You were always mine

The first time I saw Adrian Vale, he was staring at me. Not casually. Not the way a man sometimes looked at a woman he found attractive. He was staring like the rest of the room had disappeared. And honestly? It was starting to piss me off. "Don't look now," I whispered. Maya immediately turned around. I grabbed her arm. "I literally said don't look." "You should know by now that saying that makes people look." She turned back to me, eyes wide. "Oh." "What?" "He's hot." I sighed. "That isn't the problem." We were standing inside the ballroom of the Vale Grand Hotel, surrounded by enough expensive suits, diamonds, champagne, and fake smiles to make my bank account feel personally insulted. My design firm had been invited to pitch for the hotel's new luxury campaign. This was supposed to be important for my career. Instead, I had spent the last ten minutes trying to ignore the man standing across the ballroom. Black suit. Dark hair. Tall. Broad shoulders. A face unfairly attractive enough that I almost forgave the staring. Almost. "Who is he?" I asked. Maya stared at me. "You're joking." "I don't usually joke about creepy men." "That's Adrian Vale." I looked at her. Nothing. She continued, "Vale Group?" Still nothing. "The man who owns this hotel?" I slowly looked around the ballroom. Then back at him. "Oh." "Exactly." "So the owner is creepy." "Please don't say that where anyone can hear you." "I whispered." "You whisper like you're making a public announcement." Across the room, Adrian Vale was speaking to two businessmen. At least, they were speaking to him. He wasn't listening. His eyes were still on me. I raised an eyebrow. He didn't look away. Okay. That was weird. Most men did one of two things when caught staring. They either looked away quickly or smiled. Adrian did neither. He simply continued. Calmly. Like he had every right to. I lifted my champagne glass slightly. A silent Can I help you? Nothing. His expression didn't change. "Maybe he likes you," Maya whispered. "Then he should try blinking." She laughed. I turned away. "Come on. Our presentation starts in fifteen minutes." I had taken exactly three steps when someone bumped into my shoulder. My glass tilted. Cold champagne spilled over my hand. "Perfect." I looked down at my dress. Thankfully, most of it had missed the fabric. "Sorry," the man who'd bumped me said. "It's fine." Before I could reach for a napkin, someone appeared beside me. A white handkerchief entered my vision. I looked up. Adrian Vale. That was fast. Too fast. "Use this." His voice was deep and controlled. I looked at the handkerchief. Then at him. "I think the hotel has napkins." "Use this." Not please. Not would you like this? An order. I didn't take it. "You're very bossy." Something changed in his eyes. Not anger. Interest. Like I'd just become even more fascinating. "I've been told." "Frequently, I hope." Maya made a suspicious coughing sound behind me. Adrian's gaze dropped to my wet hand. His jaw tightened. It was champagne. Not blood. Why did he look annoyed? He held the handkerchief out again. I took it mostly because refusing it a second time felt childish. "Thank you." His eyes followed my fingers. Then my wrist. Then my face again. Slowly. Intensely. I suddenly became aware of how close he was standing. One step closer than normal. Maybe two. I moved back. His gaze immediately sharpened. Interesting. He noticed. "Do you always stare at your guests this much?" Maya stopped breathing. Adrian didn't react. "Only interesting ones." "That sounded practiced." "It wasn't." "Worse." For the first time, his mouth almost curved. Almost. I wiped my hand. "Do I get to know why I'm interesting?" "No." I blinked. At least he was honest. "Good talk." I handed back the handkerchief. He didn't take it. "Keep it." "Why?" "Because I said so." There it was again. I pushed it into his hand. "And I said no." For one second, neither of us moved. Then his fingers closed slowly around the fabric. His eyes stayed on mine. Something about his expression made a small warning bell ring inside my head. This wasn't normal flirting. I knew flirting. This felt more like— Focus. Too much focus. "Evelyn," Maya whispered. "We need to go." Adrian's gaze shifted to her. Only briefly. Then back to me. I hadn't introduced myself. But Maya had just said my name, so there was nothing strange about him hearing it. Still, the way he looked at me after hearing it made me uncomfortable. Like he was committing it to memory. "Nice meeting you, Mr. Vale." I stepped around him. His voice stopped me. "Your presentation is in the east conference room." I turned. "Yes." "Wrong direction." I looked ahead. Then at the sign beside me. WEST WING. Damn it. Maya started laughing. I pointed at her. "Not one word." I turned back. Adrian was watching me. Again. I sighed. "Thank you." This time, he did smile. Very slightly. It somehow made him more dangerous-looking. ⸻ "He wants you." Maya announced this the second we entered the elevator. I pressed the button. "He doesn't know me." "Men have managed attraction under worse circumstances." "Attraction, maybe." I looked at the closed doors. "That wasn't attraction." "What was it?" "I don't know." And that was the problem. There had been something unsettling in Adrian's attention. Not simply You're beautiful. More like— I need to know everything. I shook off the thought. "I have a presentation." "You also have a billionaire." "I don't want a billionaire." "Can I have him?" "Please." The elevator opened. We stepped out. Five minutes later, I was standing in front of a conference table presenting the campaign I'd spent weeks building. And I forgot Adrian Vale. Mostly. Until the conference room door opened. He walked in. Of course. Everyone straightened. I stopped talking. Adrian looked directly at me. "Continue." I glanced at the empty chair at the head of the table. "You're joining us?" "I own the company." Fair point. He sat. I continued. The campaign was designed around experiences rather than wealth. I wanted the hotel to feel desirable without looking like every other luxury advertisement. Ten minutes passed. Adrian asked nothing. He simply watched me. Again. I finally stopped. "Mr. Vale." "Yes?" "Is something wrong with the presentation?" "No." "Then could you look at the screen occasionally?" Someone at