017

SHAYLE

By the time we arrived at the company, I still couldn’t believe what had happened this morning.

While we were in the car with me seated in the front and him at the back, my eyes would drift to the rearview mirror where I could see his reflection and how he looked completely detached.

I would bite my lip and state out the window so I wouldn't glance at him again. I saved his life. I actually saved his life. And he hadn’t even muttered a damn thank you.

Typical.

When the car stopped in front of the building, I pushed open the door, stepped out and followed his long strides.

He looked so effortlessly intimidating he looked from the back in his dark suit. A small part of me found it unfair that a man could look that good and be that much of a jerk.

We walked straight into the elevator together. Just me and him.

The silence stretched for a while, heavy and strangely awkward.

The only sound was the faint hum of the elevator. I was beginning to think we’d ride the whole way up like this when he finally turned to me, his tone low.

“I’m very serious about what I said earlier,” he muttered, narrowing his eyes at me.

“You better keep your lips shut.”

I blinked at him. “What?”

He gave me that look; cold, condescending, like I was some child who needed reminding.

“Don’t repeat a word of what happened this morning. Not to anyone.”

I turned away to roll my eyes.

“I already told you I won't. I’ve never been a fan of office gossip, and I’m pretty sure you already know that, so you’re wasting your threats on me.”

His gaze lingered for a moment, sharp and probing, before he turned away again.

I sighed and leaned against the railing behind me.

“Look, I know what it’s like to be the center of attention,” I muttered quietly.

“To have people who know absolutely nothing about you whispering and laughing every time you walk past them. I wouldn’t put anyone else through that so be rest assured.”

There was a pause. He didn’t respond right away, and I didn’t expect him to. He wasn’t exactly the type to engage in small talk or empathy but I just wanted to make it clear to him.

But then, in a voice softer than usual, he spoke.

“Thank you.”

I froze.

Wait…what?

Did Lucien Dorne just thank me?

My eyes darted to him instantly, half expecting him to smirk or take it back, but he didn’t even look at me.

His gaze was fixed on the elevator doors like nothing had happened, but I could see the stiffness in his shoulders, the faint effort it took to get those words out.

And for some reason, it melted something inside me.

A small, stupid smile tugged at my lips. Maybe my shitty boss wasn’t as shitty as I thought.

The elevator dinged, and the doors slid open. We stepped out and walked through the hallway together. I fell into my usual rhythm, calling out his schedule for the day, reading off my tablet as we moved.

“10 a.m, conference call with the investors from Zurich. 11:30, meeting with the legal team. By 2 p.m, lunch with the board members, and 4 p.m., interview with the new marketing director.”

He gave a curt nod as we entered his office. I closed the tablet, ready to disappear before he found another way to make my morning miserable. He might have shown me his nicer side but he was still the same.

Lucien walked to his desk, pulling off his jacket and tossing it onto the chair with casual grace.

“Get me coffee,” he said quietly. “No sugar.”

I nodded and turned to leave, but his voice stopped me halfway to the door.

“How did you know flour would stop the reaction?”

I turned slightly, surprised. “Oh. That.”

My fingers brushed my skirt as I shifted awkwardly. “My younger sister, Alina, she’s allergic to shrimp. Since shrimp’s seafood, I just thought it might work the same way. My mom always used flour whenever Alina accidentally ate something with shrimp in it. It usually worked.”

Talking about my family brought a sudden warmth to my chest. Memories of Mom laughing in the kitchen, Alina stealing cookie dough when she thought no one was looking, it all came flooding back. I didn’t even realize I was smiling until my throat started to feel tight.

Then the memory shifted. The laughter faded, replaced by that night.

The betrayal. My chest tightened painfully.

I looked up to distract myself and found Lucien staring at me. Not with his usual coldness, but something different, curiosity maybe, or something deeper I couldn’t name.

He leaned forward slightly, his tone low. “By the looks of it, you love your family a lot.”

I nodded carefully, unsure where this was going.

“So why did they turn their back on you?”

The words hit me like ice water.

My brows furrowed. “What?”

“I heard your younger sister is dating your ex,” he said, his tone unreadable.

“If your family cherished you as much as you cherished them, no sister would do that. And no mother would allow it.”

I blinked, my mouth parting slightly.

How the hell did he know that?

The office suddenly felt smaller. My palms went clammy. I looked away, unable to meet his gaze.

“I don’t know where you heard that from,” I muttered, forcing my voice to stay steady, “but I don’t want to talk about it.”

I turned toward the door, gripping the handle a bit tighter. “I’ll get your coffee now.”

And before he could say another word, I walked out.

My legs carried me faster than usual, my heart pounding painfully in my chest. I hated that his words got to me. That part of me still hurt even after all this time.

The hallway felt colder as I approached the coffee maker.

I was still trying to breathe properly when I heard a voice, soft, familiar, painfully familiar.

“Excuse me, could you tell me where the CEO’s office is?” they were asking someone else.

My steps faltered. Was it really who I thought it was?

I quickened my pace, my heartbeat slamming in my chest. When I finally reached the corner and turned toward the sound, my eyes widened in disbelief.

Alina.

Standing right there.

Her hair was tied, her clothes too expensive for someone who once borrowed mine. Carlos was probably funding this new lifestyle of hers.

Her face held that same soft expression that used to make me feel like she was still innocent.

My mouth went dry.