Falling for the fallen Episode 6
1840 Words
🌹 Chapter Fifteen: The Choice
Two months had passed since that dinner in Paris — two months of quiet mornings, late-night walks, and love that felt both familiar and new.
For the first time in a long time, Lana Rivers felt free.
No more hiding. No scandals. No fear.
Just Damien — simple, real, human.
They kept their relationship private, far from headlines. Paris became their little world — breakfasts at her apartment, evenings spent reading on the balcony, laughter that healed old wounds.
But happiness has a way of testing those who’ve fought too hard for it.
And their test came one cloudy afternoon.
---
Damien sat across from her at a café, his expression unreadable. “There’s something I need to tell you.”
Her heart skipped. “That sounds serious.”
He slid an envelope across the table. The logo on it was unmistakable — Falcon Dynamics.
> “The board wants to expand operations into Europe,” he said slowly. “They’re opening a regional office here. I recommended you to lead the PR team.”
Lana blinked, stunned. “You… what?”
> “You’re perfect for it. You understand the company better than anyone, and the team respects your work. It’s a real position — not a favor.”
Her fingers traced the edge of the envelope. “So this is official?”
He nodded. “Completely.”
She looked up at him, searching his face. “You know what this means, right? If I take this job, I’ll be working under you again.”
> “Technically under the European branch,” he said, trying to sound light. But the tension in his jaw betrayed him.
Lana sighed. “Damien… we barely survived last time.”
> “We’re not the same people anymore,” he said. “We’ve learned.”
> “And what if the world hasn’t?” she asked quietly. “What if the headlines start again? What if people call me the reason for every promotion, every project?”
He reached across the table, taking her hand. “Then we face it. Together this time.”
She hesitated, eyes glistening. “You always make it sound so easy.”
> “Because loving you is the only thing that ever made sense.”
For a moment, she wanted to say yes right there. But the little voice inside her whispered caution.
She remembered the chaos, the judgment, the loneliness of being “the woman with the CEO.”
And she remembered what it felt like to build something on her own.
> “Damien,” she whispered, pulling her hand back gently, “I can’t take it.”
He froze. “What?”
> “Not because I don’t want to. But because I need to know who I am — without you saving me. Without your name making doors open.”
His expression softened with pride and heartbreak all at once.
> “You’ve always known who you are, Lana. You just forgot for a while.”
She smiled through tears. “Then maybe this is how I remember again.”
Silence. Painful. Honest.
Finally, Damien nodded slowly. “Then I’ll wait. Like before.”
> “Don’t wait this time,” she said softly. “Just live. And if we’re meant to meet again… we will.”
He stood, coming around to her side, and kissed her forehead gently. “You and I — we’re not done. Just… paused.”
Lana smiled faintly. “I’ll hold you to that.”
---
As she watched him leave, the city outside blurred through her tears.
This wasn’t goodbye. Not like before.
It was the kind of ending that promised another beginning.
Sometimes love doesn’t vanish.
It just waits for the right chapter to continue.
🌹 Chapter Sixteen: Temptation’s Edge
Paris glittered that night — too loud, too alive for a woman trying to stay invisible.
Lana sat at the bar of a rooftop lounge, the city stretching beneath her like a sea of golden lights. She hadn’t planned to come. Her co-workers had insisted — “Come on, Lana, you need to live a little!” — and somehow, one drink had turned into three.
The air was warm, the music slow, and when the stranger sat beside her, she didn’t stop him.
He was charming in that easy way that didn’t try too hard — dark hair, a teasing smile, an accent that wrapped around her name like silk.
> “You look like someone running from something,” he said.
She laughed softly. “Maybe I am.”
> “Then let’s pretend you’re not. Just for tonight.”
His hand brushed hers. She didn’t pull away immediately.
For one fleeting moment, she wanted to forget. Forget the man who’d made her heart his home. Forget the ache of loving someone she couldn’t have. Forget Damien Blackwood.
But when she looked into the stranger’s eyes… she didn’t see him.
She saw Damien — the way he used to look at her, like she was the only thing real in the room.
Her breath hitched. “I… I should go.”
The man smiled knowingly, raising his glass. “Then go before you regret staying.”
And she did.
Outside, she leaned against the cool wall, her heart pounding. She hated that she still loved him this much.
---
Across the ocean, Damien wasn’t doing any better.
He had buried himself in work — endless meetings, late nights, emotionless efficiency. But even in the middle of boardrooms and contracts, he’d catch himself staring at his phone, wondering what time it was in Paris.
