CHAPTER 14 – Work Comes First
825 Words
Elena spent the entire ride home thinking about Ethan’s invitation.
Which was unfortunate.
Because she had promised herself she wouldn’t.
Yet the moment she stepped onto the subway, the conversation replayed in her mind.
“I’d like to take you to dinner.”
Not lunch.
Not coffee.
Not another casual conversation between friends.
Dinner.
Intentional.
Personal.
Different.
And that difference was exactly the problem.
By the time she reached her apartment building, she still didn’t have an answer.
The familiar smell of dinner greeted her the moment she opened the door.
“Elena!”
Liam appeared from the living room.
At sixteen, her younger brother had somehow become taller than she remembered every week.
She narrowed her eyes.
“Did you grow again?”
Liam grinned.
“Maybe.”
“You need to stop.”
“That’s not how growth works.”
“It should be.”
His laughter filled the apartment.
A sound Elena never got tired of hearing.
For a moment, the stress of the day faded.
Just a little.
In the kitchen, her mother sat at the small dining table sorting through paperwork.
Medical bills.
Prescription receipts.
Monthly expenses.
The sight immediately tightened Elena’s chest.
“Mom.”
Her mother looked up and smiled.
A warm smile despite the fatigue beneath it.
“You’re home.”
“You’re supposed to be resting.”
“And you’re supposed to stop worrying.”
Neither of them believed the other.
It was a familiar routine.
One they’d been repeating for years.
Elena crossed the room and kissed her mother’s cheek before settling beside her.
Almost immediately, her eyes drifted to the papers on the table.
Numbers.
Costs.
Payments.
Responsibilities.
The reality of her life.
The reality she worked so hard to manage.
Dinner was simple.
Rice.
Stew.
A few stories from Liam about school.
A reminder from her mother to stop skipping breakfast.
The kind of evening that looked ordinary from the outside.
Yet meant everything to Elena.
Because these moments were the reason she pushed herself.
The reason she accepted every opportunity.
The reason she couldn’t afford mistakes.
Or distractions.
Later that night, after the dishes were done and Liam had disappeared into his room, Elena sat beside the window in the small living room.
The city lights glittered beyond the glass.
New York never seemed to sleep.
Her phone buzzed softly.
A message.
Ethan.
Her heart immediately betrayed her by reacting.
She opened it.
No pressure. Just wanted to make sure you got home safely.
A smile touched her lips before she could stop it.
Then came another message.
And before you ask, yes, I’m trying very hard to be patient.
Elena laughed quietly.
Typical Ethan.
Even his patience came with humor.
For a long moment, she stared at the screen.
Thinking.
Because the truth was simple.
She liked him.
Anyone pretending otherwise would be lying.
Ethan was kind.
Funny.
Easy to be around.
And for the first time in a long while, someone had looked at her as more than a responsibility.
More than a provider.
More than the woman constantly trying to hold everything together.
The temptation to say yes was real.
Very real.
But so were the bills stacked on the dining table.
So was her mother’s health.
So was Liam’s future.
And those things mattered more.
They had to.
The next morning, Elena arrived at Wolfe Global earlier than usual.
Determined to focus.
Work was easier.
Work made sense.
Work didn’t ask questions she wasn’t ready to answer.
Unfortunately, Ethan arrived shortly after.
“Good morning.”
“Morning.”
He studied her face.
Immediately suspicious.
“You’ve been thinking.”
She sighed.
“Is it that obvious?”
“Extremely.”
Ethan leaned casually against her desk.
“So?”
Elena hesitated.
Not because she didn’t know her answer.
Because she did.
The problem was that she wasn’t ready to say it yet.
Not until she fully understood it herself.
“I still need a little time.”
For a second, disappointment flashed on his face.
Only briefly.
Then he smiled.
“Take all the time you need.”
The sincerity made her feel guilty.
Which only confirmed what she already knew.
This wasn’t a decision she could make lightly.
From the executive floor above, Adrian stood beside the glass wall of his office.
Reviewing documents.
Or pretending to.
His attention shifted downward just in time to see Ethan speaking with Elena again.
The sight created that now-familiar irritation.
One he still refused to name.
One he still insisted meant nothing.
Work first.
Always work first.
It was a rule that had guided his entire life.
A rule that had built an empire.
A rule that had protected him from disappointment.
And lately, it was becoming increasingly difficult to follow.
Because every time Elena Hart smiled at someone else…
Work seemed a little less important.
And that was a problem Adrian Wolfe had no idea how to solve.
- Writer
