Chapter 5: Behind Closed Doors
1145 Words
Seraphina tightened her grip on the doorknob.
Caspian stood in the hallway as though showing up uninvited at her apartment was the most normal thing in the world.
"You know everything about me?" she repeated.
His expression remained unreadable.
"I know enough," he said.
Seraphina folded her arms across her chest.
"That doesn't answer my question."
Caspian's gaze swept over her face.
"I needed to make sure you were safe," he replied.
She let out a disbelieving laugh.
"Safe from what?"
A flicker of something crossed his eyes.
Concern.
It vanished so quickly she almost missed it.
"May I come in?" he asked.
"No."
One dark eyebrow lifted.
"No?" he repeated.
"You don't get to appear at my apartment unannounced and expect me to invite you inside," she said.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
The tension between them was almost tangible.
Finally, Caspian exhaled.
"Fair enough," he said.
His response caught her off guard.
She had expected him to argue.
Instead, he slipped his hands into the pockets of his tailored coat.
"Then we'll talk here."
Seraphina glanced down the empty hallway.
"If my neighbors see us, they'll assume you're my boyfriend."
His lips curved slightly.
"Would that be a problem?"
Heat crept into her cheeks.
"Don't flatter yourself."
His gaze lingered on her face.
"I wasn't."
Her pulse quickened.
Annoying.
Infuriating.
Dangerously attractive.
She hated that all three things could be true at once.
"What do you want, Mr. Vale?" she asked.
"Caspian," he corrected.
"What?"
"When we're working together, you'll call me Caspian."
"We're not working together yet."
A shadow passed over his features.
"You'll sign the contract."
His confidence sparked her temper.
"You really don't like hearing the word no, do you?" she asked.
"No," he admitted.
At least he was honest.
Seraphina shook her head.
"You still haven't explained why you're here."
His expression hardened.
"Did you tell anyone about Magnus Vale?"
Her breath caught.
For the first time since he'd arrived, genuine emotion broke through his carefully controlled mask.
Worry.
"How do you know about that message?" she asked.
Instead of answering, he asked, "Who else knows?"
"Why does it matter?"
"Because whoever sent it is trying to involve you in something dangerous."
She stared at him.
"Dangerous?" she repeated.
"Answer my question."
The command in his voice made her bristle.
"No."
His eyes narrowed.
"No, you didn't tell anyone, or no, you won't answer?"
"Both," she said.
For a second, his jaw tightened.
Then he took a slow breath.
"Seraphina, listen to me carefully," he said. "If you receive another message, you call me immediately."
She laughed softly.
"You can't be serious."
"I've never been more serious."
"Why would I call you?"
"Because I can protect you."
The words sent an unexpected shiver through her.
Protect her.
From what?
From him?
"You're the one my mother warned me about," she said quietly.
Something flashed across his face.
Pain.
It disappeared almost instantly.
"What did she say?" he asked.
"She told me to stay away from you."
His expression turned unreadable again.
"Your mother is right."
The answer stunned her.
"What?"
"You should stay away from me."
"Then why are you standing outside my apartment?"
For the first time, he looked genuinely conflicted.
As though he didn't know the answer himself.
"I don't know," he admitted.
The honesty in his voice caught her off guard.
She had expected arrogance.
Coldness.
Not uncertainty.
Silence stretched between them.
Neither looked away.
Neither moved.
Her eyes drifted to the faint scar above his left eyebrow.
She hadn't noticed it before.
Up close, he looked less like an untouchable billionaire and more like a man carrying invisible wounds.
A dangerous man.
But a wounded one.
"Who was Magnus Vale?" she asked softly.
His expression shut down instantly.
"Don't ask questions you aren't ready to hear the answers to."
"My family is involved."
"Exactly."
Anger flared inside her.
"You don't get to keep me in the dark."
"I get to keep you alive."
The words hung heavily between them.
Seraphina stared at him.
"Alive?" she repeated.
His gaze shifted briefly down the hallway before returning to her.
"Someone is forcing the past back into the open," he said quietly.
"Why?"
"Because they want something."
"What?"
His jaw tightened.
"I don't know."
She didn't believe him.
Not completely.
There were too many secrets.
Too many half-truths.
"You hate me," she said suddenly.
His eyes snapped to hers.
"I don't hate you."
The answer came too quickly.
Too intensely.
"Then why do you look at me like that?" she asked.
A muscle ticked in his jaw.
"Like what?"
"Like I've done something unforgivable."
For a moment, something dangerous flickered in his eyes.
Not hatred.
Something far more complicated.
Regret.
Desire.
Anger.
"I look at you," he said quietly, "because every time I see you, I remember everything I've lost."
Her breath caught.
The vulnerability in his voice made her chest tighten.
Before she could respond, his phone vibrated.
He glanced at the screen.
His expression darkened.
"I have to go," he said.
"That's it?" she asked.
His gaze returned to her face.
"Lock your doors tonight."
"Caspian—"
"Promise me."
The concern in his voice felt real.
Too real.
"I promise," she said softly.
He nodded once.
Then he turned and walked toward the elevator.
"Caspian," she called after him.
He stopped but didn't turn around.
"Why me?" she asked.
For several seconds, he said nothing.
When he finally spoke, his voice was almost a whisper.
"That's the question I've been asking myself."
Then he stepped into the elevator.
The doors closed.
And he was gone.
Seraphina stood frozen in the hallway long after the elevator disappeared.
Her heart was pounding.
Nothing about him made sense.
One moment he threatened her.
The next, he protected her.
One moment he looked at her with anger.
The next, with something dangerously close to longing.
She returned to her apartment and locked the door.
Just as she leaned against it, her phone buzzed.
An unknown number.
Her stomach twisted.
With trembling fingers, she opened the message.
Attached was an old newspaper article.
The headline made her blood run cold.
BUSINESS TYCOON MAGNUS VALE FOUND DEAD IN APPARENT SUICIDE.
Below the headline was a smaller sentence.
One that stole the air from her lungs.
Anonymous sources claim former business partner Alistair Arden may have played a role in the scandal preceding Vale's death.
Her hands shook.
Her father.
Caspian's father.
Oh God.
This was why he hated her.
Before she could process the thought, another message appeared.
This one contained only six words.
Ask Caspian who killed him.
The lights in her apartment suddenly went out.
Darkness swallowed the room.
A sharp knock echoed at her door.
Once.
Twice.
Then silence.
Seraphina's pulse thundered in her ears.
Slowly, another message appeared on her screen.
Don't open the door.
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