The private dining area in Elliot’s suite was dimly lit, casting a warm glow over the elegantly set table. A meal had been prepared—grilled salmon, roasted vegetables, and a bottle of red wine breathing between them.

Alexia had been here before. She had sat across from him like this before. But something was different tonight.

He was different.

Elliot didn’t carry that usual sharp edge, the measured control he wielded like a weapon. Instead, he seemed... present. His gaze wasn’t scanning, wasn’t assessing... just focused on her at this moment.

She cut a piece of salmon, aware of how it had been between them. Not uncomfortable, just different. As if neither wanted to break whatever this was.

“You’ve been painting.”

“I have. That was the whole point of me being here, wasn’t it?”

He didn’t answer right away, just set down his fork, fingers interlacing as he studied her.

“Your fifth piece,” he said after a moment. “Tell me about it.”

Alexia hesitated, not because she didn’t want to, but because she wasn’t sure why he was asking. Elliot wasn’t the type to feign interest. He wouldn’t ask unless he meant it.

She set down her own fork, resting her elbow on the table. “It’s different from the others. More... instinctual.”

His lips pressed together slightly, waiting.

“It’s about restraint. And the moment restraint breaks.”

Something changed in Elliot’s expressions, she almost missed it.

“Control versus surrender,” he murmured, as if he understood exactly what she meant.

Alexia’s stomach tightened, not because of what he said, but because of how he looked at her when he said it.

She nodded, fingers tracing the stem of her wineglass. “Something like that.”

Another pause, but this time, it wasn’t silence, no motion, just stillness, like time stopping to embrace something but waiting for them to breathe and move forward.

Elliot shifted, his hand reaching for his glass, but then stopped halfway, as if reconsidering. When he looked at her again, something had changed in his expression.

“You’ve always fascinated me, Alexia.”

Alexia’s heart was no longer calm.

“You have a strange way of showing it.”

For once, he didn’t counter her with a sharp remark, didn’t deflect with his usual control. He just watched her, as if seeing her for the first time, like watching the footage from the security camera the night before.

Then, without thinking, without calculation, his hand reached across the table. His fingers brushed against hers. Not demanding. Not forceful. Just contact. Just... there.

And that was what gave him away.

The shift, the crack in his armor, one she hadn’t expected to see tonight. Her fingers curled in response, not pulling away.

She looked at him. He looked at her. No words needed to be spoken.

She knew. He knew.

And that was why, when he leaned in, when his lips found hers—not demanding, not taking, but giving—she let herself accept it.

And for the first time, Elliot wasn’t in control.

For the first time, he didn’t aspire to be.

Alexia stood slowly, fingers trailing against his wrist before sliding down to his palm.

She led him toward the bedroom, not because he wanted her, but because she saw him... the real him.

Strong. And weak.

The smell of fresh coffee drifted through the air, mingling with the faint remnants of lavender and warmth that still clung to Alexia’s skin. The morning light filtered through the sheer curtains of Elliot’s suite.

Alexia sat, stirring her coffee as she glanced toward Elliot. He was dressed, crisp, and composed as ever, but something was different. It wasn’t in his posture or his usual measured movements, but in the way he was looking at her—like she was something to be studied, something to be understood.

Elliot finished the last bite of his eggs before setting his fork down beside the plate. “You’re quiet this morning.”

Alexia took a slow sip of coffee before replying. “Funny, I was about to say the same thing about you.”

His expression didn’t shift, but the way his fingers rested against the rim of his coffee cup told her he was considering his response.

“No regrets,” he said

She held his gaze for a moment longer than necessary before looking away, a faint smile pulling at the corner of her lips. “Good.”

There was no need to say more. Last night I had spoken for itself.

For the first time, neither of them felt the need to fill the silence.

Elliot reached for the folder beside him and flipped it open, his attention shifting to the documents inside. Back to business.

“Ben, Ava, Harris, Sarah, and Anna will be with me at my office today handling some security matters.”

