Next day
Rylan woke up with a pounding headache, the kind that came from too much thinking and not enough sleep. But when he looked in the mirror, the man staring back at him didn't look shaken.
He looked sharp. Calm. Collected.
The mask was back.
He dressed in a fitted black shirt tucked neatly into dark trousers, sleeves rolled to his elbows, hair perfectly styled. He didn't look like a man who spent half the night fighting ghosts.
He looked untouchable.
Max helped the twins dress for their outing with the staff childcare team Kia had arranged, and soon they were on their way.
As Rylan stepped into Kia's company lobby, heads turned.
Of course they did.
He wasn't the shy student anymore.
He walked like a CEO.
He carried himself like a man who owned any room he entered.
The receptionist blinked twice before stuttering his name.
"Mr. R–Rylan? They're expecting you at the executive floor."
"Thank you."
His voice was calm. Smooth. Professional.
The elevator opened with a soft ding, and when the doors closed behind him, Rylan finally allowed himself one deep breath.
He had been preparing for this moment for years.
The doors opened again.
Kia's executive floor was bright, modern, expensive. And waiting at the center of it—
Kia.
He stood there in a tailored grey suit, looking every inch the powerful CEO the world adored. But his eyes…
His eyes were fixed on Rylan.
Shock.
Admiration.
Longing.
Fear.
All tangled together.
Rylan walked toward him with even steps, hands slipped casually into his pockets. No rush. No hesitation. No sign of how his heart twisted at the sight of him.
Kia swallowed hard.
"Rylan… good morning."
Rylan nodded politely.
"Mr. Kia. Shall we begin?"
Kia flinched slightly at the formal address.
It hurt more than any slap could have.
He forced a smile. "You don't have to call me that—"
"But we're in your company," Rylan replied smoothly. "Professional settings require professionalism."
Kia opened his mouth but closed it again, struggling to find footing in this new version of Rylan — colder, sharper, powerful.
Max arrived behind Rylan, holding a tablet and paperwork.
"Ready when you are, boss."
Kia's eyebrows twitched.
Boss?
So Rylan wasn't alone.
He had a life, a team, a structure.
A world that no longer revolved around Kia.
They all sat in the sleek conference room. Rylan didn't sit timidly.
He leaned back comfortably.
Leg crossed.
Expression unreadable.
A man in full control of himself.
Kia watched him like someone watching a precious thing they thought they lost forever.
Once the documents were spread across the table, the tension in the air grew sharper.
Rylan's pen tapped lightly against the folder.
Not impatient.
Just… thoughtful.
"So," Rylan began, voice calm and cool, "let's finalize this merger."
Kia nodded, but his eyes refused to leave Rylan.
"I've missed you," Kia whispered suddenly.
Max choked on his drink.
The assistants outside froze.
Even the air paused.
Rylan didn't blink.
He closed the folder calmly and looked Kia dead in the eyes.
"Mr. Kia," he said softly, "we are here for business. Not nostalgia."
Kia's lips parted, something like a wound flickering behind his eyes.
"Is that really all this is to you?" he asked quietly.
Rylan's gaze remained steady.
Cold.
Controlled.
"Yes."
But inside?
His heart was a storm.
His wolf was howling.
And his body burned with the memory of Kia's voice from last night.
Still—
He held the mask.
Kia leaned back slowly, jaw tightening.
"Then I guess I'll have to remind you of everything we left behind."
Rylan's fingers twitched.
Just slightly.
Max noticed.
Kia noticed.
But Rylan smoothed it over immediately.
"You won't," Rylan said softly. "Because there's nothing worth reminding."
The lie tasted like poison on his tongue.
But Kia didn't miss the flicker in his eyes.
The hurt he tried so hard to bury.
The meeting continued, but every glance, every silence, every brush of air felt charged.
Kia wanted him back.
Rylan refused to show that he wanted anything at all.