Chapter 5: Back in Braman
1075 Words
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*Chapter 5*
The morning sun filtered through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Sterling Group private jet as it began its descent. Soft light moved across the cabin, catching on the polished wood of the armrests and the edge of Damien’s cufflink.
He sat by the window, one arm resting loosely along the armrest, eyes fixed on the city spreading out below. Braman. It had been months since he last set foot here. The skyline still rose in the same sharp lines of glass and steel. The river still cut through the center of the city like a silver ribbon. So much had changed in his life, yet from this height the place looked almost exactly the same.
As the plane dropped through the final layer of clouds, an old memory surfaced without warning.
*Two Weeks Earlier*
Damien had been in his office at the Litos branch, going through the latest batch of employee profiles from headquarters. The work was routine — signatures, quick reviews, nothing that required much attention.
His assistant entered with a neat stack of files and set them carefully on the desk.
“Sir, these are the profiles of the newly recruited staff from headquarters.”
Damien nodded without looking up. “Leave them.”
He flipped through the pages one by one, signing where needed. Names, degrees, previous positions — all of it blurred together until his hand suddenly stopped.
One name sat in the middle of the page in clean black type.
*Wren Carter.*
The pen slipped slightly between his fingers.
For a long moment he simply stared at the letters. _There had to be another Wren Carter somewhere. A coincidence. A different person with the same name._
Slowly, he opened the file.
A passport photograph was clipped to the first page.
The same soft brown eyes.
The same gentle, almost shy smile.
Even after three years, he recognized her instantly.
A strange silence settled over the office. His assistant noticed the shift in his expression and hesitated near the door.
“Sir… is everything alright?”
Damien closed the file with deliberate care before looking up.
“I need every detail concerning this employee.”
She frowned slightly. “Everything, sir?”
“Everything. Interview records, employment history, performance reports — anything related to her.”
“Right away, sir.”
She left without another question. A few minutes later she returned with a tablet and handed it to him.
“I’ve transferred all the available information here.”
Damien took it and began scrolling. Certificates. Interview evaluations. A handful of photographs from orientation day. He stopped on one of them.
Wren stood with a small group of new employees, smiling at the camera. She looked lighter than he remembered — happier, somehow. Less guarded.
His thumb brushed once across the screen before he locked the tablet and set it down.
_You’ve really come back,_ he murmured to the empty office.
*Present Day*
The plane touched down smoothly on the runway. Outside, airport staff were already waiting with the usual quiet efficiency. Within minutes Damien stepped out of the aircraft, dressed in a black tailored suit that matched the controlled expression on his face. The morning air was cooler than he expected.
His driver approached at once.
“Welcome back, Mr. Sterling.”
Damien gave a slight nod and slid into the waiting car. The door closed with a soft, expensive sound. As they pulled away from the airport, the city began to move past the windows — familiar streets, familiar buildings, the same restless energy he had left behind months ago.
His phone buzzed in his pocket.
*Orion Calling…*
He answered without checking the screen.
“Hey, buddy.” Orion’s voice came through bright and familiar. “Have you landed?”
“Yeah. Just landed.”
“So are you stopping by the office?”
“No. I have a few things to take care of first.”
“Alright. Thank God you’re here — I’m bored out of my mind.”
Damien’s mouth twitched. “Where’s Rowan?”
“Oh, that loner? He’s locked himself in again. Only God knows how we’re twins. We’re literally opposites.” Orion sounded genuinely frustrated.
Damien smirked. “I’m here to keep you company then.”
“Thanks, my love,” Orion said dramatically, making kissing noises into the phone. “I will let you rest. Bye.”
Damien ended the call and slipped the phone back into his pocket. A few things needed to be arranged before he returned to headquarters. He wasn’t ready to walk into that building yet — not until he understood exactly why Wren had stepped back into his life after three years of silence.
*Across Town*
“I don’t want anything red. My baby doesn’t like it.”
The woman speaking had caramel-brown hair that fell in soft curls over her shoulders. She wore a fitted cream dress that followed the lines of her figure without effort, and a pair of oversized sunglasses rested on the bridge of her nose. She moved through the boutique with the easy confidence of someone who had never been told no.
Beckett Robin — youngest daughter of the influential Robin family — never went unnoticed. Sales assistants trailed her with careful smiles, holding bags and boxes as she pointed at items with a light flick of her fingers.
“I want that Chanel bag,” she said, nodding toward a display.
One of the women attending her leaned in slightly and lowered her voice. “Ma, I heard Mr. Sterling came back today.”
Beckett’s head turned. “Really?”
“Yes. One of our regular customers saw his convoy leaving the airport earlier.”
A bright, satisfied smile spread across Beckett’s face. “That’s good then. Wrap everything up. I want to go home and fix myself for my baby.”
She pulled out her phone and dialed Damien’s number while the assistants hurried to gather her purchases.
Once.
No answer.
Twice.
Still nothing.
Beckett frowned, staring at the screen as if it had personally offended her. She stamped one foot lightly against the polished floor.
“Why isn’t he picking up?” she muttered. Then she straightened her shoulders and slipped the phone back into her bag. “Whatever. You’re coming to me anyway.” Assuring herself.
She said it with the calm certainty of someone who had never considered the possibility of being wrong.
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- Writer
