Chapter 19
1146 Words
Lucian watches the elevator doors close, and for the first time in years, he feels something slip from his grasp. Something he didn’t even realize he was holding onto so tightly.
Sienna is leaving.
His mind rejects it instantly. No. That’s not possible. She belongs here, by his side, where she has always been. She doesn’t get to make this decision, to walk away as if the last seven years have meant nothing. As if he means nothing.
He clenches his jaw, hands curling into fists. Because of a man? Because she can’t handle her own emotions? It’s ridiculous. Sienna is stronger than this. Smarter than this. She doesn’t make impulsive decisions, and she sure as hell doesn’t let personal feelings dictate her career.
And yet, she just told him she’s leaving. And worse—his grandfather agreed.
Lucian storms back to his office, slamming the door behind him. His pulse pounds in his ears. He presses his hands against the desk, inhaling sharply, trying to steady himself. But the rage—no, not just rage, something deeper, something uglier—is already coiling in his chest, suffocating him.
He grabs his phone, dialing his grandfather without hesitation.
The old man answers after the first ring. “I was expecting your call.”
Lucian doesn’t waste time. “You agreed to her resignation?”
A pause. Then, “She made her choice, Lucian.”
His grip tightens around the phone. “She doesn’t get to make that choice. We invested in her future. She owes—”
“I didn’t give her an education because I wanted her to owe us, boy. I did it because I believed in her. And if she believes she needs to leave, I respect that.”
Lucian’s throat tightens. “She’s throwing everything away for a personal—”
“She’s leaving you, not her career.”
That silences him.
His grandfather sighs. “You and I both know why she’s doing this.”
Lucian sets his jaw. “And what exactly do you think that reason is?”
Another pause. Then, with quiet finality, “You, Lucian. You’re the reason.”
The call disconnects before he can respond. He stands there, phone in hand, heart pounding. He wants to reject it outright, to claim it’s absurd. But the words sink in, burrowing deep. You’re the reason.
Lucian sinks into his chair, exhaling sharply. His mind flashes back to the past weeks—to Sienna pulling away, to her avoiding his gaze, to her suddenly not being the first person he sees when he walks into the office. He’d noticed it, of course he had, but he convinced himself it was nothing. That she’d come back to him, like she always did.
But she’s not coming back this time.
And it’s his fault.
His fingers drum against the desk, his frustration mounting. This is fixable. He just has to talk to her, make her see reason. Make her understand that she’s being irrational. She needs to be here. This company wouldn’t run the same without her. He wouldn’t be the same without her.
Before he can overthink it, he’s already moving. He strides out of his office, his entire body tense as he makes his way down to her floor.
Ethan looks startled when he sees him. “Sir?”
“Where is she?” Lucian’s voice is sharp, demanding.
Ethan hesitates. “She—uh, she left. Packed up her desk and everything.”
Lucian’s chest constricts. She left? Already?
He stalks past Ethan, pushing open the door to her office.
Or what used to be her office.
The space is empty. Bare. The desk, once stacked with neatly organized files and personal touches—her favorite coffee mug, the framed picture of her with Theo and Sophie—now sits cold and unoccupied.
For the first time in his life, Lucian Sterling feels something dangerously close to panic.
His eyes scan the room, searching for anything—a sign that she’s coming back, that this is temporary. But there’s nothing. Not even a note.
The realization hits him with brutal clarity.
Sienna is gone.
His mind races. He should go to her apartment, demand that she talk to him. Or better yet, order HR to reject her resignation. She can’t leave. She doesn’t get to leave.
Except… she already has.
And for the first time, Lucian doesn’t know how to fix it.
He takes a slow, unsteady breath, his hands tightening at his sides. His jaw clenches so hard it aches.
No.
This isn’t over.
Sienna Vale might think she can walk away from him, from this, but she’s wrong.
He won’t let her go.
Not now.
Not ever.
Later that night, Lucian sits in his private lounge, a glass of whiskey in hand. The room is dim, the silence stretching as he stares at the amber liquid swirling in his glass. He’s had a few drinks, but not enough to dull the sharp ache sitting heavy in his chest.
The door creaks open, and he doesn’t have to look up to know who it is.
Damon steps inside, eyeing the nearly empty bottle on the table. “Well, that’s a rare sight. You drinking alone?”
Lucian exhales sharply. “Not in the mood, Damon.”
Damon ignores him, settling into the chair across from him. He studies Lucian for a moment, then smirks. “So, this is about Sienna.”
Lucian glares at him. “Don’t.”
Damon chuckles, shaking his head. “You really are an i***t, you know that?”
Lucian scowls, but Damon continues. “I’ve always known you two had a thing. Hell, everyone did. I just didn’t think it would take this long for you to figure it out.”
Lucian tightens his grip around his glass. “There’s nothing to figure out.”
Damon leans forward, elbows resting on his knees. “Then why are you sitting here drinking yourself into a mood instead of doing something about it?”
Lucian doesn’t respond.
Damon sighs. “She left because of you. And now you’re just going to let her go? That’s not the Lucian I know.”
Lucian swallows hard. “She made her choice.”
“So fight for her,” Damon says simply. “If you actually think you can live without her, then fine. Let her go. But if you can’t—if the idea of her being with someone else, working somewhere else, building a life without you makes you want to put your fist through a wall—then get off your ass and do something about it.”
Lucian stares at him, Damon’s words cutting deeper than he wants to admit.
Because the truth is, he can’t live without her.
And he sure as hell isn’t about to let her go without a fight.
- Writer
