Chapter 45 — Distance
786 Words
The argument should have made things easier.
Aurora had finally confronted the issue instead of pretending it didn’t exist. Cassian had stopped hiding behind indifference long enough to admit more than he probably intended. Logic suggested the conversation should have resolved at least part of the tension.
Instead, it created an entirely different problem.
For the first time in months, both of them became painfully aware of how much space the other occupied in their daily lives.
Aurora discovered it on Monday morning.
A major contract negotiation required her attention from sunrise until late afternoon, leaving little room for distractions. The schedule was demanding enough that she barely glanced at her phone between meetings.
Under ordinary circumstances, she wouldn’t have noticed.
The problem was that ordinary circumstances had disappeared somewhere around their first kiss.
Several times throughout the day, her attention drifted toward the empty space where an interruption, a message, or an unexpected appearance might have happened.
Nothing came.
By evening, the realization irritated her more than it should have.
Across the city, Cassian was experiencing a similar problem.
The week had begun with three acquisitions, two board meetings, and enough financial decisions to occupy every available hour.
Work normally solved everything.
This week, it only provided distractions.
The difference became obvious whenever he found himself reaching for information he didn’t actually need.
A report from her company.
An update regarding a project she was involved in.
A meeting summary containing her name.
None of it was necessary.
All of it somehow ended up on his desk.
The pattern annoyed him immediately.
Recognizing the pattern annoyed him even more.
By Wednesday, Amelia had grown tired of watching Aurora pretend everything was fine.
“You’re sulking.”
“I don’t sulk.”
“You absolutely do.”
Aurora looked up from her laptop.
“I’ve been working.”
“You’ve used that excuse so often I’m starting to think it’s a medical condition.”
The response earned a reluctant smile.
A small victory.
Amelia recognized it immediately.
“You miss him.”
Aurora nearly choked on her coffee.
“No.”
“You do.”
“No.”
“Interesting.”
“What?”
“You denied him faster than you deny anything else.”
Aurora spent the next five minutes regretting the conversation.
Mostly because she couldn’t prove Amelia wrong.
The following evening brought another foundation event.
Smaller than usual also more private.
Attendance was limited to sponsors and board members.
Aurora arrived expecting a straightforward evening.
The expectation lasted until she stepped into the room and realized Cassian wasn’t there.
A strange disappointment followed.
She hated it instantly.
An hour later, she was still thinking about it.
Which made the eventual arrival significantly more annoying.
Cassian entered midway through a discussion involving several sponsors. His arrival drew attention as expected, though the effect seemed less dramatic than usual.
Perhaps because Aurora was too busy being irritated.
The first twenty minutes passed without interaction.
Both of them remained occupied with separate conversations and were entirely aware of the other’s location.
Neither seemed interested in acknowledging that fact.
The situation might have continued indefinitely if one of the sponsors hadn’t approached Aurora with a question regarding a future partnership.
The discussion expanded.
Another guest joined.
Then another.
By the time the conversation finished, nearly half the room had become involved.
Aurora handled it effortlessly.
Professional confidence had never been difficult for her.
The challenge arrived when she glanced across the room.
Cassian was watching.
Just enough.
The realization followed her through the rest of the evening.
Eventually, circumstances placed them beside each other near the exit.
Neither spoke immediately.
The silence felt familiar.
Far too comfortable.
“You disappeared.”
The observation left her mouth before she could stop it.
Cassian looked surprised.
A rare occurrence.
“I’ve been working.”
Aurora immediately regretted the words.
Mostly because they sounded exactly like something she would say.
A faint smile appeared.
“You don’t believe that excuse when I use it either.”
The response made her laugh despite herself.
For a moment, the tension from the previous week seemed to ease not disappear.
Enough to remind both of them how simple things felt when they stopped fighting reality.
“You could have called.”
The words escaped quietly.
Cassian studied her.
“Could I have?”
Aurora hated how quickly her pulse reacted.
The question sounded harmless.
The implication wasn’t.
Before she could answer, several guests approached.
The interruption ended the conversation even the moment passed
Yet as Aurora walked toward her car later that evening, one realization remained impossible to ignore.
Distance hadn’t solved anything.
If anything, it had made the truth harder to avoid.
- Writer
