All Chapters of Loving Mr. Vance in Silence: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

Nicholas Vance had spent twenty-five years running from a basement.He had built a company. A fortune. A fortress of boardrooms and bespoke suits and a reputation for being untouchable. He had convinced everyone — including himself — that the boy in that basement had died a long time ago.But the boy hadn't died.The boy was standing in a hotel hallway, watching Emma Hart's face turn pale, and he was terrified.---The dinner had been unbearable.Nick had sat at the head of the table, shaking hands, making toasts, laughing at Henderson's terrible jokes. But his eyes kept finding Emma. Across the room. Across the noise. She was taking notes, smiling, being perfect.She was always perfect.And she was leaving in six days.He had tried to give her space. All day Tuesday, he had said nothing. Good morning. Thank you. Goodnight. He had worn the silver tie she bought him — the one he said he didn't like — because he needed to feel close to her without crossing the line she had drawn.But th

Emma stayed up.Olivia stayed until 5:00 AM, curled on the couch beside her, holding her hand. They didn't talk much. There wasn't much left to say. Emma had laid out the truth — all of it — and Olivia had listened. Now there was only the waiting.At 5:30 AM, Olivia kissed Emma's forehead and left. She had her own life, her own wedding to plan, her own future to build. She promised to call at noon.Emma sat alone in her apartment as the sun rose.The photograph was on the coffee table. She had looked at it so many times now that the edges were soft. The little girl with the yellow ribbon smiled up at her.Run, the boy had said. Run and don't look back.She had run.She had spent twenty-five years not looking back.And now she couldn't look away.---At 7:00 AM, Emma showered.The water was cold. She didn't adjust it. She stood under the spray and let the shock wake her up. She needed to be awake. She needed to be sharp. She was going to see Nick today, and she didn't know what she was

Emma left work early.She never left work early. In nine years, she had stayed late thousands of times, arrived early thousands more, but left early? Never. Not once. Her body didn't know what to do with the afternoon sun, the open streets, the sudden absence of fluorescent lighting.She drove home in a daze.The city was loud and bright and overwhelming. Emma kept her hands on the wheel and her eyes on the road. She didn't listen to music. She didn't call Olivia. She just drove.When she got home, she sat on her couch.The photograph was still on the coffee table. She had left it there this morning, unable to put it away. The little girl with the yellow ribbon smiled up at her.You, Emma thought. Who were you?She picked up the photograph. She stared at it until her eyes blurred.Then she closed her eyes.And the basement came back.---Day OneThe van smelled like sweat and old food.Emma had been walking home from school. She was eight years old. She knew the route by heart — past

Nicholas Vance had never asked for help.Not when he was eight years old, chained to a wall, his arm broken and his face bleeding. Not when he was fifteen, lying to therapists who wanted to talk about the basement. Not when he was twenty-five, taking over his father's company, drowning in expectations he hadn't asked for.He had built his life on the premise that he didn't need anyone.But this morning, in his office, with Emma's hand in his, he had asked."Help me," he had whispered.And she had said yes.---The rest of Friday passed in a blur.After Emma left his office, Nick stood by the window for a long time, staring at the city. His hand still tingled where she had held it. His chest still ached from the words he had finally said.He didn't cry again.But he wanted to.At 11:30 AM, he forced himself to sit down at his desk. The Lee Corporation proposal was waiting. The Henderson follow-up. The Q3 projections. A hundred small tasks that Emma had organized, color-coded, and prior

Nicholas Vance had spent the entire day waiting.Not patiently. Not calmly. He had paced his penthouse from room to room, wearing a path in the carpet. He had checked his phone approximately four hundred times. He had started three different emails to Emma and deleted all of them. He had called Daniel, hung up before Daniel answered, and then called him back."Nick," Daniel had said. "What's wrong?""I told her I love her.""You've told her that before.""Not like this. Not after she said —" Nick stopped. He couldn't say it. I'm already in love with someone else. What if that someone wasn't him?"After she said what?""Nothing. I have to go."He had hung up. He had paced some more. He had watched the rain streak across his windows and wondered where Emma was. The Lantern. She was at The Lantern. With Liam. On a date.He had wanted to go there. He had wanted to burst through the doors and drag her out. But he had promised to wait. He had promised to give her space.So he waited.And wa