My stomach drops. I turn slowly to find her standing just inside the glass doors, designer sunglasses perched on her head and that smug, perfect smile plastered across her face.
She’s holding a folder against her chest like a weapon. “I’d be careful who you talk about in this building, sweetheart. You never know who’s listening.”
I clench my jaw, forcing a polite smile. “Don’t worry, Warren knows exactly how I feel, but feel free to run along and tell him anyway, I guess it makes you a little less boring when you’re giving him the office gossip.”
Her smirk falters for a fraction of a second, then she tilts her head, eyes glinting with malice. “There are two kinds of people in this world,Liv,”she says with a scowl. “One’s that are meant to succeed in life, with wealth and power, and then there’s you. A nobody that fetches coffee and complains about it. Some of us belong in his world. Others are just passing through.”
“It’s Leoni,” I mutter feebly as she breezes past, her heels clicking across the marble floor like gunshots.
Talia exhales beside me. “God, she’s such a cow.”
“Yeah,” I mutter, staring after her. “Like I said, the company he keeps is questionable.”
I ride the elevator up feeling like my skin doesn’t quite fit. The lobby confrontation with Nancy is still replaying in my head—her voice, sugary and poisonous, sinking into my bones.
Some of us belong in his world. Others are just passing through.
The doors slide open. I step out, ready to head straight to my desk and bury myself in emails, but I freeze halfway across the floor.
Nancy is standing in front of Warren’s father, whispering something low, her hand resting lightly on his sleeve like she’s done it a thousand times.
They lookcomfortable. Familiar. Close even.
My stomach dips. It’s another reminder that what she said is true. She fits in his world and I don’t.
His father lifts his gaze first. Cold and assessing. Nancy follows line of sight and turns. When she sees me, her smirk sharpens. “I thought you’d be crying in the bathroom.”
“I need to get to work,” I mutter, moving to pass.
But Warren’s father steps forward, blocking my path with nothing more than presence; he’s the kind of man who doesn’t need to physically move to take over a room.
“Let’s continue this inside,” he says to Nancy. “Not here.”
They slip into Warren’s office and close the door behind them.
The blinds aren’t drawn, but they might as well be. Their silhouettes move like ghosts, and somehow it feels… off. Like whatever they’re up to is top secret. I shudder. Maybe she’s telling him what she overheard, and he’s about to fire me.Good.But my pulse won’t slow down, and I can’t chase away this sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.
A few minutes later, the lift pings again, and Warren steps out. He spots me instantly, walking over with his hands in his pockets, like he’s trying to appear casual.
“About earlier,” he starts. “Outside. With the car.”
I cross my arms defensively over my chest. “Don’t worry about it. I get it.”
“No,” he says, shaking his head, stepping closer. “That’s not what I… I wasn’t embarrassed. I just didn’t want people—”
“Talking?” I finish for him.
He nods once. “Yes.”
I force a smile. “Too late for that.”
For a heartbeat, he looks like he might say something else. Something honest. But the office door opens, and his father and Nancy step out.
Everything in Warren’s face changes in an instant, like shutters slamming down. His jaw clenches, and his shoulders stiffen, locking into place and making him look taller somehow. The warmth I’d just seen flickers out like a match in the wind.
“Ah,” his father says smoothly, “speaking of lunch. How did yourdatego?”
Nancy’s smile tightens; it’s as brittle as glass, and I almost want to give her a smug smile.
