登入(Lena's POV)"We're going out."Elena looked up from the couch where she'd been sitting for the past hour staring at nothing. "I don't want to go out.""I don't care. You've been sitting in this flat for three days. You need air.""Lena—""I'm not asking. Get your shoes, we're leaving in five minutes."She opened her mouth to argue but I was already heading to the door. "Five minutes, Elena, or I'll drag you out in your pajamas if I have to."Ten minutes later we were in my car driving to a wine bar in Chelsea. It was a small and quiet place. No chance of running into reporters or people who'd ask questions.Elena hadn't said a word since getting in the car.We got a table in the back and I ordered two glasses of wine and some food even though I knew she probably wouldn't eat."You need to talk," I said when the wine arrived."There's nothing to talk about.""You've barely spoken in three days. There's plenty to talk about."She took a sip of wine, set the glass down and stared at it.
(Adrian's POV)I met Daniel at a quiet pub in Marylebone.He was already there when I arrived. Sitting in a corner booth, his drink in front of him but barely touched."Hey," I said, sitting on the empty chair."Hey."He looked terrible. Unshaven and exhausted."How's Elena?" he asked."Worried and angry.”"Is she eating? The baby—""She's eating. Lena's making sure of it."He nodded and took a sip of his beer."My lawyer says the interviews Janelle's doing are making things worse," he said. "Every time she cries on camera, public opinion swings further against me.""Can you sue her?""For defamation? Yes. But that takes time and money. And in the meantime my reputation is being destroyed.""What about evidence? Security footage? Emails?""There's nothing. Because nothing happened. But proving a negative is nearly impossible."I ordered a beer from the server who'd appeared and waited until she left before speaking again."You remember when Lena had amnesia?"Daniel looked up. "Of cou
(Elena's POV)I couldn't sleep.Daniel was in the guest room like I'd asked. The bed felt too big and empty without him. But I'd needed space and now I had it and all it did was give me room to think.I stared at the ceiling and traced the patterns in the darkness, trying to quiet my mind.But it wouldn't stop.Everything played on repeat in my head like a film I couldn't turn off.I didn't think he'd raped her. I knew Daniel and his character. I knew he wasn't capable of forcing himself on anyone.But the other things. The emotional things. Those I wasn't so sure about.Had he liked the attention? Had he enjoyed feeling needed by someone young and vulnerable? Had there been moments where he'd thought about it, even if he never acted on anything? The questions made my stomach hurt.I rolled onto my side and pulled his pillow closer. It still smelled like him.I'd told Lena I believed him. And I did. But belief and trust weren't the same thing.I believed he hadn't raped Janelle. But I
(Lena's POV)Charlotte was finishing her dinner when my phone lit up with a news alert.I almost ignored it. News alerts were usually things I didn't care about. Celebrity gossip, political drama. Nothing that affected my actual life.But something made me look.“BREAKING: Hart Industries CEO Daniel Hart Accused of Sexual Assault by intern.”My stomach plummeted.I clicked through and read the headline. I saw the squad intern’s photo and started reading the article."Adrian," I said, my voice trembling slightly. He was at the sink washing dishes."What?""Daniel's been accused of assault by his intern."He turned around. "What?"I handed him my phone and watched his face as he read."This is insane," he said. "Daniel wouldn't—""I know he wouldn't. But she's claiming he did."I was already calling Elena. It rang four times before she answered."Lena.""I just saw. Are you okay?""No." Her voice was shaky. "I'm not okay.""Where's Daniel?""Here. We just had a fight. A bad one.""We're
(Daniel's POV)After the meeting with my lawyer where he advised me on what to do, I hurried home. Elena was sitting on the couch in the living room. The lights were dim and she didn't get up when she saw me."Hey," I said.She didn't respond but looked at me with red eyes that told me she'd been crying for hours.I set my briefcase down and came to sit next to her. She shifted slightly away from me. My heart skipped a beat."My lawyer says we're going to fight this," I started. "He's already drafting a statement. We're going to sue for defamation. We're going to—""Did you sleep with her?"The question hit me like a punch. She sounded totally different from the person I spoke to earlier. "What? No. Elena, I told you—""I know what you told me. But I need to hear it again. Did you sleep with her?""No. I never touched her. Not once.""Did you want to?""No.""Did she try to? Did she make advances?"I hesitated, and that hesitation was my mistake.Elena's face changed. "She did. Didn'
(Daniel's POV)I was in my office trying to draft a contract for our newest client when my phone started buzzing.It was one call at first that I chose to ignore, then another.I ignored them and kept reading and editing. The terms needed to be finalized by the end of the day and I was already behind schedule.Then my desk phone rang. It was Jennifer calling.“Hello?” I answered, displeased by the interruption."Mr. Hart, your brother is on line two. He says it's urgent.""Tell him I'll call back.""He says it's really urgent. It's about an article."I groaned and dropped my laptop, then picked up. "Julian, I'm in the middle of—""Have you seen the Daily Mail?""No. Why would I be reading tabloids in the middle of the workday?""Daniel. Check it now."Something in his voice made me pull up the website on my laptop.The headline loaded and my mouth went open.“EXCLUSIVE: Hart Industries CEO Accused of Sexual Assault by Young Intern.”Below it was Janelle's photo. Her eyes were bloodsho
(Adrian's POV)Adrian arrived at Greystone Cafe fifteen minutes early. He'd rehearsed what to say at least a hundred times during the night, and had barely slept. Then he'd rehearsed again in the shower, while getting dressed, and even in the car on his way there. Yet, none of it had sounded right.
(Evelyn's POV)My hands were shaking so badly now as the papers rustled loudly. "This can't be real. This has to be fake.""I had my private investigator verify every single piece of information there. Court records pulled directly from the San Francisco County courthouse. Interviews conducted with
(Evelyn's POV)It's funny how the best people in our lives are mostly those we met in the most unlikely situations.Elena and I spent the rest of the night strategizing, sprawled across my living room floor with laptops, notebooks, and wine glasses that kept getting refilled."Okay, let's talk numb
(Evelyn's POV)I stood in front of an empty office building in Camden, keys in my hand. The building looked abandoned, with dusty windows and a worn interior. But above the door, a new sign had been mounted and it read: "BioGen Dynamics - Opening Soon."It still didn't feel real.A car pulled up be







