Chapter3
1273 Words
Maya didn’t speak to Dante for three days.
Not because she was avoiding him—but because he was gone.
No messages. No meetings. No distant glances from across the office. Just absence, as if he’d been swallowed by the sleek glass walls of Valerio Industries.
She told herself she didn’t care. That it was better this way.
And yet, every time her phone buzzed, her heart jumped.
It never was him.
⸻
By Wednesday night, the silence was unbearable.
Maya stayed late, again—partly to finish a report, partly to stop thinking. She was reviewing an old merger file—something about the Rivers Tech acquisition Dante had mentioned once in passing.
At first, it seemed like routine paperwork. But then she spotted it.
A clause that didn’t match.
A signature that looked off.
A date that had been altered—barely, just enough to hide the difference. Maya blinked, then pulled up the original contract from the archive system. Her pulse quickened.
They weren’t the same.
Someone had edited this after the deal had closed. Subtly. Illegally.
She leaned back, stomach churning.
It couldn’t be a mistake. It was too precise.
Who had done this?
And why did it feel like something Dante already knew?
⸻
It was just after 9 PM when she packed her things and headed down to the lobby.
The storm that had been threatening all afternoon finally broke. Rain lashed against the glass as thunder echoed through the city.
As she crossed the marble floor, the night-shift security guard waved her over.
“Miss Elridge,” he said, holding out a small black envelope. “This was left for you.”
Maya hesitated. Her name wasn’t written—just her initials, M.E., in silver ink.
Her fingers trembled as she opened it.
Inside was a single note:
Rooftop. 10 PM. – D
⸻
She stood in front of the rooftop door, heart racing.
It was foolish to go. Dangerous, even. But part of her knew—this was where the real game began.
She pushed open the door.
The wind hit her first, cold and damp, pulling at her coat. The rooftop was slick with rain, the city stretching below in golden and steel streaks.
Dante stood near the edge, hands in his pockets, coat flapping around him. He didn’t turn as she approached.
“I wasn’t sure you’d come,” he said without looking.
“I wasn’t sure either,” she replied, her voice almost lost in the wind.
Finally, he faced her.
His hair was wet, slicked back. There were shadows under his eyes—he looked tired, like he hadn’t slept. But his presence was still sharp. Still consuming.
“I had to disappear for a few days,” he said. “Something came up. Quietly.”
“Does it have to do with the Rivers deal?”
That made him pause. “You’ve been digging.”
“I found something. A contract. It was changed.”
She reached into her coat pocket, pulled out her phone, and held it out. Dante took it, eyes scanning the screen.
His jaw tightened. His silence was an answer.
“I thought this was buried,” he murmured.
“So you knew?”
“I suspected. But now you’ve confirmed it.”
“Who did it?” she asked.
He lifted his gaze. “My brother.”
⸻
Maya blinked. “You have a brother?”
“Half-brother. Jared. He was on the merger team. Smart. Charming. And apparently, very good at laundering money.”
Her stomach turned. “You’re saying he—?”
“He edited the contract after the acquisition. Redirected funds through a fake consultancy firm. Classic fraud. But clean—almost untraceable.”
“Until now.”
Dante nodded. “You found the crack.”
“And now I’m involved.”
He stepped closer. “Yes. Which is why I wanted to talk up here—off-grid.”
Lightning flashed. For a second, the sky lit behind him like fire.
“If this leaks before I handle it,” he said, “it’ll take both of us down. The board will see a conspiracy. An inside job.”
“I didn’t ask to be part of this,” she said, heart thudding.
“I know,” he said. “But now you are.”
⸻
They stood in silence as rain misted the air around them.
“I can fix it,” he said softly. “Quietly. But I need time. And I need you to stay quiet.”
She looked up at him. “Why haven’t you told the board?”
“They love Jared. He’s the one they trust. The charming one. I’m just the one who does the dirty work and makes them rich.”
Maya exhaled. “This is insane.”
He smiled bitterly. “Welcome to Valerio Industries.”
There was something unguarded in him tonight. Something raw.
He stepped closer. So did she.
Their breath mingled in the cold air.
“You should walk away,” he said.
“Why?”
“Because this isn’t just business anymore. And if you stay…” He reached up, brushing a damp strand of hair from her cheek. “You won’t be untouched.”
Her voice trembled. “I don’t think I already am.”
⸻
His fingers lingered at her jaw.
“You’re not scared of me,” he said.
“I probably should be.”
“I’ve been trying to keep my distance.”
“Then stop.”
It was her who moved first.
Their lips met in the rain—soft at first, like a question. But it didn’t stay soft.
Dante’s hands were at her waist, pulling her against him. She gasped as heat surged through her, the storm raging around them.
His mouth was demanding now—tasting, claiming. His body pressed to hers, hard and certain.
Maya arched against him, the edge of her coat falling open. His hands slid beneath it, along her back, fingers pressing through her blouse.
She moaned softly against his mouth.
They broke apart just long enough for him to whisper, “Tell me to stop.”
But she didn’t. She pulled him back in.
His lips moved to her neck, then lower. Her blouse was half-undone before she even realized.
Her breath caught.
He groaned against her throat. “You don’t know what you’re doing to me.”
“Then don’t”
Lightning flared again.
He pulled back abruptly, breathing hard, resting his forehead against hers.
“If we do this now,” he said, voice low and rough, “I won’t stop at a kiss.”
Maya’s heart thundered.
“I don’t want you to stop,” she said. “But not here.”
His jaw clenched. “Then I’m walking away before I lose control.”
He stepped back, chest rising and falling.
Rain poured down harder now. The wind howled.
Maya’s body ached, still humming from the heat of his touch.
“I’ll protect you,” he said finally. “But don’t trust anyone else. Not yet.”
⸻
That night, she lay in bed staring at the ceiling.
What had she just stepped into?
She should’ve been afraid. She was, a little. But more than that, she was alive. Awake in a way she hadn’t felt in years—not since before Ethan. Not since before the fall.
Dante didn’t hide who he was. He didn’t sugarcoat it or twist it into romance.
He gave her the truth.
And she kissed him anyway.
Maya touched her lips.
They were still burning.
- Writer
