LOGINEthan’s POVBy the time I finished with the spreadsheets, the sky outside my office window had gone dark. Not fully night yet, but that deep blue shade that told you the day had slipped away without asking for permission. My eyes burned, my shoulders ached, and my brain felt like it had been wrung dry.I realized I had fallen back into a familiar loop,I used in warner industries.Work until I was too tired to think.Work until my thoughts went quiet.It was the same thing I had done months ago. Bury myself in tasks so I would not feel. So I would not remember. So I would not ache.Alex had brought it all up earlier without meaning to. Innocent, casual, careless in the way people are when they do not know where your wounds are. And now my body buzzed with a restless need. A need to talk to Aaron. To know where he was. To know if he was okay.But I could not.I physically could not.The thought of hearing his voice hurt too much. My chest felt tight, my throat sore, my hands shaky. It h
Ethan’s POVI leaned back in my chair, staring at my laptop screen. It had been a week since I started at Connor’s company, and somehow, I had practically gotten used to everything here. The office was loud, chaotic in a strangely organized way, and every day brought a new kind of challenge. My phone buzzed, and a video call popped up. Mandy’s name lit up the screen.“Hey,” she said immediately, sounding frazzled. “Andrew and Jonathan have completely lost it. They’re on a rampage, I swear, bothering the hell out of me. I think they’ve gone full insane today.”I laughed, shaking my head. “Wow. Sounds like a nightmare. You holding up okay?”“Barely,” she muttered. “I don’t know how they can function like this. I’m just trying not to pull my hair out.”I grinned. “Yeah, I get that. How are you otherwise?”She rolled her eyes. “Fine, fine. But listen, Ethan… Aaron hasn't come back to work”I froze for a second, feeling my chest tighten.“So you haven't heard from him at all?” I add con
Aaron’s POVI sat there in the small, sterile room, my hands shaking. My jacket felt too heavy, my chest tight. Across from me, the police officer had a notebook and a pen, flipping through pages like he already knew I was trouble. His eyes were sharp, but he didn’t look angry yet. Just… watchful.“Tell me again,” he said slowly, tapping the pen against his notebook, “you said what happened to Mr. Paul Baxter?”My throat tightened, and I swallowed hard. My voice came out small, weak. “I… I accidentally killed him. He was trying to hurt me. He had information… information I didn’t want anyone to know. I… I struggled. I was just twenty. I didn’t know what I was doing. I didn’t know what could happen. I…”My words were shaky, all tumbling out too fast, too messy.The officer leaned back slightly, his face shifting as he tried to keep a neutral expression. He didn’t interrupt yet, but his pen slowed. My hands were folded on the table, trembling. “I went to a new city. After I buried him
EthanConnor walked a step ahead of me, keys jingling at his side like he was trying to announce himself to the entire building.“Welcome to your new life,” he said over his shoulder, pushing through a set of glass doors.I stopped short.The office opened up like a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding. High ceilings. Light pouring in from wide windows. Plants--everywhere. Tall ones in ceramic pots near the corners, smaller ones perched on shelves and tables like they belonged there, like they'd always been part of the plan. And air conditioning hummed from above--cool, not aggressive, wrapping around the space, not blasting through.In the middle of the floor, a number of small tables were arranged in a rough circle, all brown wood, surrounded by matching brown chairs. Not stiff, corporate chairs either- these looked like chairs you could sit in for hours without wanting to escape. The place felt… lived in. Intentional.Homey, but powerful.I swallowed.Connor turned to me, o
EthanThe very mention of his name struck me a slap on the face.My body jerked before my mind could react. Quick, instinctual, as if I’d been caught with my hands in the cookie jar even though I hadn’t moved. My heart thumped loudly in my chest. I could have sworn my mom could hear it pounding. For an instant, the world spun. I gasped for breath as if it had been punched in my chest."Ethan," my mom said calmly, steady as always. "Hey. Breathe."Her hands were already on my shoulders, grounding me. Firm, with a gentle touch. She squeezed once, twice, her thumbs deliciously digging into muscle as if she were planting me in the bed, in the moment.“It’s okay,” she said. “Everything’s fineBut it wasn't,nothing was okay.My mind was racing ahead of myself, spinning out in streaks ahead of the pace I could control.Aaron was here.In Texas.In this house.How?Why?What could he possibly wantThe questions piled on top of each other until they blurred, until they were only a murmur, o
Sandra's POVI closed the door quietly behind me, the sound echoing more than I wanted it to, like it might betray me. Like someone might know that just then, I was standing outside, right in front of a boy who was burdened with the entire world on his back.I continued to move inside the house, making an effort to relax my shoulders, to smile instead of frown. “Hey,” I said, shrugging, letting them see I could smile, I could“He must’ve missed his bus stop!” I shouted out into the hallway, pitching my voice lightly as I began to move towards the kitchen. “Three streets over. These delivery guys never read the addresses right!”I released a laugh, a small one, and wiped my slick palms on my jeans, hoping my husband wouldn’t take a close look at me. That he wouldn’t see how much my palms were shaking.“That happens,” he said distractedly from the living room, thank goodness. “Did he take the package back?”“Yes,” I said hastily. “All sorted.”I didn’t wait for further questions. I tu







