The change was so gradual Lina almost missed it.
At first, Thomas just seemed… busier. He cancelled two lunches in a row, but that wasn't unusual in their line of work. Then he stopped answering her late-night calls. His texts grew shorter, colder.
She told herself it was stress. His company had been eyeing a huge new client—Marcus Hale, a man known for being nearly impossible to land.
The problem was, Marcus was also her target. Lina had been nurturing that lead for months, carefully building trust, crafting a proposal that felt bulletproof. Thomas knew this—he'd listened to her pitch drafts, given feedback, and even suggested small tweaks.
They'd joked about how it would be "friendly competition" if they both went after him.
At least, she thought they'd been joking.
It happened by accident.
Thomas had asked Lina to help him finalize some presentation slides for an unrelated client. She opened his laptop, clicked the browser, and there it was—an email subject line that made her stomach knot:
We'll keep this between us.
She wasn't the type to snoop. But her hand moved before her mind caught up.
The email was from Marcus Hale, thanking Thomas for an "impressive pitch" and confirming their next meeting.
The date was three days ago.
The pitch—the exact pitch—was hers.
Her language. Her concept. Her strategy. The proposal she'd shown Thomas in confidence, assuming he was simply being a supportive friend.