Chapter4:Alex’s world
1439 Words
(Alex’s POV)
—
My mornings always start the same. Alarm. Coffee. Emails. Meetings. More meetings.
I stared at my screen as Belle, my assistant, rattled off the day’s schedule like she had it printed in her brain. “You’ve got three meetings before noon. A board briefing at eleven, and Mr. Kingston wants a word with you in the conference room right after.”
I sighed, rubbing my temples. “Of course he does.”
Belle gave me a tight-lipped smile. “I can stall him if you want?”
I waved her off. “Don’t bother. It’ll only make it worse.”
I stood, buttoning my blazer. My office was all clean lines and steel. The kind of space that looked perfect on the outside, just like my life was supposed to be.
But it never felt like mine. Not completely. Not even now that I was CEO.
I took the elevator down, each ding making my head pound. The closer I got to the conference room, the heavier the air felt. My father, the great Richard Kingston, always made sure his presence was known.
The door was open when I arrived. He was already seated, tapping his fingers against the table. Martin, the CFO, stood nearby looking like he wanted to vanish. I couldn’t blame him. Whenever my father was involved, tension came free of charge.
“Alex,” my father said, not even glancing up. “Took you long enough.”
“I had back-to-back calls,” I replied flatly.
He scoffed. “Excuses. That’s all I hear from you lately. You think just because you’re CEO now, you’ve made it?”
I ignored him and nodded at Martin, who gave me a look full of sympathy. “You need me for something?” I asked, keeping my tone neutral.
My father leaned back, eyes cold. “The Singapore deal. You’re dragging your feet. We’re losing money every day, and you waste time.”
“I’m finalizing negotiations,” I said. “Rushing would cost us more.”
Martin cleared his throat. “We’ve reviewed the numbers. Alex’s strategy is solid.”
My father shot him a glare that could freeze fire. “Did I ask you, Martin?”
Martin looked down. “No, sir.”
I clenched my jaw. “Don’t talk to him like that.”
He turned to me slowly. “Don’t tell me how to run my company.”
“It’s mine now,” I reminded him. “You gave up control, remember?”
He laughed. “Control? I still own forty percent. You’re only where you are because I allowed it.”
I kept my face calm even though I wanted to walk out. Or yell. Or both.
“Is there anything else?” I asked.
“Just don’t screw it up,” he said, standing. “You’re already on thin ice.”
He walked out, leaving a silence that echoed.
Martin exhaled loudly. “He’s in rare form today.”
“Yeah,” I said, loosening my tie. “He always saves the best for me.”
“You’re doing fine, Alex. Better than fine. Don’t let him get in your head.”
I appreciated the words, but they didn’t help much. Not when every move I made felt like it was being watched, judged, weighed.
Belle met me outside the room. “Everything okay?”
“Define okay,” I muttered.
She didn’t push. Belle never pushed, and I respected that. “Next meeting’s in twenty minutes.”
I nodded and walked back to my office. I had a hundred things to do, but my mind wandered anyway.
I thought of how empty my house felt at night. How the silence sometimes got so loud it was hard to breathe. How I never let anyone get too close. Not since…
I shook off the thought. No time for that. Not today. Not ever.
There was always work. Always something to fix.
But even now, five years later, there were cracks I couldn’t cover. And I had no idea that one of them was about to walk right back into town—with two small shadows beside her.
—
The second the boardroom door shut behind me, I knew I needed a drink. A strong one.
Whenever my father came around, my day was guaranteed to go downhill. Nothing I did was ever enough for him. CEO or not, he still treated me like an intern trying to prove myself.
I loosened my tie and let out a sigh as I stepped into the elevator. Belle tried to say something about a meeting scheduled for the next day, but I waved her off. I didn’t want to hear another word about business tonight. I needed to breathe.
It was almost 10 p.m. when I walked into The Velvet Room, a classy bar downtown. Dim lights, smooth music, expensive whiskey. My kind of place. And luckily, quiet enough for me to drink without someone trying to pitch me an idea or sell me something.
“Alex!” Emma’s voice reached me before I even saw her.
Emma Carter. Model, wild, fun—and exactly what I needed when I wanted zero emotions involved. She was dressed to kill as always, with a short black dress that clung to her like second skin.
She threw her arms around me and kissed my cheek. “You’ve been ignoring me all week,” she teased, looping her arm around mine. “I was beginning to think you were seeing someone else.”
I gave a tired smile. “Been busy. Work’s a mess.”
She leaned into me. “Then let’s make tonight all about forgetting, yeah?”
I didn’t argue. Emma ordered shots and pulled me toward the small dance floor. I let her take the lead. She danced close—too close—but I didn’t care. Her hands slid down my chest, her lips brushing against my jaw.
“Relax, baby,” she whispered. “Let me take care of you.”
I might’ve gone along with it if I hadn’t turned and come face-to-face with someone I never expected to see again.
Claire.
I froze.
She was standing by the bar, wearing a simple but elegant cream blouse and black pants. Her hair was longer, wavy, her skin glowing. But it was her eyes that hit me the hardest—those sharp brown eyes I’d once looked into during a night I tried too hard to forget.
She looked…different. Confident. Put together. Strong.
She saw me. Her body tensed.
Emma was still hanging on me, swaying to the music, completely unaware of the storm that had just entered the room.
Claire didn’t look away. Her chin lifted, and she calmly sipped her drink, like seeing me didn’t faze her at all.
It did something to me. Pissed me off a little, too. I expected her to flinch, to avoid my eyes—to show even a flicker of the girl who once begged me not to treat her like trash.
But that girl was gone.
Emma turned to follow my gaze. “Who’s that?” she asked, still holding onto me.
“No one,” I said too quickly.
Claire smirked. I caught the curve of her lips from across the room and felt a strange mix of emotions I didn’t have a name for. Annoyance. Guilt. Curiosity.
She turned to the bartender and said something. Then she grabbed her purse and walked out without sparing me another glance.
Emma leaned in again. “Want to go somewhere quieter?”
I blinked, my mind still stuck on Claire. “No,” I muttered, pulling away. “I’m done for the night.”
Emma frowned. “Seriously? We just got started.”
“Not in the mood,” I said, already heading for the exit.
Outside, the cool night air hit me like a slap. I ran a hand through my hair, feeling the weight of the past five years press down on me harder than ever.
What the hell was Claire doing back in town?
And why did seeing her shake me up like that?
I pulled out my phone and stared at it for a second, then shoved it back into my pocket. There was no point reaching out. She made it clear—her walking away without even flinching said more than words ever could.
Still, something about that look in her eyes stuck with me.
She wasn’t just back.
She was different.
And I had a feeling this time, she wasn’t going to be easy to ignore.
- Writer
