“Do you really think I’d risk everything I built?” I snap, my palm slapping down over the picture of Elliot and me. “You thinkI’d burn that to the ground? For what? You know me better than that.”
His mouth twists, bitter and hard. “That’s the point,” he says. “I thought I did, but I’m giving you one last chance to tell us what really happened.”
Our glares lock, eyes blazing, teeth clenched, both of us so close to losing control it feels like the air itself might break. Like wild animals, one wrong breath away from tearing each other apart.
And then I see it — the truth staring back at me, carved into the hard lines of his face.
If he thinks this is something I could do, he never knew me at all.
Every single person at this table has already made up their minds. I can see it, clear as day. No sympathy. Not even curiosity. Just a polite firing squad waiting for the final shot.
Silence drags out until HR finally clears their throat.
“We’ll be terminating your employment effective immediately. You’ll be given a severance package. The confidentiality and non-compete clauses in your contract are still in effect. You’re prohibited from working for any direct competitor, including Elliot Hargreaves, for the next eighteen months. Violation will trigger legal recourse.”
The words barely register. I’m still staring at Chase.
He reaches forward and places a pen on the table, sliding it toward me. No emotion. No hesitation. Mechanical. Professional.
That hurts more than if he’d thrown it at me.
I’ve never felt more betrayed.
I swallow the burn in my throat. If my mother could lie on her deathbed and damn well smile, I can do this without falling apart.
I pick up the pen. Sign the first page. Then the next. And the next.
When I’m done, I slide the folder back. Chase flinches, just barely, but I see it. Good, I hope it hurts like hell. Because that’s the last time he’ll get anything from me.
I scrape back my chair and stand, spine locked straight. I stride for the door, refusing to let them see me break.
“Violet,” Chase says behind me, his voice tight. “We need to speak in private.”
I don’t turn around.
“No, Chase,” I say. “We don’t. We’re done.”
I step into the hallway, my heart pounding so loud it drowns out the world. One foot in front of the other. Keep moving. Keep breathing.
I’m almost in the elevator when I hear footsteps behind me, quick and heavy. Chase. What did I expect? He always has to have the last word.
His hand closes around my arm and spins me around.
“Don’t you dare leave, Violet, without giving me an explanation?”
I stare up at him, my throat constricted, rage and heartbreak tangled together.
“I already tried,” I say, my voice shaking, the tears finally sliding hot and angry down my face. “But you’re waiting for a version of the truth that doesn’t exist.”
And for the first time, I see it — the flicker of doubt. Not in me. In himself.
His face is so close to mine, his racing breaths heat my skin. How fucked up is it that even now, all I can think about is kissing him. I push his hand away as he tries to wipe my tears. “You know, I should have worked for Elliot when he gave me the chance.” I twist the knife as deep as it will go, hurt making me lash out. “Perhapshe isthe good guy, after all.”
He looks at me long and hard, like I just ripped the heart out of his bones. “I could have crushed you, Violet,” he murmurs.
“Oh, were you expecting me to be grateful?” My laugh is brittle. “But I am grateful for one thing.” My gaze locks onto his, steady and final. “For showing me, you didn’t know me at all. I’m not sure who you were in love with, but it wasn’t me.”
I shake out of his grip just as the elevator doors slide open and step inside.
