CHAPTER 3
886 Words
Anderson’s breath was still hot against my ear when the door opened again.
This time it wasn’t his dangerous-looking associate.
It was Liam.
He stepped inside like he belonged there, suit jacket slung over one shoulder, easy smile on his face—the same smile that had gotten me through finals, bad dates, and every late-night crisis since college. Tall, warm brown eyes, the kind of guy who remembered your coffee order and never made you feel small.
“Tefon,” he said, voice calm but edged with worry. “I heard you got called up here. Everything okay?”
Anderson straightened slowly, every movement controlled, but the temperature in the room dropped ten degrees.
Liam’s gaze flicked to him, then back to me. “I was already in the building for a meeting with Legal. Thought I’d check on you after those texts blowing up my phone about last night.”
He didn’t know. Not fully. But he’d come anyway.
Anderson’s eyes narrowed a fraction—the only sign he was displeased. “Mr. Hayes,” he said, voice smooth as polished steel. “This is a private conversation.”
Liam didn’t flinch. “With all due respect, sir, Tefon’s my friend. If she’s in trouble, I’m not leaving her alone.”
Friend. The word landed differently now, with Anderson’s claim still burning in my ears.
I stepped between them before the air could ignite. “Liam, I’m fine. Really. Just… a misunderstanding from last night.”
Liam’s eyes searched mine, gentle but sharp. He’d always been able to read me. “You sure? Because the videos I saw… you didn’t look like yourself. And people are saying Anderson pulled you out of a bad situation. If he’s pressuring you—”
“He’s not,” I cut in quickly, even as my skin still tingled from where Anderson had touched me.
Anderson watched the exchange in silence, but I felt the weight of his stare like a physical force. Possessive. Calculating. He didn’t like Liam being here. Didn’t like another man offering me safety.
“Miss Tefon stays,” Anderson said quietly, the command wrapped in velvet. “We have unfinished business.”
Liam’s jaw tightened, but he kept his tone light, almost teasing—the way he always diffused tension. “Business can wait five minutes. Tefon, walk with me to the lobby? I’ll drive you home. No pressure, just away from… all this.”
The offer hung in the air. Safe. Normal. Everything Anderson wasn’t.
For a split second, I wanted to say yes. To escape the magnetic pull that made my heart race and my instincts scream danger.
But Anderson moved first.
He stepped around me, positioning himself so his body partially blocked Liam’s view of me. Not aggressive. Just… deliberate.
“Mr. Hayes,” he said, tone deceptively polite, “your concern is noted. However, Miss Tefon will be leaving with me tonight. We have matters to discuss regarding her… performance last night.”
The double meaning hit like a slap.
Liam’s easy smile faltered for the first time. Something darker flashed in his eyes—protective, almost territorial—before he masked it. “Performance?”
My stomach twisted. The viral videos. The grinding. The way Anderson had held me like I was already his.
Heat flooded my face. “Liam, it’s not—”
Anderson cut me off smoothly. “She’ll explain everything tomorrow. Right now, she’s mine to handle.”
The word “mine” dropped like a stone.
Liam looked at me one last time, searching, worried… and something else I couldn’t quite name. “Tefon. Call me if you need anything. Anytime. Day or night.”
He turned to leave, but paused at the door. “And sir… be careful with her. She’s not like the others.”
The door clicked shut behind him.
Silence crashed down.
Anderson turned to me, eyes blazing with barely leashed intensity. The emotional control was still there, but cracks were showing—raw hunger mixed with something sharper. Jealousy? Possession?
“You let him speak to me that way,” he murmured, stepping close again, backing me against the desk once more. “You let him offer to take you away from me.”
“I didn’t let him do anything,” I shot back, heart pounding. I was intelligent enough to know I was playing with fire, but I refused to submit. “And I’m not yours to handle.”
His hand came up, cupping my chin, forcing my gaze to his. “You will be.”
The tension between us snapped tight—magnetic, dangerous, electric. His thumb brushed my lower lip, and for one breathless moment, I thought he’d kiss me. Claim me right there against the glass and steel of his empire.
Instead, he leaned in, voice a dark promise.
“Tomorrow, the board meets. They’ve seen the footage. They want explanations. They want to know why the Ice King lost control over a junior analyst who danced like sin in a Tuesday night club.”
My blood ran cold.
He smiled then—small, cold, and devastating.
“And when they ask… I’m going to tell them the truth.”
He paused, eyes locking onto mine with terrifying certainty.
“I’m keeping you.”
- Writer
