One Night With the Billionaire, 8 Years of Secrets

ZELENE'S POV “Cut the headline,” I tell one of the junior editors without lifting my eyes from the screen. “It sounds desperate.” “It’ll trend,” he argues. I sigh, rubbing the side of my temple before finally looking up at him. “Yeah, maybe for like….. six minutes. Then people move on. Make it cleaner.” A few people glance over before getting back to work. That’s how this place runs. Fast reactions. Fast fixes. No time to sit in things too long. Including feelings. I finish signing the last file and shove it aside harder than I mean to. My shoulders ache, my eyes burn, and honestly, I can’t remember the last time I slept through the night. If I stay here longer, I’ll keep working. Right now, work is the only thing keeping me functional. I grab my coat and step out of the office, stopping when I see Marissa leaning against the wall outside, arms crossed, already watching me like she knows I’m about to make my own life harder. “You’re coming tonight.” I keep walking. “That wasn’t a question.” “It wasn’t.” She falls into step beside me. “You’ve skipped the last three events, Zelene.” “I was busy.” “You’re always busy.” “That’s because I run a company.” “And hide in it.” I shoot her a look. “Damn, you’re annoying.” She grins immediately. “See? Most human thing you’ve said all day.” That almost makes me smile. “You need to be seen tonight,” she says more gently. “Not through interviews or articles. Actually…… seen.” “I’m seen enough.” “At events. By people. Like a normal person.” I slide my arms into my coat. “Thirty minutes.” She laughs under her breath. “You always say that.” Because I never mean it. ****** The Plaza Hotel looks exactly the same. Too polished. Too expensive. Too full of people pretending they matter more than everybody else in the room. Soft gold light spills across the marble floors while conversations blur into endless noise. I move through it automatically, smiling when needed, shaking hands when required, ending conversations before they become real. “Zelene, your last feature was incredible—” “Send me the updated numbers tomorrow,” I cut in smoothly before stepping away. “Maybe we should do dinner sometime—” “Uh, talk to my assistant.” It’s never happening. A waiter passes, and I grab a glass of champagne mostly to keep my hands occupied. Then I turn, and freeze. Kevin. Holy s**t. Eight f*****g years, and somehow he still looks at me the same way, direct and steady, like nothing else in the room matters once he decides to focus on you. He starts walking toward me before I can move. Damn it. We stop close enough for me to catch his cologne, and that’s worse somehow because memories hit instantly. Late nights. His hands on my waist. The way he used to say my name low against my mouth like it actually meant something. “Zelene.” My grip tightens slightly around the glass. “Kevin.” Thank God my voice sounds steady. His eyes stay fixed on my face like he’s trying to figure out whether I’m real or not. “You disappeared.” Straight to it. No hello No smile. “I moved.” “Without a word.” “Yes.” A muscle shifts in his jaw. “You could’ve said something.” There’s no anger in his voice, that somehow makes it worse. I look away briefly. “I didn’t want to.” Lie, maybe not completely but still a lie. Kevin lets out a quiet breath, watching me carefully. “Still doing that, huh?” “Doing what?” “Running.” “Don’t start.” “You disappeared, Zelene.” My throat tightens because he’s not exactly wrong. I open my mouth to answer, but movement behind me cuts in first. “Mom!” Casey. Oh no. I turn too fast as Casey reaches me first, nearly crashing into my side while Cedric follows slower behind him, quieter as always. And observant. Too observant. Cynthia stays close behind them, her fingers brushing lightly against my arm. Then Kevin looks at them, really looks at them and the air changes immediately. His attention moves from Casey to Cedric to Cynthia slowly, carefully, like his brain is trying to put something together. Casey, completely unaware he’s seconds away from ruining my life, looks directly at Kevin. “Who’s this?” “Casey,” I cut in too quickly. He blinks up at me. “What?” “Don’t interrupt.” His face scrunches a little. “Okay……. Mommy.” Cedric nudges him quietly. “Leave it.” Casey shrugs but keeps staring at Kevin anyway, curious and fearless in the way kids usually are. Cynthia edges closer into my side, wrapping her hand around two of my fingers. Kevin still hasn’t looked away from them and I see it happen. That shift in his expression. He’s thinking now, comparing, connecting things together. I step forward too fast. “We need to go.” Casey immediately frowns. “Already? But we just got here.” “Now, Case.” The sharpness in my voice makes him go quiet. Cedric’s eyes move between me and Kevin again, and I hate how thoughtful he looks right now. Like he already knows something’s wrong. Cynthia glances back at Kevin one more time, confused by the tension hanging around us. Then Kevin finally speaks. “Your children?” My stomach twists so hard I nearly miss my next breath. “Yeah.” He nods slowly, but his expression says that answer isn’t enough. His gaze drops back to them, then returns to me and right there, I see it. The exact moment suspicion starts forming in his mind. Shit. “We’re leaving,” I say again, already turning away. Casey grabs my hand immediately while Cynthia stays pressed against my side. Cedric lingers half a second longer than the others, just enough to glance back at Kevin one last time before following us. I keep walking without looking back but I feel it anyway. Kevin’s eyes never leave us.