Alexia listened, but waited for what came next.

“Would you like to have dinner with me this evening?” he asked, meeting her gaze. “Ben and Ava will be joining.”

It wasn’t just an invitation; it was inclusion. A space being carved out for her within the structured world he controlled so carefully.

Alexia hesitated, not because she didn’t want to, but because this was new. Elliot didn’t extend invitations lightly.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

She set her cup down and let the weight of the question settle between them.

“Alright,” she said.

She picked up her coffee and leaned back in her chair, watching as Elliot turned his focus to the screen of his laptop.

For once, she didn’t feel like an outsider looking in.

For once, she felt like she belonged.

The drive to Cummings AI Innovative Technology Inc. was quiet. Elliot sat in the back of the SUV, eyes fixed on the shifting cityscape outside. Ben and Ava sat beside him, while Harris, Sarah, and Anna were in the second vehicle, keeping their conversations light but focused.

They arrived at the towering headquarters, its presence a bold statement of power and precision. The security team at the entrance barely hesitated before waving them through; their internal databases already recognizing Elliot’s presence as immediate clearance.

He rarely made in-person visits, so his arrival was already raising speculation.

Inside, analysts buried in their screens, tech developers immersed in silent, high-focus collaboration. It was a world Elliot had built—one that operated even in his absence.

As they entered the executive wing, Charles Markson was already waiting.

“Elliot,” Markson greeted. “Didn’t expect you today.”

“That was the point.”

Markson gestured toward the conference room. “Shall we?”

Ben, Ava, and Elliot followed, stepping into a space designed for negotiations that never left a paper trail. The room was minimal—sound proof walls, a single long table, a screen mounted at the far end waiting for input.

Markson’s assistant, Megan Franks, was setting up access for Elliot’s team. She worked efficiently her hands moving across the system interface with precision.

As the doors sealed, Elliot moved toward the screen, hands in his pockets. “We’ll be running a security audit.” His voice was calm, unyielding.

Markson hesitated. “That wasn’t scheduled.”

“I don’t need to schedule.”

“You have full access.”

Ava was already scanning the network. Ben pulled the last six months of system logs, access credentials, and internal changes.

The room was silent except for the soft clicks of their commands running through encrypted systems. The sheer volume of data pouring onto the screen.

“Five internal breaches,” said Ava.

“Small... but deliberate.”

Markson shifted in his seat. “Is there an issue?”

Elliot glanced at him. “We’ll determine that.”

Ben and Ava continued scanning, cross-referencing key logs. The anomalies weren’t blatant, nothing a surface-level audit would have flagged. But that was the problem. This wasn’t reckless. This was careful.

Ava’s fingers hovered over the screen before she spoke. “I’ll need a copy of the full employee report.”

Markson tapped a command, bringing up a list of all 1,587 employees. Elliot remained motionless, observing, absorbing the weight of what was unfolding.

Ava continued scrolling through, her eyes trained on the data.

“We’ll need to continue this at the mansion.”

Ben glanced at Elliot. It was subtle, but the decision was made.

Elliot turned to Markson. “Harris, Sarah, and Anna will remain here. They’ll oversee internal security upgrades. You’ll accommodate them.”

“Understood.”

Ava closed the system interface with a swipe of her fingers, securing the data before standing. “We have what we need.”

They had what they came for, but they had just begun.

The dining room in Elliot’s estate had a certain stillness to it, despite the soft clink of silverware against porcelain. The long dining table, though typically set for formal gatherings, arranged for only four tonight—Elliot, Alexia, Ben, and Ava.

The meal was at first, the rich aroma of steak and roasted potatoes mingling with the subtle spice of red wine. Alexia, seated next to Elliot, felt the difference in the room. She wasn’t just here as a guest. She wasn’t an outsider anymore. He had invited her to this dinner, and she knew why.

She glanced at Ben and Ava, both engaged in measured conversation. They, too, had noted the shift.

