***LANCE'S POV***
I waited by the pool in the lounge of Carter Holdings, the still water reflecting the dim light from above.
A few private rooms had been built on the top floor—VIP suites reserved for family members whenever they worked too late to return home. Today, I'd chosen this spot to wait for Adrian.
Earlier, I had slipped a note to the receptionist outside his office, instructing her to hand it to him as soon as he returned. That had been hours ago.
Now, as evening shadows lengthened and the building grew quieter, my patience thinned. For someone I'd reached out to right after the merger ended, Adrian had gone to great lengths to avoid me.
He'd seen me—he couldn't deny that. We'd crossed paths at least five times in the hallways, yet every time, he took another route, refusing even a glance in my direction. As if my presence burned his eyes. As if the thought of speaking to me was unbearable.
