice cutting through the heavy quiet. "You weren't supposed to come in today."

Her gaze didn't waver. "I didn't know I wasn't welcome," she said, each word deliberate. A pause, just enough to let it sting.

"You didn't make it official."

Inside, her chest tightened. She hated how much she cared whether he had wanted her here. But she wasn't going to let him see that. Not when his tone made it sound like her very presence was a disruption.

He looked at her, his jaw tightening, the muscle flickering like he was holding something back.

"I never intended to make it official."

Her fingers curled in her lap.

"Then what was yesterday?" she asked, her is voice steady, though her pulse wasn't.

His eyes didn't flinch.

"A mistake."

The word landed like a door slamming shut and yet, the way he looked at her didn't match the sentence, it seems like some part of him already regretted saying it.