LOGINCARTERThe office felt different without Dante. It always would, but something foundational had shifted, like a piece of structure had been removed and everything else had subtly adjusted to compensate. It had been weeks. It was long enough for it to fade away but not long enough for it to feel normal.I stood by the window in my office, looking out at the late afternoon skyline. Summer had all but slipped away. The air outside carried that faint crispness that signaled the start of a new season.A knock came at the door.“Come in.”Liam stepped in, dressed a little more neatly than usual, a backpack slung over one shoulder.“Hey.”“Hey,” I replied, turning slightly. “You look like you’re about to go somewhere.”“I am,” he said. “Back to school. Thought I’d stop by before heading out.”I nodded, gesturing toward the chair.“Sit.”He dropped into it, setting his bag beside him. Neither of us spoke yet. There was still a certain awkwardness between us. We were still figuring out what
ELIThe air felt different after Dante left.Liam stood awkwardly near the door for a moment before muttering something about giving us space. I barely registered it. One second he was there, the next, the door had closed behind him and it was just me and Carter.I glanced at him. He hadn’t moved much since Dante walked out. He was still staring at the door like something might undo itself if he waited long enough.“Carter…” I said softly. No response.I took a step closer. “Hey.”That got him. He blinked slightly, like he was snapping back into the room, then dragged a hand down his face.“I should have seen it,” he said quietly.“You couldn’t have.”“I’ve known him my entire life, Eli.”“And that’s exactly why you couldn’t,” I replied.He let out a short, humorless breath. “That doesn’t make it better.”“No,” I admitted. “It doesn’t.”I walked closer until I was standing right in front of him.“You didn’t deserve that,” I said.His eyes flicked up to mine.“None of this,” I added. “
CARTER cont’dFor a moment, just a moment, I expected Dante to laugh or probably just brush it off.To say Eli and Liam had misunderstood something, that this was all a coincidence blown out of proportion.Instead, he just stood there, oblivious of the information I had just heard, still holding the bottle.“…Did I miss something?” he repeated.I straightened slowly. “You can put the bottle down,” I said.My voice sounded calm. His eyes flickered briefly before he set the bottle on my desk.“What’s going on?” he asked.I didn’t answer right away. Instead, I looked at Eli and Liam then back at Dante.“They think,” I said carefully, “that someone inside the firm helped orchestrate the ethics investigation against me.”Dante raised an eyebrow. “That’s a serious accusation.”“It is.”“And you’re entertaining it?” he questioned“I’m listening.”His gaze shifted to Eli and Liam, then to me and then back to them again, “And you think that someone is me?”There was silence in the room.I step
CARTERThe send-off went better than I expected. Which, in itself, was unexpected.By early evening, the firm’s event space had been transformed into something warmer than its usual corporate sharpness, with soft lighting, polished tables, and quiet music humming in the background. Nothing extravagant, but it was just enough to make it feel like a proper occasion.People had shown up more than Dante had wanted but it was still less than a full gala. Exactly the balance I had intended.There was laughter. Conversations layered over one another. A few light-hearted toasts from senior associates who clearly ignored my earlier decision to “keep it simple.”Dante, to his credit, handled it well.He moved through the room easily, exchanging words with everyone, from colleagues, interns to even staff he rarely interacted with on a daily basis. If anything, he looked… relaxed.I stood near the edge of the room at one point, a glass in hand, observing. This was what we had built. And now he wa
ELI“Hey you” I said the moment I opened my door and saw Maya standing in the doorway. I gave her a tight hug before stepping aside to let her in.Maya dropped her bag the second she walked in. “Oh wow,” she said, looking around. “You’ve gone full detective mode.”“I’ve been waiting for you,” I replied. Ever since she let me know she would be coming, I had been anxious maybe because I missed her and also because I wanted to know what she had found.She kicked off her shoes and walked straight over, scanning the table where my notes were scattered. She brought out her laptop and notepad too and placed them next to mine.“Okay,” she said, rolling up her sleeves slightly. “Let’s go over everything again.”I nodded, tapping my pen against the notebook.“Vanessa,” I started. “We know she had access.”“Right,” Maya said, pulling out her laptop. “Not direct access to the investigation itself, but to people who did.”“Exactly. And not just one person, multiple.”Maya nodded quickly, opening a
CARTERThe conference room was fuller than usual that morning.Most of the firm’s senior associates were present, along with a few junior partners who had been working closely with us on the latest corporate merger case. Papers were spread across the long table, laptops open, coffee cups sitting dangerously close to stacks of legal briefs.It was one of those strategy meetings that always started with a clear agenda and inevitably drifted into three separate discussions.I stood near the head of the table, reviewing the last section of the proposal.“If we push the acquisition timeline forward by two weeks,” I said, tapping a finger lightly against the document, “we’ll reduce the risk of any competitor firm stepping in.”One of the associates nodded. “That would mean restructuring the preliminary agreement.”“Yes,” I said. “But it’s manageable.”Across the table, Dante leaned back in his chair, watching the discussion with a calm expression. He’d always been good at letting conversati
CARTER.“So” Dean Holloway started “We’re doing this”I remained silent and inhaled the old leather scent of his large office. The atmosphere of the office managed to hide the bitterness of the man behind the large wooden desk.I squared up and faced him professionally.Holloway finally set down so
ELIThe sound of the office door closing, echoed silently from a distance. I just stood there, frozen, where Carter and Liam had left me.It all happened so fast. I had barely made it through my first morning class when Liam showed up, waiting outside the lecture room.“Eli we need to talk,” he bur
ELIIt has been days since that night and I have barely slept. Every time I tried to close my eyes, I could still feel Carter’s touch like an echo on my skin, the way he looked at me, and the way he fucked me that night. This time, it didn't feel like a mistake. More like a truth that none of us we
CARTERI buried myself in the case before me, the Maybel Health case. I was scheduled to appear in court in a few days, and I needed strong arguments, but I was distracted. Trying to shake off the thoughts of Eli’s mouth on my skin. I had arrived at school earlier than usual just so I could work an







