CHAPTER 5 — SECRETS REVEALED
The office was quiet, except for the occasional click of keyboards and the hum of the air conditioner. Aria was organizing files at her desk, but her thoughts kept drifting back to Lucien. He was always so controlled, so impossible to read… and yet, she couldn't stop thinking about him.
It wasn't just attraction anymore. There was something darker about him, something he was hiding.
Aria's curiosity got the better of her that afternoon. As she passed the executive wing, she noticed Lucien's office door slightly ajar. A faint voice drifted out soft, strained, almost vulnerable.
"…I can't lose another one," Lucien was saying. His tone was low, private, but something about the words made her freeze in place.
She hesitated, torn between walking away and listening. Slowly, almost silently, she leaned closer to the door.
"…Yes, I know the risks," he continued. "But I won't let it happen again. No one will get hurt. Not her… not anyone else."
Aria's breath caught. Who was he talking about?
A brief pause, then a sigh:
"I just… can't afford to lose someone like her again. She… she trusted me, and I failed."
The voice cracked slightly a hint of vulnerability she had never heard before. Aria's chest tightened. Lucien, the untouchable, intimidating CEO… was haunted.
Suddenly, she remembered HR's warning: Keep your distance. Stay professional.
Her hand flew to her chest. She had heard too much. She should walk away. But her curiosity, her need to understand him, rooted her to the spot.
"…No one else will get close. I won't let history repeat itself," he whispered.
The words hit her like a blow. History?… Someone else?
Aria finally stepped back, heart racing. She had no idea what she had stumbled into, but one thing was clear: Lucien's cold exterior hid a man scarred by the past. A man who had lost someone important. Someone he cared for enough to protect.
And now, unknowingly, Aria realized she had become part of that story.
Her fingers trembled as she returned to her desk, mind spinning. The attraction she had felt before now carried a dangerous edge. She wasn't just drawn to him she was drawn to a man with secrets, a man who could break her heart as easily as he could protect her.
When Lucien finally appeared at her desk later that day, looking every bit as composed and intimidating as ever, Aria felt a pang of guilt and fear.
"Miss Sarmiento," he said, eyes sharp, "you seem… distracted."
Aria forced a smile, trying to act normal. "I'm just focused on the reports, sir."
He studied her for a long moment, his gaze almost penetrating her thoughts. Then, as if satisfied, he nodded once and walked away, leaving her trembling slightly.
She exhaled slowly, whispering to herself:
He's dangerous. He's forbidden. And I can't stop thinking about him.
*sigh* *sigh* *sigh*