All Chapters of One Night Stand With My Billionaire Boss : Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

(Ciara’s POV)I woke up earlier than my alarm again.It was becoming a habit I didn’t like, but couldn’t stop, like my body had decided sleep was optional whenever my mind refused to rest. I stared at the ceiling for a few seconds, listening to the quiet hum of the city outside my window, and then I finally sat up.Annie had left late last night after making sure I actually ate something proper instead of surviving on tea and denial, and her words were still sitting somewhere in the back of my mind like they had refused to leave with her.“You’re already involved.”I sighed softly and ran a hand through my hair.“No, I’m not,” I muttered again to no one.But even I didn’t sound convinced anymore.By the time I got to the office, I had already made up my mind.No distractions.No unnecessary thoughts.Just work.That was it.That had to be it.The moment I stepped into the building, I immediately felt it again.The shift in atmosphere.The quiet respect that followed me now whenever pe

(Ciara’s POV)I spent the rest of the day trying to act normal.Trying being the key word.Because normal would have meant forgetting the elevator.Normal would have meant pretending my heartbeat didn’t still react when I remembered how close we had been.Normal would have meant looking at Lucas Blake without feeling like something inside me shifted every time our eyes met.But nothing about me felt normal anymore.Not after that.Not after him.I kept my head down at my desk, focusing on documents that suddenly seemed more complicated than they actually were, my fingers moving mechanically over the keyboard while my mind stayed somewhere else entirely.And yet, no matter how much I tried to ignore it…I could still feel him.His presence.Even without looking.That was the most frustrating part.Because Lucas Blake didn’t need to speak to fill a room.He just existed.And somehow, I always knew where he was.“Ciara.”I closed my eyes briefly.Of course.Slowly, I looked up.He was st

(Ciara’s POV)The next morning felt different in a way I couldn’t immediately explain.Not quieter.Not calmer.Just… altered.Like something had shifted overnight and everyone was pretending not to notice it.I sat at my desk, staring at the screen without actually reading anything. The office was already awake, already moving, already doing what it always did. But I wasn’t fully part of it today.Not mentally.Not emotionally.And definitely not after yesterday.“Ciara.”I looked up.Lizzie stood beside my desk, holding two coffee cups.“I figured you needed this,” she said, sliding one toward me.“Or I look like I need it?” I asked.She smiled faintly.“Both.”I accepted it with a small nod.“Thanks.”She didn’t leave immediately.Instead, she leaned closer.“You’re quieter than usual.”I stirred the coffee slowly.“I’m working,” I said.“That’s not what I meant.”I didn’t respond.Because she was right.I wasn’t okay.But I also didn’t want to open that door right now.Not today.

(Ciara’s POV)I told myself I wouldn’t think about it.Not the meeting.Not the client.Not Lucas’s tone in the car.Especially not that last sentence he said before I left.But of course, my mind didn’t listen.It replayed everything anyway.Over and over.Like it had nowhere else to go.I sat at my desk staring at my laptop, but the words on the screen weren’t registering. I had read the same paragraph three times and still couldn’t tell what it said.“This is ridiculous,” I muttered under my breath.“Talking to yourself again?”I looked up immediately.Lizzie was standing there, arms folded, a knowing look on her face.I exhaled.“I didn’t see you come in.”“Clearly,” she said, pulling out the chair beside me. “You look like someone who just got mentally fired.”“I didn’t,” I said quickly.“Then why do you look like that?”I paused.“…like what?”“Like you just argued with a billionaire and lost emotionally.”I sighed and leaned back in my chair.“I didn’t lose anything.”Lizzie ti

(Ciara’s POV)I should have stopped it.I should have stepped back when I felt the weight of his gaze deepen, when the silence between us stopped feeling like distance and started feeling like invitation.But I didn’t.Because something in Lucas Blake had a way of pulling me in without force, like gravity I didn’t understand but couldn’t resist.And when his lips met mine again after that first hesitant kiss in my apartment, everything inside me stopped arguing.The world outside the room disappeared slowly, not abruptly, like reality itself was giving up on interrupting us.The movie kept playing in the background, forgotten.The rain continued tapping softly against the window, unheard.And all that existed was him.And me.His hand moved gently to my waist, steadying me as if I might disappear if he didn’t hold me properly. My fingers instinctively found the edge of his shirt, gripping it like it was the only thing anchoring me to something real.“Ciara,” he murmured against my lip