chapter fifteen
833 Words
Too Close to Escape
The moment Ryan left, silence fell again.
But this time, it wasn’t peaceful.
It was sharp.
Maya stood still, staring at the file Ryan had dropped on Ethan’s desk before leaving.
Sophia’s name kept echoing in her mind.
Communicating with someone inside Carter Group.
Still active.
Connected to both of them.
Ethan closed the file slowly.
Then looked at Maya.
“Sit down,” he said quietly.
It wasn’t an order.
But it wasn’t a suggestion either.
Maya hesitated… then sat.
Her hands were cold.
“Tell me everything,” she said softly.
Ethan exhaled.
“I don’t have everything yet.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
A pause.
He looked at her properly now.
And for once, there was no distance in his eyes.
Just focus.
“I’ll tell you what I know,” he said.
Maya nodded slowly.
Ethan leaned forward slightly.
“Sophia wasn’t just the bride who disappeared,” he said.
“She was involved in something before the wedding.”
Maya frowned.
“Involved how?”
Ethan hesitated.
“Business records. Internal Carter Group documents. Restricted access files.”
Maya shook her head immediately.
“That doesn’t make sense. Sophia wasn’t involved in business.”
Ethan studied her reaction carefully.
“That’s what I thought too.”
A pause.
“Until I saw the logs.”
Maya’s heart started beating faster.
“So you think she stole something?”
Ethan didn’t answer right away.
“I think someone wants us to believe that.”
Silence.
Heavy.
Maya whispered,
“And what about me?”
Ethan’s gaze sharpened slightly.
“That’s the problem,” he said quietly.
“Your name keeps appearing near hers.”
Maya’s breath caught.
“I don’t know anything about this,” she said quickly.
“I believe you,” Ethan replied immediately.
That stopped her.
She looked up at him.
“…You do?”
He nodded once.
“I just don’t know why everything around you is being connected to it.”
A long silence passed.
Then Ethan stood.
He walked closer to her.
Not fast.
Not threatening.
Just steady.
Maya’s breathing slowed as he approached.
“Why are you coming closer?” she asked softly.
Ethan stopped right in front of her.
“Because I don’t want you sitting there alone thinking the worst,” he said.
Maya looked up at him.
“I already am.”
A pause.
Then he lowered his voice.
“Then let me change that.”
Something shifted again.
Not loud.
Not dramatic.
Just close.
Too close.
Maya stood slowly.
Now they were facing each other at the same level.
Her voice softened.
“Ethan… do you ever think this marriage was a mistake?”
Ethan didn’t hesitate.
“No.”
That answer was immediate.
Too certain.
Maya blinked.
“…Why?”
His eyes didn’t leave hers.
“Because if it was a mistake,” he said quietly, “I wouldn’t be this worried about losing you.”
Silence.
Her breath caught.
Maya stepped back slightly, overwhelmed.
“That’s not fair,” she whispered.
Ethan tilted his head slightly.
“What isn’t?”
“Talking like that… when everything is already complicated.”
A faint, rare softness appeared in his expression.
“I’m not trying to complicate it.”
He paused.
“I’m trying not to lose you in it.”
That sentence hit deeper than she expected.
Maya turned away slightly, trying to steady herself.
But Ethan gently caught her wrist.
Not forceful.
Just enough to stop her.
Maya froze.
Her heart reacted before her mind did.
Slowly, she looked back at him.
“…Ethan.”
His grip loosened slightly, but he didn’t let go.
“I’m not holding you,” he said quietly.
“I’m just making sure you don’t disappear in front of me.”
Silence stretched between them.
The room felt smaller again.
But not suffocating.
Intimate.
Maya didn’t pull away immediately.
And that was the difference.
Her voice softened.
“You’re changing.”
Ethan gave a faint, almost tired smile.
“So are you.”
A moment passed.
Then—
The sound of footsteps outside interrupted them.
Margaret’s voice called softly from the hallway.
“Mr. Carter… you have a visitor.”
Ethan didn’t move.
Maya quickly stepped back, breaking the moment.
Their connection snapped—but not completely.
Ethan looked toward the door.
“Who?” he asked.
Margaret hesitated.
“…It’s someone from the Bennett family.”
Maya’s body stiffened immediately.
Her parents.
Or someone sent by them.
Or worse—
Someone bringing news.
Ethan looked at Maya briefly.
Her expression had changed instantly.
Fear.
Confusion.
And something deeper.
He spoke quietly.
“Stay here.”
Maya looked at him quickly.
“I want to come.”
Ethan hesitated.
Then nodded once.
“Fine. But stay beside me.”
And as they walked toward the door together…
Neither of them noticed how naturally she stayed close to him.
Not behind him.
Not ahead.
Beside him.
- Writer
