Show Us Proof

Maya took one look at Zariel and slid the coffee across her desk without a joke.

"How much sleep did you get?" she asked, leaning close enough to keep the conversation private.

"I had to wait until six for Martha to unlock my room."

Maya's hand stopped beside the cup. "Unlock it from outside?"

"The house system trapped me. I couldn't even get to the kitchen." Zariel wrapped both hands around the coffee. "Martha used her override this morning."

"And he expects you to come to work after that?"

"

Apparently the calendar doesn't care how I spent the night."

Zariel drank, wincing at the heat. Her hair had been dragged into a bun, her eyes burned, and the clothes waiting at the penthouse had done nothing to make her feel rested.

"Brenda's debt?" Maya asked. "Tell me that part was real."

"Paid. The medical bills too." She could still see the account confirmation when she closed her eyes. "I keep checking because I can't quite believe it."

"People saw the security car. Reception thinks you've been fired."

"Let them enjoy the mystery while it lasts." Zariel lifted her cup. "I have two jobs now, and neither of them includes adequate sleep."

The private elevator opened, cutting their conversation short. Maya moved away as Kaelen walked past with several executives following him.

"Miss Thorne, the luncheon brief. Three minutes, with the European compliance figures marked."

Zariel's grip tightened around the cup. "Of course, Mr. Sterling."

She gathered the folders and followed him into his office. Once the door shut, the sound of the floor disappeared, leaving her with the man who had assigned her bedroom.

He stood by the window. A small box came out of his pocket, and he placed it on the desk beside her files.

"Wear this," he said, turning toward her at last.

The diamond was so large that Zariel looked beneath it to check how it stayed attached. She took the ring out carefully, its weight settling

against her fingertips.

"People are going to ask why I need this much jewellery."

"It belongs to the Sterling family. Harrison expects to see it."

"Then perhaps Harrison can carry it. My hand has actual work to do."

"He is checking the relationship before lunch. Elodia Blackwood will be there, and she notices details."

Zariel slipped the ring onto her finger. It fit, another measurement somebody had obtained without a conversation. She turned her hand and watched the stone catch the light.

"Fine. If I injure my wrist, the medical bill is yours."

The office door opened before he answered.

Harrison Mercer came in with his cane, looking past her as though her presence was an interruption.

"The investors are waiting," he said. "Your private life has already become a distraction. Why is she still here?"

Zariel lowered her hand toward the folders. Kaelen stepped between them before Harrison could come closer.

"Miss Thorne is my assistant and my fiancée. You will address her with respect."

Harrison's gaze went to the ring, then to Kaelen.

"You might have mentioned that before the investors arrived."

"You have heard it now. If that presents a difficulty, security can escort you out."

Zariel remained behind him, startled by how quickly the same man who issued orders could become a barrier between her and somebody else's contempt.

At lunch she sat on Kaelen's right, wearing the green dress selected from the penthouse wardrobe. Harrison watched her over his glass while Elodia studied her ring.

Zariel kept her shoulders level and resisted turning the stone inward. Hiding it would draw more attention than wearing it, and attention was something she had to manage now.

"A year as his assistant," Harrison said. "Yet nobody heard a word about this relationship until today."

Zariel set down her fork. She knew how much a hurried answer could reveal, so she smiled before speaking.

"We work long days together. We learned to trust each other, and we preferred keeping it private."

"During a merger?" Harrison asked, his attention fixed on her.

"Especially during one. You all have enough to discuss without our dinners becoming another item on the agenda."

A man farther down the table lowered his eyes to conceal a smile. Elodia did not bother concealing her opinion.

"How convenient," she said. "A woman on the payroll becomes the answer to the board's concerns."

Zariel met her gaze. The woman's blonde hair barely moved when she tilted her head, her diamonds resting against a dress that cost more than Zariel's old wardrobe.

"People do meet at work," Zariel said. "Quite frequently."

"People like Kaelen don't usually marry their assistants. He dislikes impulsive decisions, and a girl from a small town hardly offers the connections he needs."

The conversation around them stopped. Zariel wanted to answer without the smile now, to ask which connection entitled Elodia to speak about her that way.

Harrison put his hand on the table before she could.

"She has a point. We need proof before we approve the shares for the final vote."

Kaelen watched him without touching his plate.

"Proof of what, precisely?"

"The proposal. Show us the video. Surely you recorded it."

Zariel's fingers closed around her napkin beneath the table. There had been no proposal, no evening somebody had filmed, only a page crossing a desk.

Kaelen reached for her hand before she could look away.

"We don't store private moments for committee inspection," he said. "You are approving a merger, Harrison, not purchasing our memories."

"Then you can understand why we remain uncertain." Elodia's gaze moved from their hands to Zariel's face.

Kaelen turned toward her. His grip was warm, his expression suddenly harder to read than the clauses she had memorized.

"If you require a demonstration," he said, "we can provide one."

He drew Varied closer. Her chair shifted, she rose toward him to keep her balance, and his other hand settled near her face.

She had written a clause for this, a clear boundary in plain words. Kaelen's mouth was already close enough that there was no time to point it out.