Masuk“Now we have time. No more meetings. No more interruptions,” Oliver murmured against her hair as he buried his face in the curve of her neck. “I thought you might like that news,” Harper said softly, and her arms moved to the back of his head. “A deal is a deal.” Oliver’s lips curved into a slow, predatory smile against her skin. “Oh, I definitely like that news,” he confirmed, his hands sliding down to grip her hips possessively. “And you are absolutely right– deals need to be honoured.” He
Tera leaned her head back against Marius’s shoulder, feeling the steady rise and fall of his chest. For a moment, the looming Monday meeting and the shadow of Seraphina felt miles away. “You know,” she murmured, his voice softening. “You are surprisingly easy to talk to when you are not trying to be the smartest person in the room.” she turned her face toward him, a mischievous flint in her sapphire eyes. Marius snorted, though the effect was ruined by the way his yellow green eyes softened when he looked down at her. "I am the smartest person in the room, Tera. You are just acknowledging it with more grace than I deserve." He nudged her shoulder with his own, a playful gesture that felt entirely natural. The banter was a shield, but tonight it felt less like a defence and more like a way to breathe. "Matte black frame. Moody ocean. No gold leaf," he repeated, as if committing the terms to memory. "I can live with that. Actually, I think I might even li
Marius stared at Tera, the weight of her words sinking in. ‘Together.’ It was a word he had not heard applied to his life in a long time. Most people in his world were either allies to be used or obstacles to be bypassed. Tera was asking for something entirely different. “Together,” he repeated testing the weight of it. He nodded once, a sharp decisive movement. “Okay. Together.” He reached up, cupping her face with both hands, his thumbs striking her cheekbones. The vulnerability was still there, raw and unpolished, but beneath it, something harder was forming– a resolve he had not felt in years. “Monday morning,” he said, his voice regaining a silver of its usual authority. “We walk in there like nothing’s changed. We keep it professional. No side glance, not history, no giving her anything to work with.” He leaned down, pressing his forehead against hers.Tera closed her eyes, letting the warmth of his
Tera did not move toward Marius. She stayed anchored to her spot; her sapphire eyes fixed on his face as if she were reading a code, she had not quite cracked yet. “Messy and complicated,” she repeated, her voice devoid of its usual warmth. “Those are the two words people use when they are trying to downplay something that still ahs teeth.” She crossed her arms, mirroring the defensive posture he had taken earlier. “You said you wanted to change, Marius. You promised me exclusivity. But how am I supposed to trust that when you are acting like a terrified kid every time her name is mentioned?” she took a step toward him, not out of affection, but to close the distance between them until they were almost nose to nose. “If she is just a ghost, then why are you so afraid of her haunting you?”Marius’s jaw worked silently as he stared back at Tera. The silence between them was not the comfortable kind they usually shared; it wa
After work, Marius went home at a respectable hour for once and waited for Tera to come over. He poured himself a glass of bourbon, the amber liquid catching the low light of his living room. he checked his watch– six thirty. He had left the office earlier than usual, a move that would surely raise eyebrows if anyone noticed, but his could not care less tonight. The house was quiet, the only sound the distant hum of city traffic outside his window. He sat on the sofa, legs crossed, swirling the ice in his glass. His mind kept drifting back to the breakroom– to Harper’s eyes, to the way she had looked at him and Tera. He knew he was playing a dangerous game. Between Harper’s intuition and Seraphina’s arrival on the upcoming campaign, the office was becoming a minefield. A knock came from the front door. Marius set his glass down on the coffee table and stood up, smoothing his shirt.Marius walked to the door, pulling it open to find Tera standing
“Look, Seraphina… she is a ball buster. Her own staff seemed scared of her. And she seems to have it out for me and Oliver,” Haper said, looking back at Tera. She paused, considering how much she should and should not share. “I just want to make sure Marius has someone in his corner. If she is having this effect without even coming face to face… I do not know what to expect from Monday’s meeting.” Tera’s sapphire eyes narrowed slightly, her mind already working through the implications. A woman who could rattle even the seasoned executives like Oliver and Harper was no small threat, and if she had some sort of leverage or history with Marius, Monday’s meeting was going to be a minefield. “She sounds like trouble,” Tera said flatly. She pushed off from her desk, her fingers tracing the edge. “And if Marius is acting like a cornered animal every time she comes up, that is not going to help anyone.” She loo
As Tera turned, she gave Marius a playful wink and walked back to the elevator, her hips swaying seductively as she walked. “Uh, wait up,” Harper said, following Tera to the elevator. Marius watched the elevator door close in front of them both, his coffee still warm in his hand. Their quick exit left him standing there alone for a moment, the silence of the room feeling suddenly heavy. He leaned back against the corner wall, staring at the closed elevator door. Harper was not one to be rushed, and she certainly was not one to let things slide without a question. Whatever she was about to say to Tera, it was not going to be small talk. A low whistle escaped his lips. Her set his coffee mug down on the counter and straightened his shirt, checking his reflection in the polished surface of the microwave. He looked fine. Professional. Untouched. But the memory of Tera’s hands on him, and the way Harper’s blue green eyes had lingered on his face, made him feel any
“Housekeeping might throw it all away.” Harper said softly, looking down at the papers on the floor. “Organizing your office and paperwork is my job,” she adds. Oliver’s expression softened slightly at her insistence; a hint of admiration mixed with the frustration i
“That is it,” Oliver encouraged against her breast, his voice muffled by the flesh pressed against his lips. “Show me how much you want this.” His free hand moved to cup her other breast, kneading gently while his mouth worked relentlessly on the first. The contrast betwee
Oliver’s eyes darkened with satisfaction at her admission, a low growl of approval rumbling in his chest. The confession that her nervousness was due to attraction, not fear, sent a wave of possessive heat through him. “Attractive?” he repeated, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. “You think
Oliver’s eyes widened slightly at her blunt observation, a low chuckle escaping his lips. The sound was rich and unexpected, breaking the usual seriousness, he carried around the office. “In a hurry,” he repeated, his voice laced with amusement. “You are saying my designers need to consider emergen







