Sally stormed out of her Uber, her stiletto heels clicking furiously against the cobblestones outside Daniel's apartment complex in Lower Manhattan.
Her jaw was tight, her fists curled at her sides, her phone clutched like a weapon she wanted to throw against a wall. Ethan Cole had dismissed her earlier that afternoon—brushed her off as if her problems with the influencer didn't matter. As if "she" didn't matter.
She had begged for his attention, raised her voice until the glass walls of his ColeTech office trembled with echoes, but Ethan had barely listened. His mind was elsewhere. Distracted. Cold.
And Sally Jones hated being ignored.
Daniel's place was her escape. Not the penthouse polish of Ethan's world, but sleek enough to scream success. Unlike Ethan's, it felt alive: jazz records stacked near the turntable, a faint scent of whiskey and cologne in the air, leather chairs that invited conversation—or seduction.
She knocked once, sharp and impatient.
The door swung open almost instantly, and Daniel appeared, sleeves rolled to his elbows, his tie loosened, a casual grin tugging at his lips.
"Well, well," he drawled. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this little hurricane at my door?"
Sally shoved past him without answering, striding into the apartment. Her perfume filled the space before her words did.
"It's Ethan," she snapped, throwing her designer bag onto the couch. "He's completely lost it. I swear, I don't even recognize him anymore."
Daniel closed the door and leaned against it, arms crossed. "Lost it how?"
Sally spun around, her eyes blazing. "He's distracted, Daniel. He doesn't care about my brand, my image—nothing. Some Tiktok influencer has been destroying me online, and I begged him to step in. To use ColeTech's influence, his resources,"anything". Do you know what he did?"
Daniel tilted his head, curious. "What?"
"He sat there like a statue. Barely heard me. Like he couldn't be bothered with the woman who has been by his side for "years."
Her voice cracked slightly on that last word, though her pride tried to mask it. She hated showing weakness.
Daniel pushed off the door and walked toward her, his expression unreadable. "Maybe he's just under pressure. ColeTech isn't exactly a lemonade stand."
"No," Sally said sharply, shaking her head. "This isn't pressure. This is something else. His head is somewhere it shouldn't be. With someone it shouldn't be."
The accusation hung in the air like smoke.
Daniel studied her, then let out a low chuckle. "So you think Ethan's distracted by another woman?"
Sally's silence was enough of an answer. She turned away, hugging herself tightly. "He barely looks at me anymore. Barely touches me. And today, when I screamed at him—" She broke off, her voice trembling. "He looked through me. Like I wasn't even there."
Daniel's chest tightened, though he hid it behind a crooked smile. He knew Ethan well enough to notice his distractions, but hearing it from Sally's lips stung in ways he didn't want to admit.
"You don't deserve that," Daniel said finally, his voice softer.
Sally's head whipped around, her eyes glistening with a cocktail of rage and vulnerability. "Damn right, I don't. I built *us*. I made him look good. Without me, he'd be just another rich man in a suit. And now…"
Her voice trailed off, and for the first time that night, tears threatened to fall.
Daniel stepped closer, his tone dropping to something intimate. "You're right. You gave him fire. And if he can't see that…" He paused, reaching out to gently lift her chin. "…someone else does."
The room pulsed with a dangerous energy.
Sally froze, caught between pride and longing. For years, Daniel had been Ethan's closest friend—the man she should never touch, never even look at that way. And yet, here they were, standing inches apart, shadows of a secret already too dangerous to exist.
Her lips parted slightly, but no words came.
Daniel's thumb brushed against her cheek, wiping away the tear before it could fall. "Let me take care of this," he murmured. "Tell me about this influencer. Let me fix it for you."
Sally's breath hitched. "You'd…you'd do that?"
"For you? Always."
The way he said it—the heat in his eyes, the certainty in his tone—undid her. Ethan had grown cold, but Daniel…Daniel saw her. Desired her. Needed her.
Her hands trembled as she placed them against his chest. She felt the steady, dangerous rhythm of his heartbeat beneath her palm. "Daniel…" she whispered.
That was all it took.
His mouth claimed hers in a searing kiss, the kind that burned away hesitation and morality in one reckless sweep. She melted into him, her anger at Ethan morphing into a fierce hunger.
Their kiss deepened, hungry and reckless, as if years of restraint had suddenly cracked open. Sally pressed herself against him, desperate for the heat, the attention, the validation Ethan had denied her. Daniel's arms circled her waist, strong and unyielding, as though he had been waiting for this very moment.
Every step took them deeper into forbidden territory.