the table nearly choked. Maya stared down at her notes. Adrian leaned back. "Does my looking at you make you nervous?" "No." "Then continue." I narrowed my eyes. Challenge accepted. I finished without looking away from him whenever I made an important point. If he wanted a staring competition, fine. I had survived design school critiques. He didn't scare me. Much. When I finished, the marketing director started discussing revisions. Adrian interrupted. "No revisions." Everyone stopped. I frowned. "You don't want any changes?" "No." "You've barely looked at the slides." "I heard every word." Of course he had. He stood. "We'll use her concept." My heart jumped. This account could change my career. I should have been thrilled. I was. But something bothered me. "You decided very quickly." His eyes met mine. "Do you want me to reject it?" "No." "Then don't complain." "I wasn't complaining." "You were about to." I hated that he was right. He walked toward the door. Then stopped. "Send the final files directly to my office." The marketing director looked surprised. Apparently, that wasn't normal. Neither was Adrian. I was beginning to notice. ⸻ By six that evening, I was exhausted. Maya had gone home. I stayed to finish revisions because I preferred getting work done while my brain was still pretending to function. When I finally stepped outside, rain was pouring. "Wonderful." I opened the cab app. No cars available. I tried another. Twenty-two-minute wait. I sighed. A black car stopped in front of me. The rear window lowered. Adrian. Of course. "Get in." I stared at him. "No." His eyebrows pulled together. "It's raining." "I noticed." "I'll take you home." "I don't get into cars with strange men." "We've met." "That doesn't make you less strange." His jaw tightened. "Evelyn." "Mr. Vale." "Get in." I smiled. "No." Something dark moved through his expression. Not anger exactly. Frustration. Like refusing him wasn't something people normally did. He opened the door and stepped out. Rain immediately hit his suit. "What are you doing?" "Waiting." "For what?" "Your cab." I stared at him. "You don't have to." "I know." "Then leave." "No." I laughed because I genuinely didn't know what else to do. "You have control issues." "I've been told." "Again, frequently, I hope." His eyes remained on me. Rain ran through his hair. His expensive suit was getting soaked. He didn't seem to care. My phone buzzed. Cab found. Fourteen minutes away. I showed him. "See? Problem solved." Adrian glanced at the screen. Fourteen minutes. Then at the dark street. "No." "No what?" "Cancel it." I stared at him. "You don't get to decide that." His expression became unreadable. Then he stepped back. "Fine." I expected him to leave. He didn't. For fourteen full minutes, Adrian Vale stood in the rain beside me. He didn't make conversation. Didn't touch me. Didn't ask again. He simply stayed. My cab finally arrived. I opened the door. Adrian looked at the license plate. Then at the driver. I noticed. "You're memorizing his plate?" "Yes." "Why?" "In case you disappear." I laughed. He didn't. The laugh died in my throat. "That wasn't funny." "I wasn't joking." I stared at him. There it was again. That feeling. Too intense. Too serious. I got inside. "Goodnight, Mr. Vale." "Text me when you get home." "I don't have your number." He took my phone from my hand before I realized what he was doing. "Hey!" Three seconds. He typed something. Called himself. Then returned my phone. I stared at the new contact. Adrian Vale. "You cannot just take people's phones." "You're right." That surprised me. "Then why did you?" "Because now you have my number." That was not an answer. I deleted the contact while looking directly at him. His eyes dropped to the screen. Then returned to mine. "Goodnight." I closed the door. As the cab pulled away, I looked through the back window. Adrian was still standing in the rain. Watching my car disappear. ⸻ Twenty minutes later, I reached my apartment building. The cab drove away. My phone buzzed. A text from an unknown number. Inside? I stopped. Adrian. Obviously. I typed: Did you seriously text me after I deleted your number? His reply came immediately. Yes. I rolled my eyes. How did you get mine? Three dots appeared. Disappeared. Appeared again. Finally: I own the hotel where you submitted your contact information. At least the explanation made sense. It was still inappropriate. That doesn't mean you can use it personally. This time his answer took longer. You're right. I stared at it. Then another message arrived. Are you inside? Persistent man. Yes. A second later: Lock your door. I frowned. Do you send safety instructions to every designer you hire? No response. I waited. Nothing. "Creepy billionaire," I muttered. I went upstairs. What I didn't know was that across the city, Adrian Vale was sitting in the back seat of his car with my name still open on his phone. His driver asked quietly, "Home, sir?" Adrian didn't answer immediately. On his screen was the last message I'd sent. Do you send safety instructions to every designer you hire? His thumb moved over my name. Once. Then he locked the phone. "No." The driver waited. Adrian looked out at the rain. His voice was calm again. "Make sure the car that brought her home doesn't take another booking tonight." The driver looked at him in the mirror. "Sir?" "I want the driver checked." A pause. "Is there a problem?" Adrian's expression didn't change. "No." That was the problem. There was no reason for him to care this much. No reason for him to remember the cab's plate. No reason for him to still be thinking about the woman he'd met only hours ago. And yet, when his phone lit up again, his attention snapped to it immediately. Not Evelyn. His jaw tightened. He looked away. Then picked up the phone again. Opened her contact. And stared at her name. As if putting the phone down required more self-control than it should have. Finally, he gave one more instruction. "If she comes to the hotel again, I want to know." The driver hesitated. "Every time?" Adrian's eyes lifted. "Every time." The answer came too quickly. Too easily. And somewhere across the city, completely unaware of just how much attention she'd attracted, Evelyn Carter locked her apartment door. Exactly as he'd told her to. Adrian didn't know that. But he remained awake anyway.