Tous les chapitres de : Chapitre 1 - Chapitre 10

AMELIA Standing in the office, in front of my desk like they had every right to be there were the last two people I wanted to see in my workplace. My sister, well my half sister and my father. My brows pulled together into a frown. "What are you doing here?" My father sighed like I had personally disappointed him. "That," he began calmly, "is no way to greet your father." I leaned back in my chair, crossing my arms. My annoyance didn’t even try to hide. Beside him, Raven lifted her hand in a small, cheerful wave with a smug look her face. "Hi big sister," she said lightly."Won’t you at least offer us seats?" I narrowed my eyes at her. Was she trying to be annoying or was this just her natural state of being? Either way, I wasn’t just in the mood. I ignored her as my gaze returned to my father. "I’ll ask again. What are the both of you doing in my workplace?" "We just finished a meeting with an investor nearby," he said. "I decided to stop by and check on you."

I pulled into Mom's driveway. Today had been... a lot. The boardroom disaster, Adrian Langford and his infuriatingly calm criticism. And my father and half sister showing up uninvited. I grabbed the pastry box from the passenger seat and stepped out of the car. The evening air was cool, brushing against my skin as I walked up the short path and knocked once before pushing the door open. "Mom?" "I'm in the kitchen!" she called out. I barely made it three steps inside before she appeared in the hallway wiping her hands on a dish towel and before I could brace myself, I was wrapped in a warm hug. "It’s been a while," she said, squeezing me tight. I hugged her back, though a small smile tugged at my lips. "It’s been a week, Mom." "That is a while," she insisted. I pulled back and handed her the pastry box. "I brought your favorites." Her face lit up immediately. "See? This is why you’re my favorite child." I laughed, rolling my eyes, already walking toward the living

AMELIA The past two days had been nothing but revisions. Every time I thought the proposal was perfect, something in my head would itch, a strategy that could be tighter, a visual that could hit harder. So I kept tweaking, adjusting and refining. Because if there was one thing I refused to do, it was present anything that looked half-baked in front of Adrian Langford. Not happening. I wanted him to look at my work and realize that calling my work "lazy" was the biggest mistake of his professional life. Which was exactly why I was now standing in Mr. Hillary’s office. He leaned back in his chair, his glasses low on his nose as he scrolled through the proposal on the tablet I had handed him. The office was quiet except for the soft swiping sound of his fingers against the screen. Finally, he nodded slowly. "This looks promising, Amelia." Promising was good. "I made some adjustments to the positioning strategy," I said evenly. "And strengthened the campaign rollout ti

Monday morning came faster than I would have liked. Apparently, today was the official kickoff for the advertisement planning, which meant long hours and by 9:30 am, I was already at the designated location with Mr. Hillary and part of our team. The air carried that familiar project buzz, assistants moving around with tablets, production staff checking angles, someone arguing quietly about lighting in the corner. Work mode activated. Exactly where I function best. I spotted Adrian the moment he arrived with his people. He moved through the space with that same controlled authority and calm expression. Two days ago in the lounge, he had stared at me like he was trying to solve a puzzle. Today? Nothing. Completely normal and professional. I straightened slightly where I stood, mentally brushing off the memory of Friday night. I was not about to act weird because of one look in a lounge. Adrian exchanged pleasantries with Mr. Hillary first with firm handshake and quiet words

I folded my arms and looked at him. "But why is it me?" The question left my mouth before I could stop it. Maybe it was curiosity. Maybe it was annoyance or the feeling that had been sitting in my chest since he said the words fake relationship like it was a normal business proposal. He didn’t answer immediately. He was just watching me again. I just noticed that he had this habit of doing that, looking at me like he was trying to read me or something. Finally he said calmly, "I already told you." "I want a clearer answer," I said. His lips twitched a bit, almost like he found my stubbornness amusing. "Again.. you’re fierce," he said simply. "Strong-willed. Stubborn." I frowned and shook my head. He leaned back in his chair, his fingers loosely resting on the armrest. "I don’t want someone who would make it look fake." His eyes stayed on mine. "Most people would." Something about the way he said it made my stomach tighten a little. I met his gaze for a moment longer