Total pages in book: 27
Estimated words: 26246 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 131(@200wpm)___ 105(@250wpm)___ 87(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 26246 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 131(@200wpm)___ 105(@250wpm)___ 87(@300wpm)
“Well, of course.” Lara’s lack of hesitation in confirming her involvement had Kyara laughing, the sound of which consequently caused Lyrius to look their way, and when her boss arched his brow—
She had worked for him long enough to know what that meant, and in less than five seconds, Lara had the whole room cleared out—
Whoa.
Kyara was starting to feel like this was all a dream, with how everything was just moving so, so fast. How in the world was it just the two of them inside the room, and her heart started hammering against her chest as Lyrius came to stand in front of her, his beautiful face still taut with concern.
She looked up into his eyes, and the words simply came tumbling out.
“I love you, Lyrius.”
He jerked as if he had been sucker punched, and a wobbly laugh escaped her.
“Say it again,” he said hoarsely.
“I love you,” she said tearily. “I love you so, so much. I can’t believe you’re real. I can’t believe I was so blind. I p-promise I’ll make it up to you, I promise I’ll spend the rest of—”
Lyrius had to haul her back into his arms, otherwise she was going to kill him with her sweetness.
“Just remember this one thing.”
She nodded against his chest.
“You’re mine. Forever.”
Kyara couldn’t reply, with Lyrius already kissing her so, so deeply that the whole world was slowly fading away even despire the whispers outside the room growing louder and louder, with the news about Cyrus’s downfall spreading like wildfire as someone from H.R. told someone from Marketing, who then told someone in Operations, who then...well...
Kyara would learn about all of this from Lara later on, but for now...
Oh, Lyrius.
This kiss had her unable to think, and she couldn’t even remember her own name or how to breathe. She couldn’t remember anything at all except for that.
She was his.
Forever.
Six Months Later
Lyrius signed the last document on the stack and pushed it across the desk just as Lara appeared in the doorway.
“She’s downstairs, sir.”
He glanced at the clock above the door. Six fifteen. Kyara had said six thirty.
“Already?”
“Already.”
Lyrius rose to his feet and reached for his jacket from the back of his chair. “Wallace?”
“Still in Shanghai.” Lara handed him the folder she’d been holding as he came around the desk. “Mr. Adriano’s people sent the monthly note. No incidents. Undisclosed location, supervised, not expected back anytime soon.”
“Good.”
“Henry confirmed dinner at seven. Your grandparents are already at the restaurant.”
Lyrius placed the folder inside his drawer. “Thank you, Lara.”
“Sir.” She didn’t move from the doorway. “One more thing.”
He looked up.
Lara’s expression was the same one she wore when she was about to bill him for something she had already done.
“What did you do?”
“Nothing.” She stepped aside to let him pass. “Have a lovely evening.”
Lyrius made it past her, past the reception desk on the seventieth floor with its low lamps already on for the night, past the empty rows of desks where his floor had thinned out for the day, to the private elevator at the end of the hall. He pressed the call button. The doors opened on the polished steel interior, and he stepped in.
He pressed L, and the doors closed. When it opened again, he found himself inhaling sharply upon seeing her—
Kyara.
His fiancée was standing just past the elevator bank, dressed in a white halter dress with small red polka dots that fell just below her knees, and her red hair curled around the delicate lines of her face in soft waves.
Her green eyes lifted to his as he approached her, and his heart slammed against his chest like a schoolboy standing in front of his crush for the first time.
“Do you like it?” Her tone was half-shy, half-hopeful. “Lara told me that you mentioned to her once about how I reminded you of a fifties pinup girl, so I thought—”
Kyara could no longer speak, with Lyrius suddenly catching her by the waist—
“Where—”
Oh!
She no longer needed to ask, he had already answered her question with Lyrius suddenly pulling her back into the elevator, and why was he hitting the Hold button when they were already in the lobby?
“I don’t—”
Kyara’s words ended in a gasp as he suddenly lifted her in his arms, her back sliding up against the polished steel wall as his mouth crashed down over hers.
When they stepped out of the elevator, twelve minutes had already gone by, and Kyara was doing her best not to look self-conscious as she smoothed her hair down. She glanced up as Lyrius placed a hand at the small of her back, but instead of seeing him, what immediately captured her attention was all the people standing behind him...staring at them with knowing expressions on their faces.
Kyara’s cheeks burned hotly, and she turned to Lyrius in dismay.
“Y-You said no one would ever know!”