Monday morning came quickly. Theon was already awake before his alarm went off. He lay still for a moment, staring up at the ceiling, his mind already moving ahead of the day. There was a lot to handle, but at least one thing had improved over the weekend. Idris had, yet again, proven he was an outstanding work effort and skills.
From what he had reported, a good portion of the damage in Operations had been fixed. Not everything yet, but enough to stop things from getting even worse. A few staff members had stayed back to help as well, which made the process faster than expected. Theon would compensate them handsomely.
Some of the pressure was not eased and the company was running again. It just needed to be 100% soon. Still, it didn't change the fact that things had gotten that bad in the first place.
Theon pushed the thought aside and got out of bed. There was no point dwelling on it now. What mattered was moving forward. He made his way to the bathroom and turned on the shower. The water ran for a moment before he stepped in, letting it fall over him as he stood there quietly. His mind immediately, as always lately, went to Azaria.
He ran a hand through his hair as the water continued to fall.
He needed to figure out ways of bringing her back to Aldrith Corp because that was already going to take effort, and keeping her close would not be simple either.
He exhaled slowly.
One step at a time.
He finished up and stepped out of the shower, drying off quickly before getting dressed. By the time he was done, he looked exactly as he always did: rich and handsome.
He left his room and headed downstairs, already expecting the usual routine. His chef would be in the kitchen, breakfast prepared and waiting. It was the same every morning except weekends. But as soon as he stepped into the kitchen, he paused.
Someone else was in there.
Valeria stood by the counter, her back partially turned as she moved around the kitchen like she belonged there. The sound of something lightly frying filled the space, along with the smell of food that wasn't exactly what he usually had.
Theon frowned slightly. "What are you doing here?"
Valeria didn't turn immediately. She flipped something in the pan, then reached for a plate. "Good morning to you too."
He stepped further into the room, his eyes on her. "That didn't answer my question."
She finally turned, holding a plate in her hands. "Sit and eat."
Theon didn't move right away, so Valeria walked over to the table and placed the plate down in front of one of the chairs. Then she looked at him expectantly. "Sit."
There was a short pause, then Theon walked over and took the seat. He glanced down at the plate. The food looked decent. Not what he was used to, but it was not bad either. Valeria moved back to the counter and picked up a mug, then returned and placed it in front of him. "Coffee."
He looked at it briefly, then back at her. "You still haven't explained why you're in my house."
She leaned lightly against the table, crossing her arms. "Eat first."
Theon sighed heavily to that. The sooner he did it, the sooner he got an answer and would be on his way. He picked up his fork and took a bite.
There was a brief silence as Valeria watched him closely. "Well?"
"It's fine," he said.
She raised a brow. "Just fine?"
"It's good," he corrected, not looking up. That seemed to satisfy her enough. She pushed herself off the table and walked around the kitchen slowly, like she had no intention of leaving or answering him anytime soon.
After a moment, Valeria finally spoke again. "I heard about mum meeting your mate."
Theon paused slightly. He didn't like where this was going. Then he continued eating. "And?"
"And…" Valeria tilted her head slightly. "I want to meet her."
Theon's expression didn't change, but his eyes went dull. "No."
She blinked. "You didn't even think about it."
"There's nothing to think about," he said.
Valeria let out a small breath, she was already annoyed. "Why not?"
"Because the situation is delicate," Theon replied. "And I don't need anything interfering with that."
"I wouldn't interfere," she said quickly. "I just want to meet her. I can just do what mum's doing."
"No."
Her jaw tightened slightly. "She's going to be my sister-in-law."
"That hasn't happened yet," he said.
"It will," she replied without hesitation. Theon didn't respond to that. Valeria stepped closer to the table. "I want to be part of the plan."
"There is no 'part' for you right now," he said.
She frowned. "You're shutting me out and it's not fair."
"I'm keeping things under control," he corrected.
Valeria shook her head slightly. "I'm not going to ruin anything."
"I didn't say you would."
"Then what's the problem?" she asked.
Theon picked up his coffee and took a slow sip before answering. "The problem is that she doesn't know anything yet."
Valeria went quiet for a second.
