CHAPTER 46: Confronting the Past

The elevator doors slid open with a soft chime, and I stepped out onto the street, my heart still racing from the encounter with Killian. Three years. I thought that time would heal everything, that I had buried the past deep enough to keep it from clawing its way back. But seeing him again, speaking to him—it had rattled me more than I cared to admit.

I took a deep breath, trying to calm the storm swirling in my chest. The meeting was done. The deal was moving forward. That was all that mattered. Claire had been ecstatic when I told her about the potential partnership with Lannister Enterprises, and I couldn’t let my personal history with Killian ruin that.

But as the days passed, I couldn’t escape the feeling that the universe was pushing us back together.

A week after the initial meeting, I found myself sitting in the sleek conference room once again, surrounded by executives from both companies. The negotiations were progressing well, but Killian was always present, always watchin