Roman's POV
I sat behind my desk, going through a full stack of pending reports all arranged in files on my desk, when the door slowly opened. I raised my head slowly from the file I was holding, and there they were.
The Lewis family.
I sat back into my chair, fingers crossed together with the other and allowed my voice to drop into its most authoritative and commanding tone.
"Ah…..the Lewis family."
And almost immediately I saw they brought Seraphina with them, as if her mere presence will ensure I restore our partnership.
But I kept my focus on the two standing in front of me. Morgan's parents.
I had grown used to speaking softly to close people around me, grown used to handling things with patience, but not today. Not when it came to them. To the people who threw her out to suffer on the streets.
"Have you done what I asked you to do?"
They both nodded quickly, their heads shaking like school children who were asked if they had finished their assignment.
Then I turned to Seraphina. She didn't even move, just kept a long sharp gaze at me.
She folded her arms, giving me that 'you're in trouble look' and then she replied without me asking her and with a single word. "Yes."
There was weight behind that one word. Enough to confirm everything I needed.
I returned her gaze for a moment longer, then gave a single nod to the couple in front of me.
"Go home," I said firmly to the Lewis couple. "We will resume business as usual."
Excitement flooded all over their faces like a huge wave. But still they didn't move.
Not yet.
They waited, needing to get confirmation, needing proof I'll actually do it.
I picked up the phone and called Mr. Whitman in. Within minutes, the necessary papers were placed out again, signed, and sealed. And the deal was back in motion.
Only then did they finally begin to breathe again.
Mrs. Lewis turned to Seraphina, with a wide contagious smile on her face.
"Dear, Seraphina, please come by the house whenever you can."
Seraphina smiled in return, a clear forced smile.
Still polite but distant.
I didn't miss the words her eyes replied.
She would never set foot in their home again.
And I didn't blame her for that.
After they left, Seraphina didn't leave the office. She stayed.
She remained in my office, her arms folded, her eyes still fixated on me with the look of….part confusion and part disappointment.
"What?" I asked, blinking at her. "Did I do something wrong?" clearly confused.
She didn't even blink.
"You shouldn't have done that," she said, her voice calm but firm, loud enough for me to hear. "That was going too far. I'm sorry if this sounds disrespectful, but it's my battle. I should choose what I do with them…..not you."
I let her words land. I had expected this. Maybe not today, maybe not this soon, but I knew it would eventually come.
Seraphina was a kind girl. That kind of kind girl. The type to carry the hurt and let it die with her in time.
But me?
No.
Never.
I rose from my seat, slowly towards her.
I stopped just a step away from her and looked her in the eye, and said…..
"No matter how much or how little, I would never tolerate anyone who looks down on you. Never."
I saw her face experiencing a slight surprise.
"And the Lewis family?" I continued, my voice low and steady. "They were just the start."
I took a breath again.
"Whoever dares disrespect you...will have me coming after them."
Seraphina looked like she wanted to argue with my words. Like she didn't want to accept them.
Her lips opened slightly, her brows came together, but no words came out.
Instead, she looked away, as if my gaze had suddenly become too much for her to hold for long.
I took the hint of it and returned back to my seat, keeping my tone casual as I spoke again.
"Please, go and resume your work."
She nodded immediately, almost too quickly, and then turned around without another word and left,closing the door behind her.
Seraphina's POV
I had gone to confront him, after the Lewis family had left.
I didn't need him fighting every one of my battles. I didn't need anyone stepping in for me every time I faced something difficult.
But the way he said it…..
The way he looked at me, so serious, so firm, so certain, like anyone who dared disrespect me had just signed a war contract with him….
It felt different.
It was something else. Something I hadn't expected.
I felt heat rise to my cheeks, completely uncalled for and the longer he locked gaze with me, the more flustered I became.
I immediately turned my eyes somewhere else, pretending to focus on anything but him.
He excused me from his office, telling me to go resume my work, his voice calm and final, and without any hesitation, I instantly disappeared from his office.
I returned to mine, walking a little too quickly, to avoid anyone noticing how flustered I looked. Closing the door behind me with shaky hands, I sat down, my heart still pounding and my face warm...too warm to be normal.
What's this?
What's this feeling?
I brought my hands up and held my cheeks, trying to cool them down, but they only burned hotter under the weight of my palm.
The way he said those words….the weight in his voice…..the look in his eyes...
I shook my head, snapping myself out of whatever my mind was going through.
Roman was my father's friend.
Roman was even forty five and I was just twenty one.
No!
Absolutely not.
I forced the whole thought from my mind and sent it back into the deepest part of my mind and turned back to the bright screen in front of me and dived into my work as fast as I could.