Alexander Smith was not a man who got distracted.
Especially not by strangers.
Especially not in places like this.
The bar was meant to be simple—business, signatures, exit. Nothing more. He had already closed the deal, already said what needed to be said. He was ready to leave.
That was the plan.
Until a voice stopped him.
Not because it was loud.
But because it was… broken.
He turned slowly.
A man stood near the counter—unsteady, red-eyed, holding onto the edge like it was the only thing keeping him upright.
Drunk.
That was obvious.
But what caught Alexander's attention wasn't that.
It was the way he looked like he had already lost something too important to survive.
Alexander had seen pain before.
He had seen desperation, greed, lies, and ambition.
But this was different.
This was someone who had already given up… and was still standing anyway.
He should have looked away.
He didn't.
The man spoke again—laughing bitterly, as if the world had personally offended him.
Alexander didn't respond at first.
He rarely did.
People usually spoke around him, not to him.
But this man…
He spoke like he had nothing left to lose.
That was dangerous.
And interesting.
"You look like someone who doesn't care about anything."
The words were slurred slightly, but the meaning was clear.
Alexander felt something flicker—small, controlled, but there.
He didn't like being analysed.
Especially not by someone falling apart at the seams.
He could have left.
He should have.
Instead, he stood still.
Watching.
Listening.
The man kept talking—something about being replaced, about four years wasted, about love turning into nothing.
Alexander understood none of it personally.
He didn't believe in "love" the way other people did.
But he understood loss.
Control.
The moment something slips out of your hands and never comes back.
And then the man stepped closer.
Too close.
Not afraid.
Not careful.
Just… empty.
"You think I'm like you," Alexander said quietly.
It wasn't a question.
It was a warning.
But the man only smiled bitterly.
And that was when Alexander noticed it—
Not attraction.
Not interested.
Something far more dangerous.
Because this man wasn't trying to impress him.
Wasn't trying to fear him.
Wasn't trying to gain anything.
He simply didn't care what happened next.
And Alexander Smith had never met someone like that before.
When the distance between them finally closed, Alexander didn't stop it.
He told himself it was control.
Curiosity.
A mistake he could undo at any time.
But even he knew—
That was a lie.
And for the first time in a very long time…
Alexander Smith did not walk away and kissed Skylar.