Chapter Five: Bruises and Whispers
The CEO's mansion woke up angry.
Morning light spilled across marble floors and glass walls, too bright for the silence that clung to the house. The CEO stood near the bedroom doorway, tie already fastened, jaw tight, eyes cold. He had not slept well. He never did when control slipped through his fingers.
She stood near the vanity, her back to him, hands trembling as she reached for the makeup drawer.
"Where were you last night?"
The question landed hard. Not loud. Not shouted. That was worse.
She swallowed. "I had… meetings. They ran late."
He scoffed, slow and cruel. "Meetings don't last all night."
She turned slightly, keeping her face angled away from him. Her reflection stared back from the mirror. Pale. Tired. Afraid. There was a faint discoloration near her cheekbone, already darkening beneath the skin. She reached for concealer with practiced hands.
"You didn't come home," he continued, stepping closer. "You didn't answer your phone."
"I left it in my office," she said quickly. Too quickly.
His hand came up, gripping her wrist. Not striking. Not yet. Just tight enough to remind her who owned the space around her.
"You lie badly when you're scared."
Her breath hitched. "Please… I was tired. I didn't want to wake you."
Silence stretched. Then his grip tightened for a heartbeat before he let go, disgust curling his lips.
"Fix your face," he said flatly. "You're coming with me today."
She nodded, eyes stinging, heart pounding. When he finally turned away, she leaned against the vanity, fighting the urge to collapse. She layered makeup carefully, hiding what the world was never meant to see.
As she worked, her thoughts betrayed her.
Not the mansion.
Not her husband.
Not the fear.
Her mind went to lips she still felt against hers.
To warmth that had not hurt.
To hands that had held, not bruised.
And that made the guilt cut even deeper.
Across the city, the mood was different. Quieter. Dangerous in another way.
Kai sat on the edge of his desk long after most of the floor had emptied, staring at nothing. His mind replayed fragments of the night before like broken glass.
Her fingers gripping his sleeve.
The way she had leaned into him without hesitation.
The softness of her skin, the trust in her closeness.
He exhaled slowly.
"You look like someone who lost a war," a voice said lightly.
Kai glanced up. Noah stood near the doorway, hands in his pockets, posture relaxed. Noah had been his assistant for years. Sharp. Observant. Invisible when he needed to be. Loyal to a fault.
"Or won one," Noah added with a faint smile.
Kai huffed. "You always know when to show up."
"That's my job," Noah replied, stepping inside and closing the door. "You don't usually stare into space unless something… interesting happens."
Kai rubbed the back of his neck. "I met someone."
Noah's eyebrows lifted. "Someone?"
"Last night," Kai said slowly. "Unexpected. Complicated."
Noah leaned against the desk, interest sparking. "Complicated how?"
Kai hesitated. "She might have… someone already."
Noah's grin faded just a little. "That kind of complicated."
Kai nodded. "I don't even know her name properly. But I can't stop thinking about her."
Noah studied him carefully. "You sound like a man walking into fire."
"Maybe," Kai said quietly. "But it didn't feel like pain."
Noah tilted his head. "Yet."
They shared a silence, thick with unspoken understanding. Noah didn't press. He never did. Secrets stayed where they were safest.
Later that day, the office shifted.
Conversations hushed. Spines straightened. The CEO had arrived.
Kai looked up just as the elevator doors opened.
She walked beside her husband, composed, elegant, distant. Perfect.
Too perfect.
Their eyes met.
For half a second, the world fractured.
Kai saw it immediately. The tension in her posture. The careful way she held herself. The faint discoloration near her jawline, barely hidden beneath flawless makeup.
Shock hit him hard.
The CEO's wife.
His chest tightened.
She felt it too. The sudden awareness. The terror of being seen. Not just recognized but understood.
Her husband's hand rested possessively at the small of her back.
Kai clenched his jaw.
Now he knew who she was.
And worse…
He knew what she lived with.
As they passed, she didn't look back. She couldn't. But her heart raced, torn between fear and a fragile, reckless hope.
Because in a world that hurt her quietly and often…
There was one man who had touched her without pain.
And now he knew everything.