Asher didn't go straight to his office after dropping Amelia off.
He wasn't in the mood for boardrooms or polite lies this morning.
Instead, he found himself at one of his lesser-known properties — a narrow building tucked between a row of abandoned warehouses, the kind of place no one would think to look for him unless they already knew it was his.
The air inside was still. No ticking clocks, no ringing phones. Just the low hum of the refrigerator in the corner. He poured himself a glass of water, leaning against the counter, trying to ignore the gnawing feeling in his chest.
It wasn't guilt. Asher didn't believe in guilt.
It was… curiosity.
Amelia had been quieter than usual this morning. Not the guarded, calculated quiet he'd grown used to — but something else. The kind of quiet that carried weight.
He thought of the way she froze in the car when he suggested going out this Saturday.
The hesitation in her "Sure."
He'd been in enough negotiations to know when someone was agreeing to something for reasons they weren't saying.
And Amelia had secrets. He knew that the day he met her. He just didn't know how deep they went — or how sharp they could cut if he wasn't careful.
His phone vibrated.
> Ryan: I have found them.
Asher set the glass down, his eyes narrowing. The message was short, but it was the one he'd been waiting for.
After Ryan had come to his company and told him the most unbelievable news he was sent back for further investigations. He still couldn't believe on of his close men would think of betraying him.
Well it was expected. There was always people who thought themselves better than the rest.
"I'll come over," Asher replied, already reaching for his coat.
He wanted to know why they had decided to do this. Were they threatened? Or was it just thier choice?
And if they'd been threatened then the question was: by who?
He was halfway out the door when a thought stopped him.
Amelia.
She'd be at work now. Which meant she'd be fine.
Probably.
Still… something in his gut twisted.
He frowned deep in thought. If there was one thing Asher had learned in his life, it was that storms never came alone. One was usually just the start.
And he had a feeling his storm was already on the horizon — he just didn't know whether it would come from his enemies…
…or from his wife.