Meanwhile, in Lunos Tech's meeting room, Marion was reviewing the final terms of a collaboration agreement with the project manager. On the surface, everything was proceeding smoothly.
But his mind was elsewhere.
He kept seeing it—those elevator doors, gleaming with cold metallic sheen, sliding open to admit Kirsten… and closing behind her like a vault.
She had stepped into another man's world. A world that, for the first time, Marion couldn't access. Couldn't control.
The thought made his chest tighten with an unfamiliar restlessness.
"Mr. Ballard?" the manager prompted gently.
Marion blinked back into focus, signed the contract, and said as casually as he could manage, "If I may—who is the guest Mr. Fletcher is meeting today?"
The manager smiled politely. "Mr. Fletcher handles all
