CHAPTER ELEVEN: SWEET

Evan’s POV;There was flour in my hair.Not the cute type like there’s a little flour on my cheek. I mean, it looked like a whole bag exploded on top of me. Courtesy Hailey Wang.“That’s what you get for trying to smack me with a spatula,” she said sweetly, licking cookie dough off her finger before she continued to ridiculously sing which honestly might’ve been louder than the mixer whirring on low.I dropped my forehead to the counter. I only tried to smack her with a spatula because she wouldn’t stop singing “I kissed my boss….. and I liked itttt🎶”“Please shut up.”“Why?” Hailey chirped. “I’m just providing the soundtrack.”“I should never have told you anything,” I groaned, squinting up at her through the cloud of flour. “You're never going to shut up about it.”“Absolutely,” she said, grinning like an evil godmother. “Plus you smile whenever I bring it up. Like a lovesick Victorian heroine who just got her first letter from an outcast.”I pressed the back of my hand to my chee

Last Updated : 2025-08-06

CHAPTER TWELVE: EMOTIONALLY CONSTIPATED

Evan’s POV;I don’t know what I expected, honestly. Maybe a glance or a smile thrown my way. Maybe a secret little signal between us. Something, anything!But when I got to work that morning, Blake Thatcher might as well have been a stranger again.He was already in the conference room when I walked in, flipping through a thick file of documents like we hadn’t kissed each other breathless in a blackout just days ago. Like he hadn’t looked at me like I was something fragile and extremely important. Like he had not looked me in the eyes to say he liked me.And me…..?I stood there like an idiot with my chest full of fireworks and a tupperware of cookies I brought from last night’s baking show.“Morning,” I managed to say, mostly to the room. Not to him specifically.Duh….Definitely not to Quin either, she gave me a stink eye the moment I stepped into the room.“Morning,” Dennis replied without looking up and I smiled.Blake? Nothing. Not even a nod.I took my seat at the table nex

Last Updated : 2025-08-07

CHAPTER THIRTEEN: STILETTOS

Evan’s POV;There were only thirty minutes left in the workday.Not that I was counting.Okay, I was counting. I wanted the day to end so I could meet up with Blake. He had looked at me three separate times since lunch with something soft in his expression, a look that wasn’t entirely work-appropriate. We were texting with teasing softness and girlllll, I could not count the amount of times I blushed.His occasional soft smiles(which were not physically directed at me but I knew were meant for me) made me think he might pull me aside again if Dennis stepped out. Quin was only popping in and out to see if we had any problems with the system. So that’s one down.I can’t believe that I was counting down like a middle schooler waiting for recess.I was mid email, trying to explain the mistake in the ledger to our client’s accountant, when the sound of heels clicking across the tile made me glance up.Red stilettos.I could see the legs that ran for days, long and smooth in expensive loo

Last Updated : 2025-08-07

CHAPTER FOURTEEN: SHELLY

Evan’s POV;The three words wouldn’t leave my head.We need to talk.The words looped in my mind until my pulse thudded in my ears, my stomach flipped.Not butterflies. More like lead bricks.I stared at those words for what felt like forever before I finally typed back:Me: Where?His reply came faster than I expected: There’s a small diner two blocks down from the office. Ten minutes?I gulped and my hands were shaking as I typed back.Okay. I’ll meet you there.The diner was warm, cozy, and smelled faintly of espresso beans and pasta sauce. I picked a corner booth with two mismatched chairs, sat down, and immediately regretted not bringing water because my throat was desert dry.I ordered a matcha latte to calm down.It’s my go-to, don’t judge. I looked around the diner, it wasn’t fancy, it had brick walls, and a warm lighting.I downed the first drink and ordered another one.And then another, because every time I checked my phone, every time I saw that Blake still wasn’t here, m

Last Updated : 2025-08-23

CHAPTER FIFTEEN: THE END?

Evan’s POV;I couldn’t believe my ears.She’s my fiancée.It didn’t matter that his voice had been soft, or that his expression carried weight and regret. The words still cut through me in a sharp and merciless manner.Fiancée.The air around us suddenly felt colder as though the city had taken a step back to watch this unfold.Somewhere deep down, maybe I had expected it. A part of me had braced for the worst when that woman walked in.But hearing it out loud… I laughed, I couldn’t help it. A bitter and broken laughter short enough to feel like a dry cough.“Fiancée,” I repeated, tasting the word in my mouth, spitting it out like something sour. “You’re engaged to the beautiful woman that walked into the office today?”Blake’s jaw tightened, but his gaze didn’t leave mine. He didn’t flinch.“Yes,” he said, voice low. I swallowed, hard. My throat burned.The situation had intensified, the tightness in my chest felt like it wanted to crush me.“You kissed me,” I said, my voice trembl

Last Updated : 2025-08-24

CHAPTER SIXTEEN: FOR US

Evan’s POV;The silence sat between us like an iron wall, pressing down on my chest until it hurt to breathe.I’d asked him the question but even as the words left me, I wasn’t sure I wanted the answer. Everything was a mess.Blake’s lips parted, he didn’t hesitate as he said, “No,” he said firmly, almost desperately.“I don’t want to end this. I can’t.”The conviction in his voice startled me. For a second, it pushed back against the heaviness in my chest, creating a fragile space for hope. But that hope was thin, trembling.“Then what?” I asked quietly, my voice hoarse. “Because I’m not going to be your secret. I can’t sneak around while you play someone else’s perfect fiancé. I won’t do it, Blake.”His jaw clenched. He looked down, exhaled hard, then brought his gaze back to me, raw and unflinching. “You won’t be my secret. I promise you that, Evan. I just… I need to untangle this mess. And I will. Quickly. I can’t pretend with her anymore. I don’t love her, not the way she deser

Last Updated : 2025-08-25