Chapter 98: Chaprer 97: "Because I love you"
The rest of the day passed in a blur of tasks and phone calls and the constant hum of office activity.
Lunch with the investor went well.....Damien took the potential client to an exclusive restaurant while Aria stayed behind, managing calls and coordinating with other departments.
The Tokyo video conference at 3 PM was flawless. Aria had tested all the technology beforehand, prepared translation documents, and had relevant files ready for immediate reference. Damien gave her an approving nod when it concluded without a single technical glitch.
The legal call at 4:30 PM was more complex. Contract negotiations for a major acquisition. Aria took detailed notes, flagged important clauses, and pulled up reference documents the moment Damien needed them.
By 6 PM, when most of the staff started packing up for the evening, Aria was exhausted but satisfied. She’d handled everything smoothly. Anticipated needs. Made herself indispensable.
Proven herself. Again.
She was organizing her desk, preparing to leave, when her intercom buzzed.
"Aria. My office."
She grabbed her tablet and went in, closing the door behind her.
Damien was standing by his window again, that same tense posture. The city stretched out below him....a million lights beginning to twinkle as dusk settled over Manhattan.
"Sit," he said without turning.
She sat in one of the leather chairs, waiting.
He turned to face her, and something in his expression made her breath catch. Not anger. Not coldness.
Something else. Something that looked almost like... conflict.
"Today was good," he said finally. "You handled everything well. The board meeting. The investor lunch coordination. The Tokyo call. All of it."
"Thank you, sir."
"But I want to make something clear." He moved to sit on the edge of his desk, facing her. "This morning. That moment in the conference room. When I said we’re not there yet.....I meant it. Don’t misunderstand what happened today."
"I won’t."
"Because there will be more moments like that. Times when we touch accidentally. Times when the chemistry between us becomes impossible to ignore. And each time, you’re going to want to hope that it means something. That it means we’re getting closer to...." He stopped. "To what we were."
Her throat tightened. "And we’re not?"
"We might be. Eventually. If you keep proving yourself. If you keep earning back my trust." His eyes were intense, boring into hers. "But it’s going to take time, Aria. Months, probably. Maybe longer. Can you handle that? Can you work beside me every day, feeling this pull between us, knowing I’m not going to act on it? Not going to touch you the way you want me to? Not going to give you the intimacy you’re craving?"
It was cruel, laying it out like that. Making her confront exactly how hard this was going to be.
But he needed her to understand. Needed her to know what she’d signed up for.
"Yes," she said, her voice steady despite the emotion churning in her chest. "I can handle it. For however long it takes."
"Even if it’s a year? Two years?"
The thought was almost unbearable. But: "Yes. Even then."
He studied her for a long moment. "Why? Why put yourself through this? You’re a doctor, Aria. You could get a job anywhere. Make good money. Have a normal life. Why stay here and let me torture you?"
"Because I love you." The words came out simple, honest, devastating. "And because I destroyed something precious. And the only way to fix it....the only way to even try.....is to endure whatever you need me to endure. For as long as it takes."
Something flickered in his eyes. Pain, maybe. Or longing. Or both.
"You’re either incredibly strong or incredibly foolish," he said quietly.
"Maybe both."
A ghost of a smile touched his lips. Just for a second. Then it was gone.
"Go home, Aria. Get some rest. Tomorrow’s another day."
She stood, gathering her tablet. As she reached the door, his voice stopped her.
"Aria?"
"Yes?"
"That touch today. In the conference room." His voice was rough, raw. "I’ve been trying not to think about it all day. Trying not to remember what it felt like. What you felt like."
Her heart stuttered. "And?"
"And I failed. Spectacularly." He turned back to the window. "So if I’m cold tomorrow. If I’m distant. If I seem harsher than usual. It’s because I’m fighting this. Fighting the urge to cross this office and touch you the way I want to. Fighting everything I feel because I’m not ready to trust it yet."
The confession was more than she’d expected. More than he’d given her in days.
"I understand," she whispered.
"Good. Now go. Before I do something we’ll both regret."
She left quickly, her heart pounding, her entire body aching with need and hope and devastating love.
In the elevator down, she leaned against the wall and closed her eyes.
He’d felt it. Was fighting it. Was struggling just as much as she was.
That had to mean something. Had to mean there was hope.
She pulled out her phone as she exited the building into the cold February evening. A text from her mother: How was day three, baby girl?
Aria typed back: Hard. But better. He’s... he’s still in there. Under all the ice. I can feel it.
Her mother’s response came quickly: Then keep fighting. Keep proving yourself. He’ll come back to you. I believe it.
Aria hoped she was right.
Because she didn’t know how much longer she could endure this.....being so close to him, feeling that electric pull, and not being allowed to close the distance.
But she’d do it. For as long as it took.
One day at a time.
One moment at a time.
One accidental touch at a time.
Until the day when those touches weren’t accidental anymore.
Until the day when he finally trusted her enough to let her back in.
*******************
DAMIEN’S POV
Damien stood alone in his office long after Aria left, staring out at the city lights, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.
That touch. That brief, innocent brush of fingers when she’d handed him the note.
It had nearly destroyed his carefully maintained control.
For days, he’d been keeping his distance. Professional. Cold. Treating her like any other employee despite the way his body screamed for her every time she walked past his desk.
And then one accidental touch and all of it....all the walls he’d built, all the control he’d fought for.....had cracked.
He’d wanted to pull her into his arms right there in the conference room. Wanted to kiss her until she forgot her own name. Wanted to remind her exactly who she belonged to.
But he couldn’t. Wouldn’t.
Because that’s what she’d done to him. Made him vulnerable. Made him love her so completely that when she’d betrayed him, it had felt like dying.
And he couldn’t.....wouldn’t.....let himself be that vulnerable again. Not until he was absolutely certain she wouldn’t destroy him a second time.
So he’d keep testing her. Keep pushing her. Keep maintaining this agonizing distance even though it was killing him just as much as it was killing her.
Because the alternative....trusting her too soon and getting hurt again.....was worse than any torture he could devise.
He pulled out his phone, looked at their message thread. Empty. He hadn’t texted her once since that first message summoning her back.
His fingers hovered over the keyboard. Wanting to say something. Anything.
Today was good. You’re doing well. I’m proud of you.
That touch in the conference room nearly broke me.
I miss you. God, I miss you so much.
But he didn’t send any of it. Just set the phone down and returned to staring out the window.
Tomorrow, he’d be cold again. Distant again. Professional again.
Even though all he wanted was to pull her close and never let go.
But not yet. Not until she’d proven herself beyond any doubt.
Not until he could trust his heart with her again.
Even if it took forever.
