All Chapters of The Heiress's Choice : Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

Damien's POV The rumors had spread through Sterling faster than I expected.By the time I sat down at my desk the next morning, I’d already overheard three different conversations, my name and Elena’s spoken in lowered voices in the hallway."Mr. Blackwell, did you see the internal memo about the…""Later," I said, cutting off my colleague without looking up from my laptop.She hesitated at my door for a second, then left quietly.I sat there, staring at the screen, the words blurring together. The board had made their position clear yesterday, if I stayed, Elena's probation would be under constant scrutiny.They'd extend it, question every decision she made, use this against her at every turn.Catherine would make sure of it.I couldn’t let that happen. I wouldn’t forgive myself if I became the reason she lost everything she’d worked for.Leaving was the right thing to do. The only thing to do.But I wasn't going to tell her yet, not before this weekend.I wanted to give her one la

Elena's POV The bathtub was big enough for two, filled almost to the rim with steaming water and an excessive amount of bubbles.I was stretched out between Damien's legs, my back resting against his chest while the warm water lapped lazily at my shoulders.Candlelight flickered across the bathroom walls, and somewhere behind us soft music played from his phone. Our wine glasses sat balanced on the edge of the tub, half empty and forgotten.This felt perfect, intimate and comfortable.The warm water loosened every tight muscle in my body, and I just sat there in the tub completely content."You're hogging all the bubbles."I laughed, leaning back against him."There are literally bubbles everywhere," I said, gesturing at the mountain of foam surrounding us."Still," he said, his fingers trailing through the bubbles on my skin, "you're hogging them.”His fingers traced over my shoulder as he spoke, drawing lazy lines through the foam and sending little ripples across the water. I lea

Elena's POV "Elena, I'm sorry, please just let me explain."I stared at the message on my phone screen, Damien's name glowing at the top of a long thread that had been going on since yesterday.I shoved the phone back into my bag.I'd been ignoring him since I walked out of that hotel room, and it still stung every time his name lit up on my screen.When I got back home yesterday, all I did was lie on my couch, binge watch sad movies and eat ice cream straight from the container until I felt sick.Now it was Monday morning, and I was sitting at my desk pretending to work.My laptop was open in front of me, documents spread out everywhere, spreadsheets and reports and emails that all needed attention.I was typing, my fingers moving across the keyboard, but I wasn't processing any of it.The words all blurred together, meaningless.I tried to focus, tried to pull myself back into work mode, but my mind kept drifting back to the weekend.Everything had felt so romantic, so perfect…Now

Elena's pov He stared at me like he couldn't quite believe I was standing there."Elena?"I stood there in the middle of the terminal, staring at him. My heart was pounding so hard I could feel it in my throat.For a second, neither of us moved. We just stared at each other across the crowd.Then he started walking toward me slowly, weaving through travelers, his expression shifting from shock to something like hope.When he reached me, he stopped a few feet away, like he wasn't sure if he was allowed to come any closer."I didn't think you'd come," he said quietly.I didn't smile or soften my expression. I was still mad at him."I didn't come to stop you from going," I blurted.His face fell slightly, the hope fading from his eyes."Oh."For a moment, I almost felt bad. But I shook it off."I came because I needed to say something," I continued, my voice steady, "And… to also hear what you had to say."He nodded quickly."Okay, yeah, of course."I blinked at him, waiting. He took a

Elena's POV *Two weeks later*Time had a way of smoothing things out.The last two weeks passed so quickly I barely had time to register it all.Work had taken over again, and had my full undivided attention.And I let it. It was easier that way.I hadn’t seen Jenna or Claire in a while, since I got back from my holiday trip. Jenna had been buried in some massive campaign project, and Claire was constantly out of town for work.So when we finally managed to align our schedules, it was long overdue.“Look who finally decided to show up,” Claire said as I slid into the booth, her tone dry but her smile gave her away.“Please,” I said, setting my bag down, “you’re the one that’s been impossible to pin down.”“I travel for work,” she said, lifting her glass. “Some of us have real jobs.”Jenna laughed. “And some of us are just dramatic.”We were at our usual spot, a cozy Italian place with dim lighting and wine that came in bottles instead of glasses. It had been weeks since the three of