Men Like Him Were Trouble
954 Words
Sophia hated thinking about him.
Which unfortunately meant she had been thinking about him all morning.
The elevator doors opened onto the executive floor with a soft chime, and Sophia walked straight toward her office without acknowledging the greetings around her.
“Morning, Ms. Lin.”
“Morning.”
“Good morning.”
“Mm.”
Her assistant hurried beside her, tablet in hand.
“The Singapore investors confirmed dinner tonight at eight. Also, legal sent the revised contract draft, and—”
“Reschedule dinner.”
Her assistant blinked. “To when?”
“Never.”
“…Never?”
“They’ve changed schedules three times in two days. If they can’t respect my time before signing, they won’t respect our partnership after.”
The assistant nodded quickly, typing notes.
Sophia pushed open her office door and immediately froze.
A paper bag sat neatly in the center of her desk.
She frowned.
“Who put this here?”
Her assistant looked confused. “A delivery arrived earlier this morning.”
“From who?”
“No name.”
Sophia carefully opened the bag.
Inside was a sandwich.
And a black coffee.
Underneath them sat a folded receipt with messy handwriting across the back.
You looked one skipped meal away from homicide yesterday.
— Adrian
Sophia stared at the note.
Then at the coffee.
Then back at the note again.
“What is that expression?” her assistant asked cautiously.
Sophia crumpled the receipt immediately.
“Nothing.”
But her assistant was already smiling.
“Oh my God.”
“Stop.”
“A man sent you breakfast.”
“It’s food, not a marriage proposal.”
“You hate everyone.”
“I do not hate everyone.”
“You made a senior manager cry last month.”
“He deserved it.”
Her assistant grinned wider. “So this one survived?”
Sophia gave her a look sharp enough to silence three departments simultaneously.
The assistant escaped before becoming the next victim.
Sophia sat down slowly.
The coffee was exactly how she ordered it.
No sugar.
Extra shot.
She frowned harder.
How did he know that?
Maybe coincidence.
Probably coincidence.
Still…
Her fingers brushed the edge of the paper bag.
Nobody had done something small for her in a very long time.
Not without expecting something back.
⸻
By evening, the city was glowing gold beneath the rain.
Sophia stepped out of a luxury hotel after finishing another investor meeting, exhaustion pressing heavily behind her eyes.
She loosened the collar of her blouse slightly while walking toward the valet area.
Then stopped.
Adrian stood beneath the covered driveway, the city’s humid night air curling around the faint smoke in his hand while rainwater reflected gold from the hotel lights across the pavement.
Of course.
Because apparently the universe enjoyed inconveniencing her now.
He noticed her immediately.
“There’s the terrifying woman from yesterday.”
Sophia kept walking.
“You’re blocking the entrance.”
“You always greet people this warmly?”
“You’re still alive, aren’t you?”
He smiled faintly, crushing the cigarette beneath his shoe before he got closer.
Interesting.
Most smokers never bothered.
“You sent breakfast.”
“You looked hungry.”
“That’s not an answer.”
Adrian shrugged. “I had a meeting nearby.”
“So you routinely buy expensive coffee for strangers?”
“No.” His eyes stayed on hers calmly. “Just you.”
Sophia felt irritation rise immediately.
Dangerous man.
Too smooth.
Too observant.
The exact type her father used to be before destroying every woman around him.
She crossed her arms. “What do you want?”
“That’s a depressing question.”
“It’s a practical one.”
Adrian studied her quietly for a moment.
“You assume kindness always comes with conditions.”
Sophia’s jaw tightened slightly.
“You assume it doesn’t?”
“No,” he said softly. “I just think some people are worth the effort.”
The valet arrived with Sophia’s car.
Perfect timing.
She reached for the keys immediately.
“Thank you for the coffee,” she said flatly. “Goodnight.”
“Sophia.”
She paused unwillingly.
Adrian stepped closer—not enough to invade her space, but enough that the scent of rain and cedar drifted between them.
“I’m asking you to dinner.”
“No.”
“That was fast.”
“I save time by avoiding bad decisions early.”
His mouth curved slightly.
“You think I’m a bad decision?”
“I think men like you are experienced at pretending not to be.”
For the first time, something unreadable flickered across his expression.
Not anger.
Something quieter.
“You don’t know anything about me.”
“I know enough.”
Sophia opened the car door.
Before getting in, she looked back once.
“Men don’t do things for free, Adrian.”
Then she drove away.
⸻
That night, Sophia couldn’t sleep.
Again.
Rain tapped softly against the apartment windows while the city lights painted silver reflections across her bedroom ceiling.
Her phone screen glowed beside her.
Unknown Number.
One unread message.
She should ignore it.
Instead, she opened it.
You never asked why i noticed you skipped dinner.
Sophia stared at the message.
Three dots appeared almost immediately.
My mother used to do the same thing after my father left. Work until she forgot she was hungry.
Sophia’s chest tightened unexpectedly.
Another message arrived.
Goodnight, Sophia.
No flirting.
No pressure.
No invitation.
Just goodnight.
Which somehow unsettled her more than anything else.
Because for the first time in years, someone looked at the sharpest edges of her personality…
…and didn’t walk away.
- Writer
