Chapter Fourteen -- Something Dangerous
1264 Words
I hated mornings that smelled like money and disappointment.
The boardroom was pristine, antiseptic, with a sheen of faux civility. Leather chairs surrounded a polished oak table that had witnessed too many bad deals disguised as genius moves. I occupied the head, my hands folded in front of me, suit impeccably tailored, tie slightly loosened — the perfect balance of authority and restraint.
My eyes scanned the projections across the table. Numbers, charts, occupancy rates, quarterly projections. All of it screamed one conclusion: the Vlax hotel was underperforming, bleeding money compared to the rest of my empire. Sell it. Strip it. Move on.
I’d been adamant about this. Rational. Cold. Profitable. Logical.
And yet…
“Mr. Hadez?” the CFO asked, snapping me from the thoughts that had drifted too close to… her.
I blinked. “Yes?”
“We need your approval to finalise the sale of Vlax,” she said, tapping a pen against her notes. “All legal has signed off. It’s ready. We can list it by next week.”
I nodded slowly, but something inside me recoiled. My eyes drifted past the glossy charts, past the financial forecasts, to the subtle detail that had slipped my mind — the layout of the suites, the private elevators, the corner room with the blacked-out windows. The same room where I’d carried her last night, intoxicated and half-conscious.
Her face flashed across my mind like a sudden spotlight in a dark room — Naya Shane, fragile, startled, desperate, and entirely my responsibility. Not that I wanted the responsibility. But… I remembered the way she’d looked at me, the tiny spark of defiance even when her body had betrayed her.
And I realized something.
She was probably homeless now. That’s why she had returned.
No one else would dare. No one else could.
I leaned back in my chair, breathing deliberately. The numbers on the screen blurred. Sell the hotel. Make money. Cut losses.
Sell the hotel?
No.
“Hold.”
The word cut through the room like a knife. Chairs shifted. Heads turned. Eyebrows rose. Murmurs fluttered like frightened birds.
“I’m not selling Vlax,” I said, deliberately slow. “Not right now.”
“What?” The CFO’s voice cracked slightly, disbelief dripping from every syllable. “Sir, we’ve already—”
“I said, hold.” I pressed my hands flat against the table, leaning forward, meeting their eyes. “The hotel stays. Do not list it. Do not advertise it. Not yet. And do not ask why.”
A stunned silence settled. I allowed it to linger just long enough for them to squirm.
“Profit margins?” the CFO finally asked, voice tight, cautious.
“Secondary to…” I let the thought trail off. Too dangerous to speak aloud. Instead, I stood, buttoning my jacket. “That’s all for today.”
The meeting disbanded like obedient sheep scattering from a storm. Papers shuffled. People muttered, some angry, some confused, all powerless. I remained seated for a moment, my hands clasped together, and let my mind wander back to her — the way she’d been so entirely reckless yet vulnerable.
I hated that I remembered. I hated that I cared.
By the time I reached my office, Louis Sain was already leaning against the doorframe, smirk in place, hands stuffed into the pockets of his tailored blazer. He’d been watching me for the entire meeting, I knew. I could feel the teasing energy radiating off him.
“You changed your mind,” he said, slow, deliberate, like he had all the time in the world to savor my discomfort.
“What?” I didn’t look up from the documents on my desk.
“The hotel. Vlax. You’re not selling. You were ready to sign the papers and then—bam! Cold feet.” He pushed off the doorframe and walked in, hands gesturing toward me, voice dripping amusement. “Come on, man. Don’t tell me it’s because of… her.”
I slammed the pen down, sharp enough to make him flinch. “f**k off, Louis.”
He grinned wider. “Ahh, denial. Classic. I know that look. You’re falling for her.”
“Stop.” My tone was low, dangerous. “And stop trying to tip Beth off. She doesn’t need to know anything.”
He raised an eyebrow, hands on his hips, leaning casually against the window sill. “Relax. I only went to greet Beth. That’s it. Nothing else. You know I respect the boundaries of your little… situation.”
I looked up finally, eyes cold, sharp. “That doesn’t mean I trust you.”
“Trust me?” Louis laughed softly, eyes gleaming. “Kai, you’re a f*****g genius at being cold. But with her… You’re a disaster.”
I gritted my teeth. “She’s not your concern. And if you mention her again, I’ll make your life miserable.”
He leaned closer, lowering his voice, the playful edge still intact. “Oh, I won’t. Not to her. But to you? Always. You’re practically glowing with guilt, you know that?”
I stood, moving to the edge of the office, looking down over the city. My reflection in the glass looked back at me — composed, unreadable. Calculating. But beneath it all, I could feel the thrum of something else: a tether I hadn’t acknowledged, a pull toward a girl who had no right to my attention.
Louis followed my gaze, reading me like a book. “You remember last night?” he said lightly, though the sharpness in his eyes betrayed amusement.
“I remember,” I said. Not a lie. Not a confession either.
“That’s it? You don’t want to tell me how scandalous it was?”
I turned, all business. “You’re testing my patience.”
He raised his hands in mock surrender. “Alright, alright. But seriously, Kai. You’re not selling the hotel, and I know exactly why. Admit it. You want to keep your little… mistake close.”
I took a slow breath, deliberate, and leaned back against the edge of the desk. “Keep your assumptions to yourself, Louis. Or I will regret having trusted you with Beth in the first place.”
“Ah, yes. The sacred ‘we-keep-Beth-a-secret’ pact,” he said, smirking. “
I clenched my fists, resisting the urge to snap. I hated being so readable. “You’ll find out everything you need to know in time. Not now. Not ever casually.”
He tilted his head, eyes sharp but teasing. “Fair enough. But mark my words, Kai. If she’s causing you this much trouble, that’s not just desire. That’s something else. Something dangerous.”
I ignored him, turning back to the skyline. Dangerous was precisely why she couldn’t stay out of my mind. She was a wildfire, a threat, a liability. Yet I couldn’t justify abandoning her — not now. She had nowhere else to go.
Louis’s voice floated behind me, teasing but knowing: “Don’t let Beth find out. You know she’d destroy her if she did. And you… You’d probably thank her for it.”
“I said leave it,” I said coldly, eyes narrowing.
He chuckled. “Fine. For now. But one day, Kai… one day, you’re going to lose the fight with your own heart.”
I said nothing. Just let him leave. His footsteps faded into the corridor, leaving me alone with the hum of the city, alone with my thoughts.
Vlax Hotel wasn’t just an investment anymore. It was a safeguard. A tether. A reminder.
- Writer
