The next morning, the penthouse was charged with a tension that even the expensive air filtration system couldn't scrub away. I spent the day in a high-stakes bypass surgery, my hands as steady as ever. Every time I looked at the heart monitor, I saw the rhythm of a different life—mine.
By 7:00 PM, I was standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling mirror. I didn't dress like the "breeding vessel" Asher remembered. I looked at my reflection in the mirror, standing before me was a woman in an expensive well tailored midnight-blue silk suit and stilettos that could double as armor. I looked like a woman who owned the city, not a woman hiding in it.
"Mommy? Do I have to wear the itchy shirt?" Leo walked in, struggling with his collar.
I knelt and adjusted it. Asher wanted Leo at this dinner to prove he had a claim. I was bringing Leo to prove that the boy didn't belong to him.
"Just for a little while, Leo," I said. "Remember? We're meeting a man for a business dinner. You stay close to me."
As we headed down, my phone vibrated. [7:45 PM]: "Shadows in place. Perimeter clear. We see everything, Dr. C." These are men that owe their lives to me. If Asher thinks of doing anything stupid tonight, then he is in for a big surprise.
Asher had sent a black sedan to the hospital entrance, but I walked right past it without a glance. My own driver held the door of my armored SUV open. I wasn't stepping into Asher's territory; I was bringing my own.
The Onyx was the height of luxury, a place where lives were ruined over vintage wine. Walking side by side with Leo's little hand in mine, we were led to the "King's Table"
The decors were nothing l
short of breathtaking . It screams wealth and influence.
In the back. Asher was already there, looking like the king of a world I had outgrown.
When he saw us, he stood up. For the first time, he looked... shaken. His gaze dropped to Leo, and I felt a surge of protective fury.
"You're late," Asher rasped.
I pulled out a chair for Leo myself. "I'm a surgeon, Asher. My time is measured in heartbeats, not your ego."
I didn't introduce them. I didn't offer a polite greeting. I ordered the most expensive bottle of sparkling water on the menu, paying no mind to the vintage wine he had already opened.
"He's beautiful, Chloe," Asher whispered, his voice thick. He reached a hand toward Leo.
"Don't," I snapped. The mother hen protectiveness in me was awoken immediately" He isn't a museum exhibit, and you haven't earned the right to touch him."
Asher's jaw tightened. But then Leo looked up from his menu and tilted his head.
"Are you the man from the drawer?" Leo asked, his voice clear and curious however, filled with innocence.
Asher froze. "The drawer?"
I offered Asher a cold, triumphant smirk. "He saw your photo, Asher. He thinks you're just a man I keep in a drawer with my old receipts. And honestly speaking? That's exactly where you belong, Asher Reed."
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