The Choice

~SERENA POV~

The sound of the glass doors shutting behind us in the underground parking lot felt like a grave closing.

We didn't say anything as Cassian led the way to the private lift.

The apartment building was very quiet, the silence only interrupted by the quick, nonstop tap of my shoes on the smooth tiled floor and the quiet, ding sound as the doors opened.

Cassian stepped aside, holding the door open for me.

He stood straight, and his face was impossible to read in the soft, warm light above. Nothing about him felt seductive....if anything, he was treating this like another business meeting.

The elevator went up quickly and quietly.

It reached thirty floors in thirty seconds.

Where every breath felt heavy, every second seemed to last a long time with a painful, unseen buzzing sound.

When the doors opened into the penthouse entrance, Cassian stepped forward, entered a code on the brass lock, and pushed the door open.

"Come in."

I stepped over the doorway, my heart pounding hard in my chest.

I had expected a billionaire's bachelor's home to be a large show of money meant to wow, maybe comfy leather couches, dim lights, and a big bar ready for hosting women.

Instead, the penthouse stood out because of its plainness.

The high ceilings and large glass windows looked out over the bright city light, but the inside was very simple.

There were clean white oak floors, a dark grey fireplace that was not lit, one deep grey sofa, and shelves filled with books and two work computers.

There were no family photos on the walls, and nothing was out of place to show that a woman had ever been there.

It wasn't a playboy's home. It was too neat, tidy, and very lonely.

I paused near the center of the living area, my hands squeezing my purse like a shield. "I thought..."

Cassian paused as he walked toward the kitchen island, adjusting his cuffs. He looked over his shoulder. "Thought what?"

"Never mind," I murmured, lowering my gaze.

His eyes narrowed a little as he noticed me change my position. "That I'd have women lining the hallway?"

I kept my mouth shut, the silence serving as my answer.

Cassian turned and placed one hand on the edge of the island. A slight, serious smile appeared at the corner of his lips but quickly faded away.

"You'd be surprised."

He didn't explain further. He opened a dark wooden cabinet, took out a glass, and grabbed a bottle of dark amber liquid. He paused with his hand on the stopper, looking up at me.

"Whiskey?"

I swallowed, the back of my throat raw and dry from the cold rain and suppressed tears. I shook my head softly.

Cassian set the glass down, unopened.

He opened a lower stainless-steel refrigerator, poured a cold glass of still water, and walked across the room to hand it to me.

He didn't touch my fingers when I took it. He kept a careful inch of space between us.

"Thank you," I whispered, taking a small sip. The cool liquid did little to ease the tightness in my chest.

Cassian leaned back against the edge of a tall console table, crossing his arms over his broad chest. His pitch-black eyes held mine, dark and steady.

I held the cold glass in both hands, staring down at the swirling water before raising my eyes to meet his. The question had been burning in my throat since the moment he tossed that envelope onto the glass table at the Carlton.

"Have you done this before?" I asked softly.

He knew I didn't mean business. He knew I didn't mean revenge.

Cassian's dark gaze didn't sway. "No."

The word was clear and unquestionable, falling into the silence between us like a stone sinking into deep water.

"Why me?" I pressed, my voice trembling slightly. "Why help me?"

Cassian stared at me for a long, silent moment. The city's sound through the strong glass was the only noise in the big room.

He didn't offer a sweet lie or a manipulative promise.

Instead, he pushed off the table, standing at his full height.

"You can still leave, Serena," He spoke softly, without any urgency in his voice. "The door isn't locked. You walk out now, and there are no consequences. No debts owed to me."

He was giving me an exit.

A clean, clear way out before the line was crossed.

The silence lasted a long time. My chest felt tight as five years of silence, feeling ignored, and telling myself I was happy finally broke free.

"He called me a dead fish," I whispered into the quiet room.

Cassian stood completely still, listening with such focus that it made my skin tingle.

"It was our third anniversary," I continued, a single hot tear finally spilling over my lash line and tracing a line down my cheek. "I bought red silk sheets. I put rose petals on the floor. I waited three hours in a lace gown I spent half my monthly budget on. When he finally came home at midnight, he looked at me, took a business call, and went to sleep on the sofa."

My voice broke, the memory cutting through me as strong as the day it happened.

"Every time we were together, it was three minutes. He told me I was too stiff. He said I didn't know how to be a woman. Yesterday... yesterday I heard him laughing on the phone with her, telling her I was broken. That I was dead inside."

I wiped my cheek violently with the back of my hand, my body shaking with accumulated shame. I swallowed hard, forcing the final, humiliating confession past my lips.

"I've never..." I choked on the words, unable to finish.

Cassian didn't interrupt. He stood letting the silence hold the weight of my pain without judgment or pity.

"I've never had an orgasm," I admitted, my voice dropping to a raw, barely audible whisper. "Not once. In five years."

I stood there, exposed and trembling, waiting for the mockery or the pity I had grown to expect from the world.

Cassian simply stood there, his dark eyes burning with a deep, silent fire that seemed to consume the cold air in the room.

I set the water glass down on the side table with a dull clink. I took three slow steps across the dark floor, stopping right in front of him.

I looked up into his handsome, carved face, my breathing rough.

"Am I really broken, Cassian?"

"No," Cassian said flatly.

He didn't hesitate. His answer was immediate, dark, and final.

I reached out, my trembling hands coming up to grasp the lapels of his black suit jacket. I pulled myself up on my tiptoes and pressed my lips to his.

The kiss was mine.

I initiated it...clumsy, desperate, and loaded with the forceful need to erase the ghost of every touch that had ever made me feel small.

Cassian let me kiss him for two full seconds before his hands came up, catching my wrists and gently, firmly pulling my face back an inch from his.

His dark eyes looked into mine, strong and firm.

"If this is about revenge against Liam," Cassian growled softly, his voice a low vibration in the quiet room, "don't do it."

I stared straight into his eyes, refusing to look away. "It's not about him anymore. It's about finally choosing myself."

Cassian held my gaze, his grip on my wrists tightening slightly. "Tomorrow, when the sun comes up... will you regret this?"

"No," I answered instantly.

He looked down at me, his jaw tightening as if fighting a final battle within himself. "Last chance, Serena. Walk out that door."

I didn't move an inch. I stepped closer, pressing my chest against his.

"Kiss me."