Elliot cut into his medium-rare steak, his movements slow, deliberate. “The office was productive today,” he said, addressing Ben and Ava, but he glanced at Alexia briefly, gauging her reaction. “There are some... things we’ll need to sort out in the coming days.”

Ben gave a slight nod. “We’ve got our team working on it from both angles. We’ll see what turns up.”

Alexia took a sip of wine, contemplating her next words. “Your company,” she began, watching Elliot, “it’s more than just tech and business, isn’t it?”

Ava glanced up, a faint glint of interest in her eyes.

Elliot met Alexia’s gaze, reading between the lines of her question. “It’s always been more.”

Alexia set her glass down. “And yet, you’ve never really let anyone in.”

Elliot didn’t reply immediately. Instead, he leaned back, studying her in the same way he had done at dinner the night before. Not calculating. Not assessing. Just... looking.

“Not until now,” he said.

Ben and Ava remained silent.

Alexia held his gaze, feeling the weight of what he wasn’t saying. She had seen pieces of this side of Elliot before, but never like this. Never so open. It unsettled her, but it didn’t make her want to pull away.

She shifted her focus. “You mentioned you’d be working from the estate tomorrow,” she said, breaking the quiet tension with a deliberate shift.

Elliot nodded, lifting his glass to his lips. “Ben and Ava will be returning to the office to follow up. I’ll be handling things from here.” A pause. Then, “You’re welcome to stay.”

He had said it so simply. No demand. No expectation. Just an invitation.

Alexia let the words settle between them before offering a slight nod. “Alright.”

Dinner continued, the conversation lightening just enough to breathe. But the undercurrent remained. Elliot had made it clear—without saying much at all—that Alexia wasn’t just passing through his world anymore.

As the meal wound down, Elliot placed his napkin beside his plate and turned toward Alexia.

“Join me after?” It wasn’t a question of obligation. Just an open door.

She met his eyes. No hesitation this time.

“Okay.”

Ava caught the briefest glance from Ben but said nothing.

Because they all knew—this was only the beginning.

Alexia followed him inside, glancing around at the dimly lit room. The warmth of a fire flickered in the corner, casting soft shadows along the sleek furniture. A large couch faced a minimalist entertainment setup, though neither of them seemed interested in watching anything.

The evening had gone smoother than she expected. Dinner with Ben and Ava had been... easy. Almost normal. It was strange to think of anything about this situation as normal, yet somehow, it felt that way.

She sank into the couch, letting herself settle into the moment. It wasn’t forced. It wasn’t calculated. It just was.

The low volume of a movie played in the background, though neither of them paid much attention.

For a while, silence stretched between them—not the uncomfortable kind, but the kind that held meaning.

Elliot sat beside her. His usual tension softened just. His body language had changed, though she wasn’t sure he even realized it. He wasn’t sitting on the edge of his seat, ready to react. He wasn’t assessing her with that sharp, unreadable gaze.

Tonight, he was just... here.

“You’re different,” she murmured.

“Maybe,” he admitted.

Alexia turned, studying him in the dim light. She didn’t push. She didn’t need to.

His gaze met hers for a moment before returning to the screen, though neither of them were watching the movie.

A few more minutes passed in the quiet stillness. The weight of the day, the weight of everything, settled over them.

Alexia let her body relax against the cushions, her head leaning on his shoulder, her breathing slowing. Elliot glanced at her, watching her for a moment longer than he should have.

There was something about seeing her like this—unguarded, at ease. It wasn’t something he’d allowed himself to focus on before.

And then, he whispered, as if the words had slipped past his control, he said it.

“The truth is... I... I love you.”

It wasn’t a declaration. It wasn’t meant to be heard. It was just... the truth.

Elliot exhaled, staring straight ahead, unaware that Alexia’s lips had curved into the slightest, imperceptible smile.

She wasn’t asleep, and she had heard every word.