Chapter5
588 Words
Ava sat across from Adrian, her posture straight, her hands folded neatly in her lap. She had spent years preparing for this moment—preparing for the possibility that he would look at her and start asking the right questions.
Yet, even with all her preparations, nothing could steady the rapid beat of her heart as he watched her with those piercing gray eyes.
Adrian leaned back in his chair, his fingers drumming slowly against the desk. "Tell me, Miss Carter," he said, his voice deceptively casual, "how long have you worked in this industry?"
Ava forced a polite smile, her expression composed. "Six years."
Adrian’s eyes darkened. Six years.
The exact amount of time since that night.
Coincidence? He didn’t believe in coincidences.
"Impressive," he murmured, but there was something calculating in the way he spoke, as if he were trying to piece together a puzzle that had long eluded him.
Ava knew she had to tread carefully. Adrian was the kind of man who didn’t just accept surface answers—he dissected them.
"Why finance?" he asked, tilting his head slightly.
Ava hesitated for only a fraction of a second before replying, "I always had an interest in numbers."
Adrian smirked, his gaze never leaving her. "Numbers don’t lie. People do."
Her breath hitched, but she quickly masked it. "Then it’s a good thing I’m not a liar, isn’t it, Mr. Storm?"
A slow, almost amused chuckle left his lips, but the amusement didn’t reach his eyes. He was testing her.
And she had no choice but to play along.
---
Meanwhile…
Outside Adrian’s office, Ethan Walker stood near the glass wall, pretending to be reviewing a document while subtly observing the interaction.
He had his suspicions about Ava Carter.
The first time he saw her, something about her struck him as familiar. It had nagged at him, an itch at the back of his mind that he couldn’t quite scratch.
But last night, as he went through some old records—it hit him.
Six years ago, Adrian had been obsessed with finding a woman. A woman who had disappeared without a trace.
Ethan still remembered the rage, the desperation, the cold, calculated search Adrian had led. And then, abruptly, he had stopped looking.
Because she was gone.
But now…
Ethan’s gaze flickered back to Ava, watching the way she carefully chose her words, the way she kept her expression neutral.
She was hiding something.
And if Adrian hadn’t figured it out yet, Ethan certainly would.
---
Back in the Office
Adrian finally stood, walking around the desk until he was standing right beside Ava. Too close.
She forced herself not to lean away.
His presence had always been overwhelming, but now, with the past threatening to crash over her, it was suffocating.
Adrian studied her, his jaw clenched slightly. "Do you believe in fate, Miss Carter?"
Ava swallowed, meeting his gaze. "I believe we make our own choices."
His smirk returned. "And do you believe in second chances?"
Her throat went dry.
Did he know?
Was this his way of telling her he had figured it out?
Ava kept her voice steady. "Some people don’t deserve them."
Adrian nodded slowly, his gaze flickering with something unreadable.
"You’re right," he murmured. "Some people don’t."
Ava felt the weight of his words settle over her like a warning.
She needed to be careful.
Because Adrian Storm was a man who never let a mystery go unsolved.
And she was dangerously close to becoming his next obsession.
- Writer
