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Chapter Six
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2026-04-19 03:41:00The boardroom empties slowly, voices dissolving into the hallway, chairs scraping softly against
polished floors. I gather my files with careful precision, anything to keep my hands busy. Anything to keep from looking at him again. I need to get out of here. Now. “Miss Kingsley. ” My boss’s voice cuts through my thoughts. “Walk Mr. Sterling out, will you?” I hesitate. “Sir, I actually have— ” The look he gives me ends the sentence before it forms properly. “ …Yes, sir. ” I turn. And he’s already watching me. Alexander Sterling. Up close, his gaze is worse. Sharper. More real. The same eyes—but older now. Colder. Or maybe just better at hiding what sits underneath them. I gesture toward the door. “This way. ” Professional. Controlled. He falls into step beside me. Silence at first. Not empty silence. The kind that fills space too well. The suffocating type I make sure to keep a distance. Like strangers We are not strangers. We pass through the glass corridor. Reflections stretch beside us—we pass by my colleagues, their stares follow us. Well, more of him. The women look at him starry eyed. I fix my gaze forward. Do not look at him. “Impressive presentation, Sia. ” I stop. Not fully. Not dramatically. Just enough that my body betrays me before my mind catches up. My fingers tighten around the file. Sia. The name doesn’t belong in this version of my life. It drags something up anyway. A flash—too quick to hold. Younger hands. A laugh I don’t recognize anymore. Running. My breath shifts slightly. I correct it immediately. It’s gone. “I’m glad you found it impressive, ” I say, tone even. Too even. A low chuckle slips from him. “Still stubborn. ” I turn my head this time, offended. “Excuse me?” “Sweetheart, ” he says casually, like he hasn’t just reached into a locked drawer in my head, “you’re still as stubborn as a bull. Some things really don’t change. ” My jaw tightens. “You don’t know me well enough to say that. ” His gaze doesn’t move. “Don’t I?” He doesn’t push it further. He doesn’t need to. The question sits there instead, like something unfinished between us. We reach the elevator. I press the button. Once. Then keep my hand there a second too long, as if I can will it to arrive faster. It doesn’t. The silence resumes. But now it feels narrower. Tighter. I become aware of small things I didn’t ask to notice—the soft sound of his watch when he shifts his wrist, the faint scent that doesn’t belong in a boardroom, the fact that he is not looking at me but still feel ch s fully aware of me. “How about lunch? My treat. ” “That won’t be necessary, Mr. Sterling. ” “I’ll order cheesecake. ” That lands wrong. Not because of what it is—but because of how certain he sounds. My fingers still. “That’s irrelevant. ” “It’s your favourite. ” This time, something slips. Just a fraction. My eyes flicker before I can stop them. His do too. Like he caught it. Like he was waiting for it. The elevator takes too long. Way too long. “Besides… ” He steps closer. Not suddenly. Not aggressively. Just enough that the air between us changes temperature. “ …I thought we were past pretending. ” My throat tightens slightly. He is too close now. He towers over me even in my 4 inch heels. His scent envelopes me like a cocoon. He’s so close, I can see every pore on his skin. The way his lashes sweep across his face anytime he blinks and those mesmerizing eyes. I should step back. I don’t. For a moment, neither of us moves. Not him. Not me. Just suspended silence. He steps away just as the elevator dings open. Air rushes in like a correction. Like reality returning. “I look forward to doing business with you, Miss Kingsley, ” he says smoothly. Formal again. Perfect again. As if nothing in the last few seconds existed. He walks out. Two men in black suits fall into step behind him. Bodyguards. Of course. I watch him go. My grip on the file only loosens when he’s fully gone. The elevator doors slide shut. Quiet returns. But it doesn’t feel empty. His scent still stays behind. I exhale slowly. Once. And only one thought refuses to leave my head. Sia. That infuriating bastard
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