FALLING FOR MY SECRET BILLIONAIRE BEST FRIEND

CHAPTER SIX: THE KISS THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING

I resumed work the next day, after my five-day leave ended, and honestly… it felt strange walking back into the office after everything that had happened. Of course, people stared; my face was still new to them. I was officially starting work, just like every other person, and yeah, I was a bit excited.

My chair squeaked surprisingly loudly when I sat down. My desk was stacked with files, and the marketing reports I should’ve submitted days ago were still sitting patiently on my screen, waiting to be dealt with.

I wanted to disappear into thin air.

The workload was hectic, too hectic for my brain to handle. I drank four cups of coffee, but I still felt drained. I prayed for night to come, but time was surprisingly slow. Too slow, like it was mocking me.

But still, I felt relieved, deeply relieved that I was finally living my life in my own supposed way.

***

Moving back to my apartment that morning felt like closing a chapter. Five days away was long enough for my ex to assume I had disappeared, if he even cared that much. The thought gave me a small sense of peace. For the first time in a while, I felt like I could breathe.

Days passed.

No messages from him.

No unexpected appearances.

A tiny part of me, the part that once cared too much, felt something soft when I remembered him. But mostly, there was relief. Quiet, steady relief.

Work swallowed me whole.

Being a marketing assistant meant deadlines, drafts, edits, endless campaign updates, and after missing five days, everything came crashing onto my desk at once. My phone kept buzzing with notifications, emails stacked up faster than I could open them, and my supervisor kept dropping by with “quick updates” that were never actually quick.

I barely had time to think.

But somehow… I still thought about him.

Josh.

He kept slipping into my mind during the quiet moments, between tasks, during lunch, in the middle of typing an email. I missed him. I missed the calm he brought with him, the way he made everything feel lighter without trying.

So after work, I tried calling him.

No answer.

I tried again.

Still nothing.

By the fourth call, worry had already begun clouding my heart. Josh always picked up. Always. The silence between the rings felt heavier each time.

I didn’t overthink it, I couldn’t.

I grabbed my bag and took the first bus to his apartment.

***

By the time I reached his street, my mind had invented a hundred possibilities, none of them good. I was only a few steps from his building when a hand tapped my shoulder.

I froze.

Then I turned…

and nearly collapsed from relief.

Josh.

But drunk. Completely, hopelessly drunk.

His hair was messy, his shirt slightly rumpled, his eyes unfocused yet soft when he recognised me. I let out a breath I didn’t know I’d been holding. Thank God. Not my ex. Not danger. Just Josh being… Josh, but unfortunately intoxicated.

“I’ve got you,” I murmured, guiding him carefully toward the door.

My fingerprint still opened it.

He hadn’t changed it.

A tiny smile tugged at my lips.

“He really didn’t change it,” I whispered to myself, cheeks warming. “Why…?”

Inside, he was even worse, poking my cheek, mumbling things like, “Why’re you so cute?”

I was exhausted, so I let him sink into the nearest chair and sat beside him for a moment.

I stood up to lock the door.

But before I could take a step, his hand wrapped around my wrist and pulled me back, gently but firmly, until I fell right into his arms.

Both of his arms circled my waist.

His face inches from mine.

His eyes, even clouded by alcohol, were filled with something deep… and unbearably sad.

My breath caught.

“Josh… what’s wrong?” I whispered. My voice felt too small, too fragile.

He swallowed hard.

“I don’t know if I can handle it all anymore,” he murmured, his voice cracking at the edges.

My heart squeezed. “Josh, what do you mean?” I asked, suddenly remembering the whole BBTA situation and the conversation with Frederick on the balcony. I’d been so occupied with work that I forgot all about finding answers.

“Josh, what’s going on? Are you sure you’re not hiding anything from me?” I asked again, hoping he would spill something, just enough to convince myself I was overthinking.

But he stayed silent.

He just stared.

I could see the sadness and bitterness just by looking at his eyes, the same eyes that always made me smile were now filled with sorrows no one could understand. I guess I never really knew Josh as well as I thought. This was my first time seeing him like that, and for some reason… I felt pain. I felt sad that all I could do was sit beside him and stare.

I wanted to help him, hold him, fix whatever was hurting him, but before I could say anything, he leaned closer.

So close I could feel the warmth of his breath against my lips.

“I’m… glad you’re the one here tonight,” he whispered.

A tear slipped down his cheek.

And then, he kissed me.

Soft at first, as if he was trying to hold back.

Like he was afraid I might disappear.

But I didn’t move.

I didn’t pull away.

And when he realised that… the kiss deepened. His hands tightened around my waist; mine slipped around his neck instinctively. My heart raced so fast I could barely think. The room felt warm, the moment unreal, and for a second, a perfect second, everything confusing inside me finally made sense.

Until the doorbell rang.

We froze.

Breathing uneven, hearts refusing to calm down.

***

When I opened the door, Frederick stood there, Josh’s PA, holding a folder and wearing an expression far too observant.

“Oh… Miss Ashley,” he said slowly. “Good evening.”

“Hi,” I stammered, heat flooding my cheeks. “Um… Josh is inside.”

Frederick peeked behind me, saw Josh passed out on the couch, then looked back at my face, which probably looked like a glowing tomato.

“It seems,” he said carefully, “like I interrupted something.”

I nearly choked. “No, we were just, I was checking on him.”

He gave a small, knowing nod.

“I’m glad he has someone he trusts.”

I swallowed. “…Yeah.”

And then I left, before my embarrassment could actually kill me.

***

The moment I closed the door behind me, my heart began pounding even harder.

“What just happened?” I whispered into the empty hallway. “Oh my God… I let him kiss me.”

Walking home, my thoughts were a mess, heavy, impossibly loud. I kept convincing myself this didn’t mean anything, that I wasn’t in love, that it was just the emotion or the moment or the alcohol.

But I knew better.

I’d fallen long before tonight.

Tonight just made it impossible to hide.

When I finally collapsed onto my bed, every emotion I’d been trying to outrun caught up with me, fear, confusion, longing… and something warm that scared me more than anything else.

Still, somewhere inside all that chaos, a tiny flicker of hope remained.

Maybe… maybe I could find peace.

And maybe Josh was part of that peace.

Sleep finally pulled me under.

And for the first time in a long while, I didn’t fight it.