"And until she does," he continued, "the fewer people "planning" around her," he made air quotes with his fingers, "the better."
She crossed her arms again. "I can handle myself."
"I'm sure you can," he said. "That's not the point."
"Then what is?"
"The point is that this isn't something I'm going to take risks with," he said firmly. "So stop asking."
Valeria glared at him, clearly not satisfied. "I just want to meet her," she repeated.
"And I said no."
There was a pause, then she huffed, turning away from him as she ran a hand through her hair. "You're being difficult."
"I'm being careful," he said.
She turned back to him. "You're acting like I'm a problem."
"This isn't about you, Valeria. Go home," he replied.
Valeria held his gaze for a moment, then looked away again. Finally, she stepped back from the table. "Fine." The word came out flat and Theon didn't say anything.
Valeria grabbed her bag from the counter. "Do whatever you want."
He watched her but didn't stop her. She walked toward the door, then paused briefly like she might say something else. But she didn't. Instead, she opened the door and walked out, slamming the heavy door behind her.
The house went quiet again.
Theon sat there for a moment, then picked up his fork and continued eating like nothing had happened.
__________________♤♤___________________
The drive to the office was quiet. Theon sat in the back seat, his gaze fixed ahead, though he wasn't really looking at anything in particular. The silence gave him space to think, even if his thoughts kept circling the same thing over and over again.
Azaria.
He couldn't help it.
He had gone over everything again that morning. What needed to be done. What could wait. What couldn't. Nothing about the situation was simple, but he had already decided he would handle it as carefully as he could. Where to start was what eluded him.
The car slowed as they approached the building, then came to a smooth stop. Theon stepped out, adjusting his suit slightly as he made his way inside.
The moment he walked in, the usual happened. Staff greeted him and moved out of the way so he could get to the private elevator. He acknowledged them with small nods but didn't slow down. He had work to do. By the time he reached his office floor, Idris was already waiting by the elevator.
"Morning, boss," Idris said, falling into step beside him.
Theon didn't waste time. "Update?"
Idris handed over a file. "Still the same for now, We managed to fix a good part of it. It still needs a lot of work, but the worst of it is under control."
Theon took the file and flipped through it briefly as they walked. His eyes scanned the pages quickly, taking it in and nodding as he went.
"Good," he said after a moment.
Idris nodded.
Theon closed the file. "Make sure the staff who helped are compensated with a bonus," Theon said. "Add it to their salaries for six months."
Idris gave a small nod. "Understood."
They reached his office, and Theon stepped inside. Idris followed him in and they talked for a moment longer.
"Anything else?" Idris asked.
"Keep things stable," Theon replied. "I don't want any more surprises."
"You won't get any," Idris said. "But we will need to get Azaria back to keep everything going again."
Theon gave a slight nod. "I'm working on it." Then he set the file down on his desk. Idris took that as his cue and left, closing the door behind him.
For a moment, Theon sat there, his hand resting lightly on the edge of the desk. Then he straightened and moved on. There was no time to sit still. A knock came shortly after, and Nathan stepped in.
"Your schedule, sir," Nathan said, handing over a tablet.
Theon took it and looked through it quickly. Meetings, calls, reports to sign. Everything laid out neatly.
"The first meeting is in twenty minutes," Nathan added.
Theon nodded once. "Let's go."
They stepped out of the office together, heading down the hall. Nathan walked slightly behind him, going over details as they went.
"...after that, we'll–"
Theon's phone rang and Nathan stopped talking.
Theon didn't check it right away and for a split second, he considered ignoring it, but he decided to check the caller ID before he did so. He pulled it out and glanced at the screen.
Sienna.
He stopped walking immediately. Nathan stopped too. He almost made impact with Theon's back.
Theon answered the call as soon as he saw the name. "Is everything okay?"
Sienna's voice came through and she didn't sound particularly good. "Sir… I have alarming news."
Theon's expression almost gave away his inner panic, but he needed to stay calm. Sienna was the security personnel in charge of watching over Azaria and what she just said had his heart racing.
Was Azaria okay? Was she in trouble?
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"Miss Freeman just drove to Rhodes Industries," she said. "And she just walked in."
Theon's blood ran cold.