LOGINCain's POV I sent the text at 2:17 a.m. when I knew she’d still be awake. *Need to discuss your job contract. Neutral ground. The Grandview. 3 p.m. tomorrow. Room booked under the company. Come alone.* She didn’t reply for six hours. When she did, it was one fucking word. *Okay.* I spent the whole next day smoking and pacing the penthouse like a fucking caged animal. The meeting was supposed to be professional, but I knew better. The second she walked into the hotel lobby I felt it. My fucking chest tightened. I watched her from the bar as she crossed the marble floor, shoulders high, her eyes scanning every face. She spotted me. Her steps faltered for half a second. Then she kept coming. “You’re early,” she said when she reached me. Her voice was low. “So are you.” I stood up. “Let’s go upstairs. The conference room’s booked.” Ciara glanced around the lobby again. I touched her elbow, guiding her toward the elevators. She didn’t pull away, but her arm tensed under
Ciara's POV The bedroom door stayed closed that night. I stood outside it for a long minute, my hands hovering over the knob, before I turned and walked down the hall to the guest room. I fell on the bed with an exhausted sigh and pulled the sheets up to my chin. Simon didn’t come looking for me. The next morning I found him in the kitchen, pouring coffee. He glanced up when I walked in. His eyes flicked to the guest room door behind me, then back to his mug. “You slept in there,” he said. “Yeah.” I reached for a cup. My fingers brushed his when I took the pot. He didn’t move away. Neither did I. “I needed space.” He nodded slowly and took a sip. “Space. Right.” I poured my coffee. “You want eggs?” he asked finally. “I can make some.” “I’m not hungry.” He set his mug down harder than necessary. “You’re never hungry lately. You barely eat. You barely talk. You barely look at me.” I turned to face him. “What do you want me to say, Simon? That everything’s fine? Th
Ciara's POV “When did you stop loving me?” Simon asked. The words hit me square in the chest. I had just woken up. Can't a girl just have one moment of peace? “Simon, just last night you had said you wanted us back as before?” I sighed and sat straighter. “Where is this question from?” He stood there for a second, hands in his pockets, looking at me like I was a puzzle he couldn’t solve. “No, tell me.” He stepped closer. “Because I keep thinking about it. Was it after Alice? After I started drinking again? Or was it before that? Before I even noticed you were slipping away.” I looked down at my night dress. My fingers tightened on the fabric. “It’s not that simple.” “It is to me.” He sat on the edge of the bed, not too close. “One day you looked at me like I was your husband. The next… you looked at him like he was oxygen.” I swallowed. My throat felt dry. “You’re not being fair.” “Fair?” He laughed bitterly. “Fair would be you telling me the truth instead of making me d
Ciara's POV The house felt different after the funeral. I can't find the right words to describe it. It just felt... quieter? “Why did Mom had to leave us?” I muttered under my breath as I moved through the halls, careful not to make too much noise. Simon had been gone for three days and he hadn't seen it necessary to call or text his wife on his whereabouts. “I should just let him be. He may be grieving.” I muttered again. I just feel so alone. I haven't seen Cain since the funeral. it just felt like he packed his bag and disappeared. Or maybe, he doesn't have the audacity to see me, or the creativity to come up with a miserable explanation or a reason. So, Natalia was truly pregnant for him?! As I stepped into the living room, I saw a figure moving about. “Simon?” He turned. “Hi, babe.” Babe? I stepped closer. He didn't reek of whiskey smell and his eyes weren't bloodshot either. Wow, my mouth fell open in shock. I sniffed in the air. The only smell... scent I could
Cain's POV The reception was too loud. Too many fucking people pretending to mourn while they picked at plates and whispered behind their fucking glasses. I stood near the bar with a drink I hadn’t touched, watching Ciara from across the room. She looked small in that dress, her shoulders tight, and her eyes fixed on the floor like she wished it would open up and fucking swallow her. I combed my fingers through my hair. I wanted her to swallow something else instead... Natalia walked straight up to her near the back of the hall. I straightened myself and watched their interaction closely. I didn't fucking trust that girlfriend of mine! As I watched, I saw the moment it happened. Natalia’s hand resting on her stomach. The words leaving her mouth. Ciara’s face went white. I started moving before I even thought about it. By the time I reached them, Ciara was already backing away. Her hands were shaking. She looked at me like I’d stabbed her. “Cain,” Natalia said sweetly, tu
Ciara's POV The hospital room smelled... bad. I cringed my nose to block the pungent smell of antiseptic and fading flowers. Monitors beeped in a steady rhythm while mother lay in the bed, smaller than I remembered, her skin pale against the white sheets. Tubes ran into her arms and her breathing came shallow. We all knew it wouldn’t stay that way. I sat on one side of the bed. Cain on the other. Simon stood by the window, arms crossed, staring out at the city lights. Aunt Linda lingered near the door with father, both of them silent.The rest of the family and friends came and went in shifts, but right now it was just us. The ones who mattered most, or were hurting the most. Mother’s hand found mine, her cold fingers wrapped around my own. Then she reached for Cain’s hand too. He let her take it without hesitation. “Love is messy,” she whispered. Her voice cracked. “But don’t let it destroy you like it destroyed me.” Her eyes moved between us. Simon’s jaw tightened when Cain’s
Ciara's POV Simon pulls me upstairs, his fingers tightening around my wrist like he already knew I’d done something unforgivable. I whimper, struggling to free myself, but he doesn't let go until we are finally in the room with the door shut. He gently places me on a stool and kneels before me.
Ciara's POV I shouldn’t have slept, not after what almost happened in that kitchen but I forced myself to sleep as soon as I made it back to bed without getting caught. And the next day,I woke up to an empty bed. Simon is already up. I sigh and rub my hands over my face. I hope he doesn't brin
CIARA'S POV I totally forget what I came here for. All I can see is a tattoo, sweaty abs and a V-shaped that was lost somewhere beneath his waistband— "My face is up here." He snaps his fingers. Oh! I lift my head to meet his face. "Can you turn down the noise? I need to get work done ups
Ciara's POV That touch meant nothing. So why do I still feel it? I rush out and lean against the wall in the hallway trying to steady my breathing. Cain’s follows me, striding forward and only stopping when he's very close to me. Standing in a tight hallway, we hold each other breath, neithe







