ARIA'S POV
Aria returned to the office exactly fifteen minutes later, her face carefully composed, her makeup fixed, all evidence of tears erased.
She could do this. She could walk back to her desk and pretend everything was fine. Could maintain professional distance. Could endure.
Even if it was killing her.
The 47th floor was quieter now, late afternoon settling into early evening. Most of the junior staff had already left. Just the executives remained, their offices still lit, still working.
And Damien. Always Damien.
She could see him through the glass walls of his office. Alone now, thank god. Victoria was gone.
Aria settled at her desk and tried to focus on her work. She had emails to respond to, schedules to coordinate, documents to prepare for tomorrow's meetings.
Normal tasks. Normal work. Nothing that required her to think about Victoria or jealousy or the fact that another woman had touched him and he'd allowed it.
