FALLING FOR MR SNOWFLAKE のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 11 - チャプター 20

LILYThe morning was supposed to be ordinary. My desk was already stacked with files Henry had neatly organized before his sick day and the coffee machine had hissed itself to exhaustion. I tucked my hair back.Then came the envelope.It wasn’t even handed to me directly. A courier dropped a stack of papers for Mr. Ryland’s review and Henry, asked me to sort them. Most of it was contracts and reports, all neat signatures at the bottom: Jake Ryland.But my fingers froze on the last sheet.The signature. The shape of the J. It was too familiar.My mind dragged me back to Aspenridge, to snow-crusted gloves and a letter I had folded and tucked into a box under my bed. The one signed simply, – J.I laughed at myself, quietly, because what were the odds? A coincidence, surely. Lots of people wrote J that way. Except… my pulse quickened as if it knew better.I slipped the paper into my bag at lunch, telling myself I only wanted to compare. For curiosity’s sake. Not because my heart had been wai

LILYI didn’t taste a single bite.Somewhere between the quiet restaurant and the walk back to the building, the city folded into background noise. I kept replaying the lunch in loops, pausing on the moments where his mask slipped and I saw the man I’d steadied on the slope. It wasn’t the words themselves that pinned me open. It was the way he said them careful, almost afraid to push too hard.I don’t want Aspenridge to be the only time I get to be Jake - with you.That line sits in me like a small, warm ember. Not enough to blaze, but impossible to forget.Back at my desk, the bottom drawer tugged at my attention. I didn’t open it.The magazines Henry had dumped there were heavy as bricks; I could feel the weight of all those versions of him stacked on glossy paper, strangers declaring who Jake Ryland is and what he should want.It was all so loud. The man I’d just eaten lunch with had spoken in low tones, choosing each word like it cost him something.I shut down my computer at six and

LILYThe office was quiet. Past midnight, the city outside had dulled to a low hum, leaving only the buzz of fluorescent lights and the shuffle of papers across Jake Ryland’s desk. I rubbed at my eyes, forcing myself to focus on the last few reports.Henry would normally have handled half of this, it had been me by Jake’s side the entire day and now the entire night.“Call it.” Jake said suddenly, breaking the silence. His voice was calm, low, but I could hear the fatigue under it. “We’ll pick it up tomorrow.”I blinked, surprised. “But the numbers...”“Tomorrow,” he repeated. Firm and unwavering.I hesitated, then nodded, gathering my things. I didn’t realize how heavy my body felt until I stood, the weight of exhaustion nearly pulling me back down.The elevators were empty, their mirrored walls reflecting the two of us ,me clutching my bag, his tie loosened, jacket folded over his arm. Outside, the night air hit cold against my cheeks. I reached for my phone, checking ride apps, but

JAKETwo weeks.It had been two weeks since that night in Lily Carter’s apartment, since her text had pulled me into a space that had felt more dangerous than any boardroom negotiation I’d ever faced. And yet, the danger hadn’t come from her words or her drink or even the easy warmth of her apartment.It had come from the fact that I had almost kissed her.Almost.That word echoed in my head every time she walked into my office, every time her voice cut through the endless drone of meetings. She’d offered me hot chocolate, the same drink that had once made me forget who I was back in Aspenridge. That night, the way her eyes had held mine across the narrow distance between us, I’d wanted it so bad.And then I’d left.Now, every day at the office felt like walking a tightrope strung too high to risk a single misstep.She carried herself the same as always professional, composed, efficient. She handled Henry’s absence without complaint, sliding into the role of my assistant with ease that i

LILY“I’m saying I want us to decide what this is before the world does it for us.”His words hung in the air, pressing into me with the weight of the unknown.I looked at him.The billionaire CEO who commanded rooms full of board members, who had the press eating from his palm. But also the man who had once stumbled on a pair of skis, cheeks flushed from cold and laughter.Both sides of him stood before me now, asking me for an answer.And God,I wanted to say yes.But reality wasn’t so easily brushed aside.“Jake…” My voice cracked, softer than I wanted it to be. “You don’t get to ask me to decide what this is just because the press is sniffing around. I can’t…” I swallowed, hating the sting in my chest. “I can’t be the answer to your crisis control.”His expression faltered, like I’d struck a chord too deep.“I’m not saying no,” I whispered, letting the words slide out with the truth. “I’m saying… not yet. Not like this. If we’re going to choose it, Jake, it has to be for us. Not because s