Who touched you?

Adrian's POV

The ballroom fell silent the moment I stepped through the doors.

Crystal chandeliers spilled warm light across the marble floor, reflecting off the champagne glasses and polished silver trays. A string quartet played softly from the raised stage while guests in tailored tuxedos and designer gowns filled the room, their conversations blending into a low hum.

The annual Kingston Foundation Charity Gala.

Every year, New York's wealthiest businessmen, politicians, celebrities and investors gathered under one roof for one purpose. To donate, network and to be seen.

The first camera flash exploded before I had taken three steps. "Mr. Kingston!"

"Sir, over here!"

"What are Kingston Holdings' expansion plans for next year?"

"Is it true you're acquiring the Harrison Group?"

Questions came from every direction.

I stopped just long enough for the photographers to get their pictures before continuing forward.

Someone from my security team stepped between me and the reporters. "The chairman isn't taking questions tonight."

The complaints followed immediately. "Just one minute, Mr. Kingston!"

"Sir!"

I kept walking, business always came first.

The chairman of the charity committee hurried toward me with an anxious smile. "Mr. Kingston, thank you for coming."

"You've done well."

Relief washed over his face. "We've already exceeded last year's donations. The auction begins in twenty minutes."

"I'll be there." Before he could continue, another group approached. One after another, I shook hands, exchanged brief greetings and listened to proposals.

By the time the conversations finally ended, nearly ten minutes had passed.

Without thinking, my eyes lifted…searching.

Then they found her…Olivia.

She stood near the auction display, tablet in one hand, quietly checking each item against a list before speaking with one of the event coordinators.

She moved through the ballroom with calm efficiency, making sure every guest found their assigned table, every auction item was recorded correctly, every last detail ran exactly as planned.

I should've looked away. Instead…I kept watching.

Seven years, seven years without seeing her. Yet somehow, she'd walked back into my life as though those years had never happened.

My jaw tightened. Ethan's report echoed in my mind. No husband, so where had the child come from?

The thought settled heavily in my chest.

Had she fallen in love with someone else?

Had some man walked into her life after she left me...

Touched her...held her...given her a child…

Something dark twisted inside me. My fingers tightened around the crystal glass in my hand.

Mine…

The word slipped into my mind before I could stop it. She was supposed to have been mine, no one else should have stood where I once stood.

No one else should have…

A soft laugh drifted across the room, stopping my thoughts.

A young man in a navy tuxedo had walked over to her. One of the CEOs I'd met earlier that evening, I think he's called Darius. Olivia looked up, smiling.

That's when I noticed what I hadn't allowed myself to notice before.

She looked…..Beautiful. The emerald-green dress hugged her figure without trying too hard, it was elegant rather than extravagant. A few loose strands had escaped the neat twist of her hair, softening the sharp professionalism she'd worn all week.

Darius leaned a little closer to her. "If you're free after the auction, I'd love to take you to dinner."

My grip on the glass tightened.

Olivia smiled politely. "That's kind of you, but…"

I was already walking toward them. Neither of them noticed until I stopped beside her. "Miss Carter." 

She turned immediately. "Mr. Kingston."

"Come with me."

Confusion flickered across her face. "I'm speaking with Mr Darius."

"I wasn't asking."

Mr. Lawson looked between us. "I was only…"

"Enjoy the gala."

The moment the conference room door closed behind us, the noise from the ballroom disappeared. She stopped a few steps inside. "Did you need something, sir?"

"No." The answer left my mouth before I'd thought of one.

A crease formed between her brows. "Then... why am I here?"

She shifted uncomfortably beneath my stare.

"If there's nothing else, I'd like to get back to work." She said when I kept staring.

She turned. 

"How's Lily?" 

She froze at that spot. Slowly, she turned around, color draining from her face. 

Her lips parted slightly, but no words came. A strange satisfaction settled inside me, I'd finally found the crack in her armor.

"You know her name." She whispered.

"Yes."

"How?"

I ignored the question, taking a slow step toward her. "Who's her father?"

Her breathing became uneven. She looked toward the door, searching for a way out.

"That's none of your business." She shook her head, reaching for the handle.

I caught her wrist before she could touch it.

She gasped. "Adrian…."

I pulled her back, pinning her against the wall with a soft thud.

I planted one hand beside her head, leaving nowhere for her to go.

She looked up at me, her breathing shallow. "Let me go."

"Answer me.”

She gasped. “Adrian, let go off me.”

"Olivia, who touched you?" I growled, my grip tightening. "Who?"

She stared at me, stunned.

"Who the hell put a child in your arms?"

"Let me go..."

"I asked you a question."

"You're hurting me."

"I don't care!" My voice boomed, echoeing through the empty room. "Tell me who he is."

My breathing was as unsteady as hers. “I want his name."

Her eyes glistened but that only got me angrier. Why was she protecting this guy?

"I swear to God..." My voice dropped to almost a whisper. "If another man laid a hand on you..." My jaw clenched so hard. "I'll bury him."

She looked straight into my eyes. "You don't get to ask me that." She whispered then drove her heel into my foot.

Pain shot through my leg. She shoved me back with both hands, threw the door open, and ran.

I stood there, breathing hard, staring at the door she'd just disappeared through.

“I'll make you regret choosing someone else over me.”

----

The ballroom gradually quieted as the auctioneer stepped onto the stage. Ladies and gentlemen," he announced with an easy smile, "thank you for your generous donations so far. Our next item was donated by the Moretti family." A spotlight swept across the stage, at its center rested a diamond necklace. The diamonds caught the crystal chandeliers above, scattering tiny flashes across the room.

"It is valued at three million dollars." A low murmur spread through the guests. "The bidding starts at one million."

"Paddle Twelve….One million."

"One point five."

"Two million."

My attention drifted elsewhere…Olivia stood a few feet away, checking the auction records on her tablet while making sure every winning bid was recorded correctly.

Darius leaned toward her, his champagne glass resting lazily in one hand. "What do you think?"

She glanced toward the necklace. "It's beautiful." She smiled genuinely.

The auctioneer's voice pulled my attention back. "Three million. Do I hear three point five?"

Before anyone else could speak, I lifted my paddle. "Six million."

The auctioneer blinked. "Six million from Mr. Kingston."

A ripple moved through the ballroom.

The auctioneer looked around one final time. "Six million... going once." He paused. "Going twice."

His gavel struck the podium. "Sold! Congratulations, Mr. Kingston." The applause echoed through the ballroom.

The auctioneer smiled. "Mr. Kingston, our staff will arrange delivery to whichever address you prefer."

I rose from my seat. Every pair of eyes followed me as I crossed the ballroom.

Olivia looked up from her tablet, confusion flickering across her face as I stopped in front of her. One of the event staff approached with the velvet jewelry case and handed it to me.

Without taking my eyes off her, I placed it into her hands. "For you."

The room fell completely silent.

She stared at the box."...Sir?"

"You heard me." Her eyes lifted to mine, panic already replacing the surprise.

"I can't accept something like this."

"Did he just..." 

"Isn't she his assistant?"

"Six million dollars?"

"Who is she?" the room buzzed.

She swallowed. "I really can't sir…"

"I wasn't asking." I said it quietly, only she could hear the warning beneath my voice.

Her fingers tightened around the velvet box. She stood there, frozen beneath the weight of every curious stare in the ballroom.

Exactly where I wanted her…..