LOGINElena's POV ~•~ Breakfast had gone too well and that was the problem. I sat at my desk with the documents spread out in front of me but my mind kept pulling me back to the kitchen, to Vivienne pouring my coffee before I even reached the pot, to the way she asked about the counter-motion like she had been up thinking about it, to that smile she wore all through breakfast that never once slipped. People did not just become that settled overnight. Not without a reason. I pushed the documents aside and sat back in my chair. Outside the window the trees were still, and somewhere down the hall I could hear Liam talking, his voice carrying the way it always did when he was excited about something small. I picked up the folder on my desk, the one with the updated filing timeline, and stood up. Vivienne's door was slightly open when I got there. I knocked anyway. "Come in," she said. She was on the small couch with her legs tucked under her and her laptop open on her knees.
Damon POV~•~Something was off with Vivienne, and I felt it the moment I walked into the kitchen.She looked up when I came in, smiled at me, easy and brief, and then she went back to Liam.I poured my coffee and sat down.“Sleep okay?” she asked, not looking up from whatever Liam was showing her.“Yeah,” I said. “You?”“Mm,” she said, and turned back to Liam.Liam was telling her something about a boy at school, talking with his hands the way he always did when a story excited him, and Vivienne was listening with her chin in her hand.“But why did he cry after?” she asked him.“Because the teacher looked sad,” Liam said.“So he cried to make her feel better?”“No,” Liam said, “so she would stop being mad at him.”Vivienne looked at him for a moment. “Liam, that’s manipulation.”“What’s that?”“It’s when you use your feelings to get out of trouble instead of just telling the truth.”He thought about it with his fork halfway to his mouth. “Does it work?”“Sometimes,” she said. “But no
Vivienne POV~•~I woke up early.Earlier than Liam, earlier than the staff, earlier than whatever time Elena usually appeared in the kitchen looking effortlessly put together. I laid still for a few minutes staring at the ceiling and then I got up, went to the bathroom, and stood under the shower until the water ran lukewarm.I dried off and stood in front of the small mirror and looked at myself for a moment before I opened my bag and took out the soft green dress I had packed on impulse two weeks ago and never worn. I put it on. I let my hair down instead of pulling it back. I put on the small gold earrings I usually saved for work events.Then I went downstairs.The kitchen smelled like coffee and something warm from the oven. One of the staff had already set the table. I poured myself a cup and sat down and picked up my phone and started scrolling through my emails like I had not spent half the night sitting in the dark making quiet decisions about my own life.Elena came in abou
Vivienne POV~•~I forgot my phone.That was the only reason I turned back. I had already walked halfway down the hall, my mind still buzzing from the warmth of Damon's hand brushing mine on the desk, the weight of what almost happened between us in that study. I was almost at the stairs when I remembered. I had left my phone on the side table near the door.So I turned around.The study door was not fully closed so I heard voices before I reached it.Two low voices really close together.I slowed without deciding to slow down. My feet just stopped carrying me at the same pace, like some part of me already knew.I did not push the door. I just looked through the gap.Elena had both hands in his collar and her mouth was on his.Damon's hands were on her arms, not pulling her in, but not pushing her back either. Just resting there, like he had not decided yet what to do with them. Like the decision was somewhere in transit between his head and his body and had not arrived.I stood there
Vivienne POV~•~I closed the door to my room and leaned back against it, my heart still racing.Damon’s lips had felt warm and sure, soft but with that quiet insistence that made my stomach flip.Morning light slipped through the curtains so I got up before Liam stirred, splashed water on my face, and pulled on jeans and a simple sweater. When he woke, he yawned big and asked for breakfast right away.“Pancakes again?” I asked, helping him into his shirt.“With chocolate chips,” he said, grinning.We headed downstairs. The smell of coffee and fresh pastries hit me as soon as we stepped into the kitchen. Elena was already there, arranging a tray with sliced fruit and croissants. Her smile was bright, but her eyes looked tired, like she hadn’t slept much either.“Good morning,” she said, setting a plate down. “I thought we could all eat together.”Damon walked in a minute later, his hair still damp from a shower. He looked at me first, gave a small smile, and brushed his hand against m
Damon’s POV~•~I helped Vivienne gather the towels and her cover-up. That small touch sent another jolt through me, sharp and hungry.That kiss had cracked open a door I’d kept locked tight, and now I couldn’t pretend it wasn’t there. But Elena’s face at the upstairs window earlier still stuck in my head.I excused myself and headed to the study. I sat at the same spot from last night, and stared at the files scattered across the wood. I could still feel the softness of Vivienne’s lips and the way her hands gripped my shoulders, pulling me in like she needed it as much as I did. I poured a glass of water from the pitcher on the side table. The coolness did nothing for the heat still moving under my skin. As I opened my laptop, I pulled up the latest emails on the inheritance case, trying to focus. My eyes scanned the screen, but my mind kept drifting back to the two women who had somehow ended up filling every corner of my thoughts.The door opened without a knock only for Elena t







