• ° • ° • °

The morning air was thick with tension, a chill creeping through as Lucas and I met at the door. The silence between us felt as sharp as broken glass, an echo of the argument that still lingered from the night before.

“Where to?” he asked, his tone both curious and wary as he took in my tailored business suit. His gaze lingered, a flicker of something unreadable in his eyes.

“Dark Rose,” I said, my voice as curt as the frost in the air. “I’m bringing it back.”

He absorbed my words, studying my expression with that unnerving intensity of his. Then, as if the decision had already been made, he offered, “I’ll drive you.”

My breath hitched, and I hesitated, feeling his offer twist through me like an unspoken promise. But I set my jaw and shook my head. “No, thanks. Charles is my driver. I don’t need you to drop me off.”

For a moment, something dark flickered in his eyes. A vein pulsed at his neck as his jaw clenched, and when he spoke again, his voice was a low, restrained growl. “When I said I’ll drive you, it wasn’t a question.”

A strange thrill ran down my spine, caught between the impulse to argue and the pull to surrender. I lowered my gaze, knowing that one more push might set off a spark I wasn’t ready to face. We finished breakfast in silence, tension tightening between us like a coiled spring.

Once we were done, I stormed out to his Rolls-Royce, yanking open the passenger door and slamming it shut as I slid into the front seat. Sitting in the back with him felt like giving him too much control, too much… proximity. I wasn’t prepared for that—not today.

I glanced over as he slipped into the driver’s seat himself, his mouth tilting up in a faint, knowing smirk. His assistant, Rio, slid into the back with Charles, and Lucas’s hand brushed the steering wheel with a kind of deliberate calm.

“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” I muttered, attempting to hide the thrum of my pulse.

He laughed softly, a rich, velvety sound that wrapped around me like silk. “I’d enjoy it even more if you kept that pout.”

Heat rose to my cheeks, and I looked away, crossing my arms as I focused out the window. My heart beat harder as we passed billboard posters of us from the previous night—captured, laughing, the image of a couple bound for something more. For a fleeting moment, I could see that version of myself—the woman in those images, caught up in a future filled with a kind of happiness and belonging I couldn’t even picture now.

I turned my gaze back to the road, feeling a pang of regret so sharp it almost hurt. That future was a mirage, nothing more.

The car slowed to a stop outside Dark Rose, a tall building now worn and neglected. I stepped out, feeling a bittersweet surge as I took in the facade. It had once been a symbol of ambition, but now stood abandoned, empty of the dreams that had once filled it. I felt Lucas’s gaze on my back, his presence a silent, solid anchor in the background.

I turned, meeting his intense gaze as he lingered by the door. For a moment, we said nothing, our shared silence louder than words. Then he spoke, his voice softer, almost vulnerable.

“Take care,” he murmured, his eyes holding mine just a heartbeat longer than usual. Before I could reply, he turned and got back in the car. His assistant took the driver’s seat, and they disappeared into the morning traffic, leaving me with the lingering imprint of his words and a thousand unasked questions.

I exhaled, steeling myself, and stepped through the building’s doors with Rio by my side. Inside, the staff turned toward us, their expressions a blend of curiosity, uncertainty, and barely concealed hope. They were young, most of them, likely stuck here with little reason to stay.

I faced them, feeling the weight of their gazes. “Good morning, everyone,” I began, projecting a calm confidence even as the unfamiliar thrill of this power filled me. “I know some of you may have questioned why you’re here—maybe even considered leaving. And maybe you think I’ll just be another placeholder, someone who’ll lean on power and bribes to get by.” I paused, allowing the silence to drive the point home. “But things are about to change.”

The air hummed with murmurs, whispers of doubt and tentative hope, as my words settled over them.

“If anyone here wants to resign, now is your chance. You have three days to decide. After that, if you choose to stay, there will be expectations—and there will be repercussions if those aren’t met.” My voice was steady, carrying a promise I intended to keep. “Change isn’t easy, but I’m offering you the choice now.”

The staff exchanged nervous glances, and I saw sparks of something new in some of their faces—determination, fear, maybe even respect.

With that, I turned and walked toward my office, calling for Charles. He followed me in, closing the door behind him.

“Charles,” I said, settling into my chair and meeting his gaze with steady resolve, “I want this entire building renovated in a week. We’re changing everything—the name, the logo, the policies. It all goes. Can you handle it?”

He nodded, his confidence mirroring my own, and for the first time in a long while, I felt a thrill of anticipation.

• ° • ° • °