CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Alexander's POV

The office was silent at 2 AM except for the hum of the HVAC system and my own breathing as I stood outside Richard's personal office.

Not the CEO suite that Lily now occupied but the smaller private office at the end of the executive floor where Richard had spent most of his time in his final years.

I'd walked past this door a thousand times but never gone inside without permission, and even now, with Richard gone, it felt like trespassing.

My key card beeped and the lock clicked open.

Inside, the air smelled faintly of the cigars Richard used to smoke despite the doctor's orders and the leather of old books.

I closed the door behind me and stood there for a moment, letting my eyes adjust to the darkness before turning on the desk lamp.

The room looked exactly as Richard had left it with papers still scattered across the desk and his reading glasses folded on top of a book about impressionist painters.

His coffee mug sat on a coaster, probably still containing the l