THE LINE WE CAN'T CROSS
345 Words
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*Chapter 11: The Line We Can't Cross*
The boardroom was too quiet.
Anovia stood by the window on the 40th floor, arms crossed, watching Accra blur below her. The contract on the table had her name, his company’s logo, and a million reasons she should just sign and walk away.
Damian was behind her. Close enough that she could feel the heat of him, but not close enough to touch.
“You’re mad,” he said. His voice was low, the CEO voice that made entire rooms go silent.
“I’m not mad,” Anovia replied. “I’m disappointed. There’s a difference.”
Silence.
Then footsteps. He stopped right behind her. She could smell his cologne — cedar and something expensive she was trying not to like.
“You think I did this to hurt you?” he asked.
“I think you did this because it was the smart business move,” she said. “And I was never supposed to matter in the business part.”
His hand hovered near her shoulder, then dropped. Like he remembered the line.
The line they’d been dancing around for 10 chapters.
“I do the smart thing every day, Anovia,” Damian said. “This is the first time in years the smart thing felt wrong.”
She turned. Their eyes met. For a second the CEO mask cracked and she saw it — guilt, frustration, and something rawer underneath.
“Then don’t be smart,” she whispered. “Be honest.”
The door clicked open. His assistant. The moment shattered.
Damian straightened instantly, back to stone. “Not now.”
Anovia grabbed her bag. Her heart was pounding like she’d run a marathon.
“Sign the papers by Friday,” she said, already walking out. “Or don’t. But don’t call me to explain it.”
In the elevator, alone, she finally let herself breathe.
And hated that the last thing she saw was the way he looked at her. Like he wanted to say her name and couldn’t.
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*To be continued...*
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- Writer
