Ava’s POV
I had rehearsed this moment in my head all night. The words, the tone, even the exact questions I would ask Jason. I rehearsed the words in the taxi, over and over, until they felt icier and flatter than they had in my head. Confrontation, I told myself, is a skill. It’s a business skill. State the facts. Stay calm. Don’t look like you’re trembling.
The elevator to Jason’s building hummed like a held breath. His floor smelled faintly of lemon polish and expensive leather. When the assistant met at the door he was all polite with surprise and quick smiles. “Jason will be with you in one minute,” he said, and I nodded like I hadn’t rehearsed this moment a hundred times.
His office was larger than I remembered, all glass that drank in the river light. A long table, gray carpets,
