the billonaires secretary のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 11 - チャプター 20

The wine was good. The company and conversation even better. But something was off. Not in a glaring, obvious way—more like a subtle wind that occasionally blows your face constantly reminding you that it exists Michael was talking about a recent client pitch something about a disaster that turned into a win and I laughed at all the right places. I even smiled without forcing it. Because he was funny. He was sweet. And maybe I wanted this to be easier than it actually was. “You’ve been smiling more tonight,” he said, leaning across the table just slightly. His fingers were wrapped around his wineglass, knuckles strong, relaxed. “I like it.” I glanced down at my plate, then up at him. “You’re easy to smile at.” Michael grinned like that was the best thing he’d heard all day. And maybe it was. Maybe he deserved to hear nice things from someone who wasn’t carrying an emotional tornado in her chest. “So…” he leaned back, eyes twinkling, “Second date vibes?” I tilted my hea

I woke up on the cold floor. Well we woke up. Technically she did first Bianca. Last night wasnt supposed to happen . i shouldnt have let myself slip like that . it was a mistake, one that tasted like honey and burned like fire. I still remember how her lips felt on mine soft and needy, like she didn’t care about the consequences. And I matched her. God, I matched her. Until we ran out of breath or willpower maybe both and collapsed beside each other on the floor like fools . Just like that. she fell asleep as for me I lay there for an extra hour just to the sound of her breathing and occasional light snores. yes I know I sounded like an actual creep Eventually, I lifted her into my arms and carried her to her bed. She stirred, mumbled something sleepy and soft that made my throat ache, then rolled over and disappeared into the blankets. I didn’t join her. I closed the door, leaned against it for too long, and then went back to the couch. The space between us felt nece

I wasn’t ready for the noise. The moment I stepped through the glass doors of the office, I was attacked with a unified chorus, “Happy Birthday, Bianca!” Balloons bobbed from the ceiling, confetti littered the floor near the breakroom, and a modest chocolate cake waited on the table. A few coworkers smiled and waved, and Michael stood grinning proudly in the center of it all. His arms were already out in a stretch and I gave him a hug in front of everyone “Im guessing you had a hand in this” I whispered to him as we hugged, he just nodded with a knowing smile. It was sweet. Really. Probably one of the sweetest gestures ive had in a long time. But all I wanted was something small and quiet maybe a drink with a close friend, not people who probably didn't even know it was my birthday up until a couple of minutes before I walked into the office or who would forget before work hours were over. I smiled politely, thanking everyone, but inside I felt a little overwhelmed. From the

There’s a version of me the world sees. Tailored blazers, precise heels, deadlines met without so much as a sigh. That woman is steel wrapped elegance, unforgiving in the boardroom and unshaken under pressure. She runs a company. She signs contracts. She doesn’t blink at betrayal, doesn’t flinch when a man raises his voice, doesn’t beg when love dies. Then there’s the version only a few people have ever really seen. My brother. Dean. And maybe, just maybe, the girl I used to be before all this. I wasn’t born to be soft. I was born to survive. To lead. That kind of woman doesn’t get to make mistakes and cry about them. She learns to live with the choices she’s made even the ones that broke her. Dean was a choice. And so was letting him go. “You need to stop trying to carry everything, Evie.” My brother’s voice crackled through the speakerphone, lazy and concerned in equal measure. I was pacing my apartment, suitcase half-packed on the bed, heels scattered across the floor l

The apartment was too quiet.The kind of quiet that made your thoughts louder, heavier, and impossible to ignore.I sat cross-legged on the couch, laptop glowing dimly on the coffee table in front of me. I was supposed to be respinding to emails, doing my tax or maybe tackling the spreadsheet from hell that Dean had mentioned offhand last week.Instead, I was scrolling.Not productively. Not even mindlessly. just maybe with an intention The company’s official Instagram page had uploaded a few photos from the business trip, and one of them had caught my eye like and had basically slapped me across the face. it was the main oneDean and Evelyn.They weren’t doing anything inappropriate. It wasn’t even a particularly intimate photo. They were standing side by side, mid-laugh, Evelyn holding a glass of champagne and Dean looking just a little too relaxed.But something in the way his body leaned slightly toward hers how natural it looked, how perfect and easy they were . it felt like my