chapter seven

By the time Bella reached Rachel’s apartment, her body felt like it was running on fumes alone.

 

Rachel lived on the third floor of an old building, the kind with narrow stairs and chipped railings. Bella climbed them slowly, her legs weak, every step echoing the humiliation she hadn’t been able to shake since the elevator doors at Dreven Industries had closed behind her.

 

Rachel opened the door before Bella could knock.

 

“Oh my God,” Rachel breathed. “Bella.”

 

That was all it took.

 

Bella stepped inside and collapsed into her arms.

 

The anger she’d been holding together unravelled, spilling out in broken gasps. Rachel held her tightly, murmuring soft reassurances, guiding her to the couch like she had done a hundred times before in their friendship.

 

“Sit,” Rachel said gently. “Just sit. You’re shaking.”

 

Bella dropped onto the couch, her hands clenched together so tightly her fingers ached.

 

Rachel disappeared into the kitchen and returned with a glass of water. “Drink this.”

 

Bella took it, barely tasting anything as she swallowed. Her chest still felt tight, compressed, like there wasn’t enough air in the room.

 

“What happened?” Rachel asked quietly, sitting beside her. “You said you were meeting the CEO today. Did something go wrong?”

 

Bella laughed bitterly. “Everything went wrong.”

 

Rachel frowned. “Bella…”

 

“It was him,” Bella said.

 

Rachel blinked. “Who?”

 

Bella turned to her, eyes bloodshot and burning. “The man. From the hotel. The one I woke up with.”

 

Rachel’s mouth fell open.

 

“What?”

 

“The CEO,” Bella said flatly. “Darian. He’s the same man.”

 

For a moment, Rachel just stared at her, trying to process it. “Wait. No. That doesn’t.. Are you sure?”

 

“I would know his face anywhere,” Bella said. “I saw him and everything came back at once. The room. The voice. The way he looked at me that morning.”

 

Rachel shook her head slowly. “Bella… oh my God.”

 

Bella leaned back against the couch, staring at the ceiling. “I didn’t even know his name until today. I didn’t plan it. I didn’t even remember that night until I saw him standing behind that desk.”

 

Rachel pressed a hand to her mouth. “That’s insane.”

 

“It gets worse,” Bella said.

 

Rachel turned fully toward her. “Tell me.”

 

So Bella did.

 

She told her everything.

 

About the office. About the way Darian’s expression had changed the moment he recognized her. About the way his voice had turned cold, sharp, like he’d already judged her and found her wanting.

 

She told her how he accused her of showing up on purpose. How he said she had no right to be there. How he looked at her like she was something dirty that had somehow made its way into his pristine world.

 

Rachel listened silently, her face growing paler with every word.

 

“He called you what?” she whispered when Bella repeated the word.

 

Bella’s throat tightened. “A whore.”

 

Rachel swore under her breath. “That’s… that’s unacceptable.”

 

“I tried to leave,” Bella said. “I swear I did. But I couldn’t. Not again. Not like that.”

 

Rachel nodded slowly. “So you argued.”

 

“Yes,” Bella said. “I told him I earned the job. That HR hired me. That whatever he thought about me had nothing to do with my work.”

 

“And?” Rachel prompted.

 

“And he didn’t care,” Bella said. “He said I was a liability. A mistake.”

 

Rachel shook her head. “Bella, that’s abuse of power.”

 

“I told him that,” Bella said. “I told him this was a workplace, not his personal courtroom.”

 

Rachel’s eyes widened slightly. “You actually said that?”

 

Bella gave a humorless smile. “I think that’s when he decided I’d crossed a line.”

 

She described the button on his desk. The word security. The sound of footsteps outside the door.

 

Rachel sucked in a sharp breath. “He had you escorted out?”

 

“Like I was trespassing,” Bella said quietly. “Like I didn’t belong anywhere near him.”

 

Rachel’s hands curled into fists. “That man is sick.”

 

Bella closed her eyes. “The worst part wasn’t even that.”

 

Rachel leaned closer. “What was it?”

 

“The way he looked at me when I left,” Bella said. “Not angry. Not satisfied. Just… watching. Like this wasn’t over for him.”

 

A chill crept down Rachel’s spine. “That’s unsettling.”

 

Bella opened her eyes. “I’m done, Rachel.”

 

“With what?”

 

“With begging,” Bella said firmly. “With explaining myself to men who already think the worst of me. Trying to prove my worth to people who benefit from tearing me down.”

 

Rachel nodded. “Good.”

 

“I won’t go back there,” Bella continued. “I don’t care how badly I need the money. I won’t put myself under his control.”

 

Rachel hesitated. “Even if HR intervenes?”

 

Bella looked at her sharply. “Why would they?”

 

Rachel shrugged. “Companies don’t like legal trouble. If he crossed a line”

 

“I don’t want it,” Bella said. “I won’t give him the satisfaction.”

 

Rachel studied her for a moment. “You’re stronger than you think.”

 

Bella didn’t answer.

 

Instead she sank back onto the couch, exhaustion finally catching up to her. “I feel stupid,” she whispered.

 

“For thinking I could start over. For believing the job was mine because I worked for it.”

 

“You did work for it,” Rachel said firmly. “One man doesn’t get to rewrite reality because of his ego.”

Bella laughed quietly, humorless. “He already did.”

 

 

Rachel hesitated, then asked, “Do you regret that night?”

 

Bella’s answer came instantly. “Yes.”

 

Rachel looked at her in surprise.

 

“I regret trusting the wrong people,” Bella continued, shaking her head.

 

 

Rachel nodded slowly, impressed by the clarity beneath the pain.

 

They sat together as the evening crept in, the city lights flickering on outside the window. Rachel offered food.

 

Bella barely touched it. Eventually, Rachel brought her a blanket and gestured toward the couch.

 

While Bella laid down, staring at the ceiling as Rachel moved around the apartment, her presence grounding even without words.

 

 

“I won’t beg,” Bella said suddenly.

 

Rachel paused. “For what?”

 

“For anything,” Bella said. “Not for him. Not for that job. Not for anyone who thinks they can decide my worth.”

 

 

Rachel smiled, something unreadable passing through her eyes. “That’s a promise you should keep.”

 

 

Later, when Rachel finally went to bed, Bella remained awake on the couch, the room quiet except for the low hum of the ceiling fan.

 

Her body was tired but her mind was not.

Darian’s face surfaced again, as if today hadn’t been an ending at all.

 

 

As if it had been the beginning of something she hadn’t agreed to yet.

 

Bella pulled the blanket tighter around herself, a knot settling deep in her chest.

 

She didn’t know what he wanted.

 

But she knew one thing with terrifying certainty that he wasn’t done with her.