After we finished our dinner, She walked to the railing first, hands clutching the iron edge as she leaned forward slightly, her face lighting up. I followed her.
"It would be nice to have wine," she murmured, gazing out at the lights.
"After what you did yesterday, even the smell of alcohol is officially banned for you."
She turned to me and pouted . "That was one time."
I raised an eyebrow.
She sighed dramatically "Fine. I won't drink. Not as long as I'm with you."
"With me?"
She nodded.
But then she added "Once I'm free from you, though, I'll find a romantic boyfriend who'll take me drinking all night. Someone who'll actually go to the beach with me. Maybe he'll dance with me too."
The sweetness in my chest dissolved instantly.
I wasn't even thinking.
My body moved faster than my brain.
I leaned forward and kissed her.
Soft. Quick. Almost like a breath
She stilled beneath me, wide-eyed but she didn't pull back.
Instead, she leaned in.
Her small figure tilted toward me, her fingers curling slightly against the railing. My hand found hers without even realizing it.
I was 6'3", she barely reached my chest, and yet somehow, in that moment, she felt level with me. Perfectly aligned.
We stayed like that, lips barely touching, breath mingling,
I didn't know what it meant yet.
But I knew I didn't want anyone else kissing her. Ever.
Her lips were still close.
She had leaned into me, and for a moment, I let myself forget everything else .
But then reality hit me like ice water.
What the hell am I doing?
I wasn't here for this. I wasn't supposed to want her. I wasn't supposed to touch her.
I was here to clean up the mess Mikhail made, his deal, his girl, his responsibility that fell on my shoulders like a curse.
I pulled away, too fast.
She blinked up at me, dazed, cheeks flushed, lips slightly parted. There was something almost innocent in her expression, like she hadn't expected me to break the moment.
And she hadn't.
Neither had I.
"I" I exhaled "I did that in the heat of the moment. That's all."
Her smile vanished.
Her face, once glowing with warmth, dimmed in front of me like a candle being snuffed out.
She didn't say a word.
And I didn't explain.
I couldn't.
I signalled the staff to bring the car around, and we left the hotel in silence.
The ride back was unbearable. She kept her eyes on the window, arms folded tightly across her chest.
We reached the suite, and she turned to me with that look confused, wounded, as if she was asking why without saying a word.
I didn't look at her long.
"Get some rest, We're leaving in the morning."
Then I stepped out of the room, needing air. Space. Distance.
The cool night air outside didn't help. My skin still burned from the kiss. My mind spun in circles.
I should not have kissed her.
Because now that I had, I knew something with absolute clarity:
I would keep wanting her.
And once I started, I wouldn't be able to stop.
So I had to.
Before I made this mess worse.
Before I made her mine in a way I couldn't undo.
Evelyn
He left.
He walked out without a second glance ,leaving me alone in the suite with nothing but silence and confusion thick enough to choke on.
Heat of the moment. What a joke.
I stood there for a while, still wearing the dress I'd picked so carefully, the one he said looked pretty. My fingers were cold. I collapsed on the bed without even changing, face buried in the pillow. I didn't even feel the tears until they reached my lips salty and bitter. They smudged the makeup I'd carefully applied earlier, ruined whatever softness was left in my face.
It didn't matter.
He kissed me like he wanted me, and then made it clear he didn't.
I fell asleep like that.
The morning light hit my face too harshly.
My head throbbed, and my eyes burned. I forced myself to sit up, and that's when I saw him, Alexander in his usual spot, dressed in his usual cold attire, laptop open, fingers tapping as if last night never happened.
He looked up. Paused.
"You look terrible," he said flatly.
I let out a dry laugh. "Thank you. That must be the result of your hard work."
I didn't wait for his reaction.
I stood and walked straight into the bathroom, locking the door behind me.
We returned to the penthouse later that day.
No words. No conversation. Not even a glance in my direction during the entire ride.
Vacation over.
Silence restored.
After that, he avoided me completely.
He buried himself in work, disappeared into meetings. I barely saw him anymore, and when I did, he acted like I was just another piece of furniture. Thankfully, my job had started by then.
It gave me something to focus on. Something to stop me from thinking about a grown-ass man who kissed me one night and pretended it meant nothing the next.
Work had been tiring, but at least it kept my mind away from him.
It was just another day, I walked towards the parking lot where Alexander's driver was waiting inside the car. Alexander hired him to drop me and picked me up from work.
I spotted the car from a distance, my heels clicking on the pavement.
But then I saw him. Mikhail was standing in front of me.
I ignored him.
Kept walking, eyes straight ahead.
He said smoothly. "How rude."
I didn't respond.
But he stepped in front of me, blocking my way.
"Alexander will leave you, you know," he said, "You're still not living in his house. You're still in his penthouse, like some conveniently placed mistress."
I flinched but didn't move.
"If you want to stay, Evelyn, you need to be useful to him. Win him over. Make him trust you. Then feed me what I need."
I stared at him. "And if I don't?"
"Then your sweet little mother Lucy might find herself in a very unfortunate situation."
My heart pounded. "Don't you dare touch her."
"I don't have to," he said lazily. "It's you who'll destroy her if you keep being difficult. "
"I'd rather ruin my life," I snapped, "than help a lunatic like you."
His face changed in an instant.
Before I could move, his hand came down hard across my cheek.
The slap echoed in the empty lot, sharp and cold. My skin burned.
"You're no better than your mother," he hissed. "You'll end up just like her."
He stepped back and straightened his cuffs like nothing happened.
And then he walked away.
Just like that.