His assistant, Tina’s replacement — a bold, flirty redhead named Camille — had started staying late, too.
One night, she leaned over his desk, her voice a whisper.
> “You should go home, Damien. Or… maybe not alone.”
He looked up sharply. “Excuse me?”
She smiled. “Everyone knows you’ve been single for too long. You’re allowed to move on.”
He leaned back, eyes cold. “And who said I haven’t?”
Camille’s smile faltered slightly. “Then why do you look like a man waiting for someone who isn’t coming back?”
Her words hit too close.
He stood, gathering his jacket. “Because I am.”
---
That night, Damien drove through the rain, ending up in front of the apartment he hadn’t visited in years — the one where he and Lana first kissed.
The lights were off, but he could still see her ghost there — laughing, barefoot, holding a mug of coffee at midnight.
He leaned his head against the steering wheel, whispering,
> “Tell me how to stop loving you, Lana.”
---
And somewhere across the sea, at that same moment, Lana sat by her window, tracing her finger on the glass fogged by her breath.
> “Tell me how to stop missing you, Damien.”
---
Neither of them knew that fate was already weaving them closer again.
A new project — an international collaboration between Falcon Dynamics and a French marketing firm.
Two names.
One partnership.
The storm was far from over.
---
🌹 Chapter Seventeen: The Storm Breaks
It was almost poetic — the way fate laughed in their faces.
Lana was running late to the conference room, juggling a tablet and three coffee cups, when her assistant whispered,
> “The partner company’s CEO is already waiting.”
“Perfect,” she muttered under her breath. “Can this day get any worse?”
She pushed the door open — and froze.
Damien Blackwood turned from the window, his eyes locking on hers.
For a moment, everything inside her stopped. The sound of the city below, the ticking clock on the wall, even her own heartbeat — gone.
He looked exactly the same. Sharp suit. Calm confidence. But his eyes… they carried something new. Something softer.
> “Miss Rivers,” he said coolly, as if her name didn’t still taste like a memory. “It’s been a while.”
She blinked, forcing her voice to steady. “Mr. Blackwood. I didn’t realize you were leading Falcon’s side of the project.”
> “Surprise,” he said dryly.
Her lips twitched. “Oh, believe me, it is.”
The tension was thick enough to choke on. Even their teams sensed it — the awkward silence, the unspoken history.
When the meeting began, they both slipped into professional mode, tossing ideas back and forth like two people who’d never shared a bed, a secret, or a heartbreak.
But every time she spoke, Damien’s gaze followed her — lingering just long enough to make her pulse race.
Every time he leaned closer to point something out on her screen, her breath caught.
Every time their fingers brushed, her thoughts scattered.
---
Hours later, after everyone left, Lana stayed behind to organize files. She told herself it was work. Truthfully, she just needed a minute to breathe.
The door clicked.
> “You’re still here,” Damien’s voice said from behind her.
She didn’t turn. “So are you.”
He stepped closer. “You’ve changed.”
“People do,” she said quietly.
> “Not you.”
Now she turned — slowly. “Meaning?”
> “You still bite your lip when you’re nervous. You still avoid eye contact when you’re angry. And you still look at me like I’m both your favorite memory and your worst mistake.”
Her breath hitched. “You shouldn’t say things like that.”
> “Why? Because it’s true?”
She glared. “Because it’s dangerous.”
He took one more step, close enough that she could feel the warmth of him.
> “Then maybe I stopped being afraid of danger.”
The air between them was electric — the kind of tension that begged to be broken.
For one suspended second, neither moved.
And then… lightning flashed outside, thunder shaking the glass.
Lana stepped back first, her voice trembling. “Don’t do this, Damien. We can’t—”
> “Can’t what? Admit we still want each other?”
She shook her head, trying to steady her breathing. “This isn’t the same as before. I’m not the same girl.”
He smiled faintly. “Good. Because I never wanted the girl. I wanted the woman who made me fall in love — even when I didn’t want to.”
Silence. Just the rain hammering against the window.
Finally, Lana whispered,
> “Then prove it’s not just words this time.”
He hesitated — then nodded once. “I will.”
And with that, he turned and walked out, leaving her trembling, angry… and utterly undone.
---
That night, Lana lay awake replaying his voice, his nearness, the way her body still remembered his touch.
She hated it. She wanted to move on.
But the storm had broken — and there was no pretending anymore.
---
- Writer
