chapter ten
942 Words
Eve
I made a terrible mistake.
Actually, several terrible mistakes.
But the biggest one?
Allowing myself to believe I could survive being around Xavier Moore without falling apart emotionally.
Because after what happened in his office with Mira Laurent…
Everything felt different.
More dangerous.
More real.
And worst of all?
I could no longer pretend Xavier felt nothing for me.
The thought haunted me for the rest of the day.
“You look emotionally traumatized,” Lena Hart announced dramatically the second I answered her video call later that evening.
I collapsed onto my couch with a groan. “I’m tired.”
“That’s not tired. That’s romantic crisis tired.”
I hated how accurate she was.
Lena narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “What happened?”
I hesitated.
Which was already an answer.
Her mouth dropped open. “OH MY GOD.”
“Please calm down.”
“No. Absolutely not. You hesitated. That means something happened.”
I covered my face with one hand.
“This is why I tell you nothing.”
“Tell me immediately.”
I sighed deeply before finally admitting the truth.
“Mira confronted Xavier about me.”
Lena froze.
Then screamed loud enough to damage technology.
“She WHAT?”
“I think she suspects something.”
“Does she have eyes?” Lena replied instantly. “Of course she suspects something.”
I frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Eve,” she said slowly, “that man looks at you like you invented oxygen.”
My heart betrayed me immediately.
Annoying organ.
“You’re exaggerating.”
“I’m literally understating it.”
I looked away quietly.
Because deep down…
I knew she was right.
And that terrified me.
“Nothing can happen between us,” I whispered.
Lena’s expression softened slightly.
“Because of the fiancée?”
“Because of reality.”
I gestured helplessly around my apartment.
“This is my life, Lena. Hospital bills. Stress. Responsibility. Meanwhile his world is private jets and billion-dollar meetings.”
“So?”
“So people like him don’t end up with people like me.”
The silence that followed felt heavier than expected.
Then Lena sighed softly.
“You know what your problem is?”
“I’m sure you’re about to tell me.”
“You think love only belongs to people with money.”
The statement hit harder than it should have.
Because maybe…
Part of me really did believe that.
Before I could answer, my phone buzzed beside me.
And my heartbeat instantly betrayed me again.
Xavier.
Lena noticed my expression immediately.
“Oh, this is getting embarrassing,” she muttered dramatically.
I ignored her and answered carefully.
“Hello?”
“Did I interrupt something?”
His deep voice slid through the phone low and calm, instantly affecting me in ways I absolutely hated.
“No.”
Lie.
Lena was literally staring at me like reality television.
“I need the Lawson security files,” Xavier continued.
“At ten-thirty at night?”
“Yes.”
I frowned slightly. “You’re still working?”
“So are you.”
Fair point.
I stood from the couch and walked toward my small desk while trying very hard to ignore Lena making silent kissing faces behind the screen.
“I emailed those earlier.”
“I know.”
My fingers paused.
“Then why are you calling?”
Silence.
Strange silence.
Then finally—
“I wanted to hear your voice.”
Everything inside me stopped.
Completely.
Across the room, Lena nearly fell off the couch in shock.
My heartbeat became violently unstable.
“You…” I started carefully. “What?”
Another pause followed.
Like Xavier himself realized what he’d admitted.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
“You sounded upset earlier,” he said finally, his tone quieter now.
The concern in his voice ruined me instantly.
Because Xavier Moore did not sound concerned about people.
Ever.
“I’m fine,” I whispered.
“You’re lying.”
The scary part?
He sounded completely certain.
I sat slowly on the edge of the couch.
“How would you know?”
“Because I know you.”
The words wrapped around my chest painfully.
Softly.
Dangerously.
Nobody had said something like that to me in a very long time.
Lena quietly grabbed her headphones and disappeared into the kitchen, probably realizing this conversation had shifted into emotionally hazardous territory.
“I shouldn’t have left like that earlier,” I admitted softly.
“No,” Xavier replied immediately. “You were right.”
That surprised me.
“You think I was right?”
“Yes.”
I leaned back against the couch slowly.
The image of him standing beside Mira returned painfully to my mind.
Beautiful together.
Powerful together.
Suitable.
Meanwhile I was sitting in oversized pajamas beside unpaid medical bills.
“You love her?” I asked before I could stop myself.
Silence.
Long silence.
Too long.
My chest tightened instantly.
God, why did I ask that?
Then finally—
“No.”
The answer came low.
Honest.
Certain.
And somehow that felt more dangerous than if he’d lied.
I closed my eyes briefly.
Because hearing that should not have mattered this much.
“You should sleep,” Xavier said quietly.
“You should too.”
Another soft silence.
Then unexpectedly—
“Eve.”
The way he said my name made my stomach tighten.
“Yes?”
“If things were different…”
He stopped.
I held my breath.
But after several seconds, he exhaled softly.
“Goodnight.”
The call ended.
And somehow that unfinished sentence hurt more than words ever could.
- Writer
