The doors bounce back open with a mechanical whoosh.No. No, please, not now.Adrian Knight stands there.For a second, we just stare at each other. Him in his perfect charcoal suit, expression unreadable. Me with my composure hanging by a thread, that three paycheck dress feeling like the most expensive mistake I’ve ever made.Of all the people who could have followed me. Ryan’s boss. The man whose cold voice agreed these events require polish.“Ms. Bennett.” His voice is low. Controlled. Nothing like the cold authority I heard earlier.I press back against the elevator wall, trapped. Every instinct screams at me to say something, apologize maybe, but my throat has closed up entirely.He steps inside.The doors slide shut behind him.We’re alone in this small metal box, and I can feel the breakdown coming. My hands shake. I clasp them together, pressing them against my stomach, willing myself to hold on just a little longer.“I’m sorry,” I manage. The words come out rough, scraped ra
Last Updated : 2026-02-14 Read more