Maya wasn't sure when the rain stopped, but by the time they left the café, the streets were slick with puddles reflecting the glow of streetlights. Adrian hadn't made any move to leave, though the silence between them had stretched longer than either of them probably expected.
Maya felt oddly... comfortable. And it unsettled her.
As they stood on the sidewalk, the usual walls she'd built around herself felt thinner, almost fragile in his presence. She couldn't remember the last time she'd let someone into her space like this—especially someone like him.
"Thanks for the coffee," she said, her voice almost lost in the soft hum of the city around them.
"No problem," Adrian replied, his gaze lingering on her. It wasn't a look of admiration or desire—no, it was something else. Something deeper. She couldn't put her finger on it, but it made her chest tighten.
She crossed her arms, suddenly feeling self-conscious under his stare. "I should probably head home."
Adrian stepped forward, his hand brushing hers in a casual touch that sent a shockwave through her. He noticed her flinch and immediately pulled back, but it didn't help the heat that had risen in her cheeks.
"Walk you home?" he offered, the words sounding more like a question than a statement.
Maya hesitated. She was used to being on her own. But something about Adrian made her feel... different. Not in a bad way. Just... unmoored. It was an odd, unsettling feeling.
"I can manage," she said quickly, not meeting his eyes.
He didn't seem put off by her response. Instead, he took a step back, as though giving her space to breathe. "I get it. You don't trust me."
Maya raised an eyebrow. "It's not that. I just don't know you."
"And you don't want to," he said with a half-smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "I get that too."
There was something about the way he said it—soft, but laced with a quiet pain—that made her pause. Maya wasn't used to this kind of vulnerability, especially not from someone like him. From someone who had everything at his fingertips.
"I don't trust easily," she admitted, feeling a strange compulsion to open up, even if just a little. "People tend to disappoint."
Adrian's expression softened, his gaze shifting away for a moment as though he were lost in thought. "Yeah. I get that too."
Before she could say anything else, he pulled out his phone and checked the screen. "I should get going. But... you'll be okay walking alone?"
Maya nodded, though the idea of being alone in the quiet night didn't seem as appealing as it usually did. "I'll be fine."
Adrian didn't say anything else. He just stood there for a moment, like he wanted to say more, like there was a part of him itching to break down the walls between them. But instead, he simply nodded and turned toward the direction of his car.
Maya watched him for a moment, something in her chest tightening. She didn't know why, but the way he left felt unfinished, like there was a conversation left unsaid.
Shaking her head, she decided it was best to push the thought aside. After all, he was a Vale. A man who had everything he could ever need or want. And she... she was just a woman trying to keep her bookstore afloat.
Still, something about Adrian Vale lingered in her mind long after she turned the corner to her apartment building. The way he moved. The way he spoke. And that flicker of something deeper in his eyes.
The following morning, Maya found herself heading to the bookstore with a lingering sense of unease. The rain had stopped, but the heaviness from the night before seemed to follow her through the quiet streets. She tried to shake it off—there was no reason to dwell on a brief encounter with someone she'd never see again, right?
But when she opened the door to The Turning Page, she was greeted by the sight of a single, delicate envelope placed neatly on the counter. Her name was written in elegant script across the front.
Her heart skipped a beat as she carefully opened it.
Maya,
I know this might be strange, but I couldn't leave things unfinished. If you ever change your mind, I'll be here. I promise, I'm not as complicated as I seem.
– Adrian
P.S. I've already picked out a book I think you'd like. If you're willing to trust me for a second time, I'll leave it here for you.
Maya's breath caught as she scanned the note. For a moment, she just stared at the words. She wasn't sure why his message made her feel... seen. But it did. And as much as she wanted to dismiss it, something inside her stirred, something that she hadn't felt in a long time.
She couldn't explain it. She didn't want to.
But for the first time in years, Maya considered that maybe—just maybe—there was more to life than solitude.