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“Where are we going?” I murmur.

“Your place, my place… I don’t care. As long as we’re together.”

***

I end up sleeping fully clothed in his arms. And in the morning, I discover that he slipped away at dawn, as usual. At least this time, he had the decency to leave me a little note.

Everything will be fine. I’m here… V.

Then why is your pillow cold?

I don’t get to at the office until ten o’clock. I slept terribly, anxious at the thought of facing my manager after having lost all credibility. When I show up at her office, Kate opens the door and motions for me to come in. I immediately spot Vadim, leaning against the director’s desk with his arms folded across his chest. He’s avoiding my eyes, and the expression on his face is unreadable. His body language is almost… hostile.

Just a few hours ago, he was sleeping curled up against me.

“I’m not going to sugarcoat this, Alma.” Kate steps between us and speaks directly to me. “We’ve found the person responsible for the leak. Do you have any idea who I’m talking about?”

“No!”

“Lily Lancaster!” Vadim blurts out, his gaze unfocused.

They’re wrong.

“Your sister corresponded via email with an employee of Skylight Pictures, our direct competitor.”

They’re delusional.

“Lily would never do that!” I protest, outraged.

“Even for a large sum of money?” Kate retorts with undisguised contempt.

“What are you implying? My sister isn’t—”

“Yeah, exactly! Your sister is a privileged kid who had no business being here! Doesn’t it seem a little off to you that she resigned right after the clip was leaked?”

“Vadim, say something!” I cry out.

“Everything will be fine. I’m here…” no longer applies. They were just empty words. His gaze still steely, he retreats into silence.

“And how are we to know you didn’t orchestrate the whole thing with her? Maybe she was just your accomplice.”

Kate doesn’t let up for a second, and finally, something stirs in Vadim. A tremor. A flicker of emotion in his eyes, proving to me that he is still there.

“She has jeopardized the integrity of our work and threatened the survival of the company! I can’t continue under these conditions, Vadim. Either she leaves, or I do!”

He fixes her with a cold stare, his brows furrowed. He looks troubled, as if he’s being tormented by a thousand conflicting feelings, but he still doesn’t say a word.

I know him inside out: Vadim shuts down the moment control slips from his grasp and he can no longer command a situation.

Kate Monroe takes advantage of this silence to deliver her final coup de grâce. “Vadim, open your eyes. Don’t let yourself be blinded by a… fling.”

“I don’t give anyone the power to blind me, Kate,” he barks.

The scene is unfolding right in front of me, but I feel like nothing more than a spectator. Powerless. Invisible. Vadim turns and looks straight at me without really seeing me, his eyes empty.

He is abandoning me.

I leave the office before they can throw me out, dazed and heartbroken. My name has just been dragged through the mud. My career has imploded. But that doesn’t matter. All I can think about is how the one man I would have given my life for has let me down. So, I gather my things, walk down the long hallway, and step into the elevator. Luckily, it’s empty.