Adrian Blake had been sitting at his study for a long time.
Too long.
The coffee on his desk had gone cold, forgotten entirely. The documents he'd been reviewing lay untouched, his attention no longer on numbers, contracts, or threats waiting to be neutralized.
Instead...
Raya's voice echoed in his head.
It's suffocating.
The word pressed in on him now, uncomfortable in a way he did not appreciate.
Adrian was not a man who revisited arguments. Once a decision was made, it stayed made. Regret was inefficient. Doubt was weakness. And reconsideration was something he reserved only for situations that could cost him power.
Yet here he was.
Her face had been tight with frustration, eyes burning, voice trembling despite how hard she'd tried to keep it steady. She hadn't cried. That, more than anything, had lodged itself under his skin.
She hadn't begged.
She had accused.
And then she had walked away.
Adrian exhaled slowly and finally moved.
