POV: Adrian
Sloane’s defiance burns through my mind every day. I used to think she would crawl back, but she keeps rising instead. I sit in my office, staring at the reports, and every number reminds me of her stubbornness.
She was supposed to fall apart when I left. That was the plan. She was supposed to beg for help, not build herself up. I tap my pen against the table, thinking of her face when she told me she didn’t need me anymore.
Mia walks in without knocking, wearing that bored expression she calls seductive. She leans on the wall, waiting for me to notice her. I ignored her at first, pretending to read an email that didn’t matter.
“You’ve been distant,” she says, her voice soft but sharp. I sigh, rubbing my temple. “I’m busy,” I tell her. It’s true, but not in the way she thi
