Chapter12
913 Words
The internet exploded the next morning.
Photos of Damien and Amara leaving the waterfront restaurant spread across blogs and gossip pages within hours.
Billionaire CEO Seen With Mystery Woman.
Damien Cole’s New Romance?
Waitress Turned Executive Assistant Captures Billionaire’s Attention.
Amara stared at her phone in horror while riding the bus to work.
Comments flooded endlessly beneath the articles.
Gold digger.
Attention seeker.
Another woman chasing money.
Her chest tightened painfully.
This.
This was exactly what she feared.
Her phone buzzed suddenly.
Damien: Don’t read the comments.
Too late.
Amara typed quickly.
Amara: Your life is exhausting.
His reply came instantly.
Damien: You haven’t seen exhausting yet.
Not comforting.
At all.
When she arrived at Laurent Holdings, employees openly stared now.
Whispers followed her everywhere.
Even worse?
Vanessa Sinclair had posted a cryptic message online thirty minutes earlier.
Some women are willing to destroy relationships for money.
Amara nearly threw her phone away.
“She’s trying to provoke you.”
Gabriel appeared beside her carrying coffee.
Amara sighed heavily.
“It’s working.”
“She enjoys attention.”
“And I enjoy peace.”
“Wrong building for that.”
Despite everything, she laughed softly.
Gabriel studied her carefully.
“You care about him.”
The statement caught her completely off guard.
“I barely know him.”
“That wasn’t an answer.”
Amara looked away.
Because honestly?
She didn’t know what this feeling becoming inside her chest even meant anymore.
Before Gabriel could continue, Damien stepped out of the elevator.
The executive floor immediately fell silent.
His expression darkened the moment he saw her face.
“You read them.”
Amara crossed her arms.
“Hard not to.”
Damien walked closer quietly.
“You shouldn’t have to deal with this.”
“But I am.”
The frustration in her voice hurt him more than expected.
Because once again, his world was hurting her.
And he hated it.
Vanessa suddenly appeared across the office floor smiling coldly.
Perfect timing.
“I see she enjoyed the restaurant,” Vanessa remarked loudly.
Damien’s patience snapped instantly.
“Enough.”
The quiet fury in his voice froze the entire room.
Vanessa blinked slightly.
“You’re choosing her over me?”
“There is no choosing,” Damien answered coldly. “We ended months ago.”
Shock spread across the office immediately.
Vanessa’s face hardened with humiliation.
“You’ll regret this.”
Then she walked away furiously.
Amara stared at Damien carefully.
“That was messy.”
“Yes,” he admitted tiredly.
“You should’ve done that sooner.”
“I know.”
For several quiet seconds, neither spoke.
Then Damien looked directly at her.
“I’m sorry.”
The sincerity in his voice stunned her.
Not defensive.
Not arrogant.
Just honest.
And somehow that mattered more than it should have.
—
Chapter 11 — Falling
Three days later, rain poured across Lagos again.
Amara remained late at the office finishing reports while thunder echoed outside the windows.
Most employees had already gone home.
Only executive offices remained lit.
She rubbed tiredly at her eyes before standing to stretch.
“You’re still here.”
Amara turned.
Damien stood near the doorway holding two cups of coffee again.
Apparently this had become a habit.
“You bribe me with caffeine often.”
“You keep accepting.”
“That’s your fault.”
He smiled faintly before handing her a cup.
Outside, lightning flashed across the skyline.
The atmosphere suddenly felt quieter tonight.
More intimate.
Dangerously intimate.
“You’re exhausted,” Damien observed.
“So are you.”
“That’s different.”
“How?”
“I’m used to it.”
Something about that answer saddened her unexpectedly.
Damien noticed immediately.
“There you go again.”
“What?”
“Looking at me like I’m tragic.”
“You are a little tragic.”
He laughed softly.
“Harsh.”
“But true.”
Silence settled gently between them afterward.
Comfortable silence.
The kind built naturally.
Not forced.
And somehow that frightened Amara most of all.
Because she was beginning to feel safe with him.
Dangerously safe.
Damien stepped closer slowly.
“Amara.”
Her pulse quickened instantly.
“Yes?”
For a moment, he simply looked at her.
No billionaire mask.
No charming performance.
Just Damien.
Real.
Vulnerable.
Terrifyingly sincere.
“I haven’t stopped thinking about you since the gala.”
The confession stole her breath immediately.
“Damien—”
“I tried,” he admitted quietly. “I failed.”
Her heart reacted painfully fast.
“You barely know me.”
“I know enough.”
Lightning flashed again outside the windows.
The city glowed silver beneath the storm.
And suddenly the entire world felt smaller than this moment between them.
“You make me feel calm,” Damien whispered.
That sentence broke something inside her completely.
Because nobody ever described Damien Cole as calm.
Yet somehow…
He found peace with her.
Amara stepped closer before fear could stop her.
Their breathing mixed now.
Their eyes locked helplessly.
And this time, when Damien touched her face gently…
She leaned into it.
His restraint shattered instantly.
Damien kissed her softly.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Like a man terrified she might disappear.
Warmth exploded through Amara’s chest so powerfully she nearly forgot how to breathe.
The kiss deepened slightly.
Tender.
Emotional.
Real.
And in that exact moment, both of them understood the terrifying truth they could no longer deny.
They were already falling in love.
- Writer
