KEIFER'S POV —
The call came in sharp, unexpected—and by the time the details settled, so did the anger.
"Repeat that," I said, voice low, controlled in the way it always was before something snapped.
"The London branch mishandled the collaboration agreements, sir," the coordinator stammered from the other end. "It's not just us—R×E Firm, Braselton Corp, and Willow Industries are all affected. The project valuation—"
"I know the valuation," I cut in coldly. "I'm asking how this even happened."
Because Watson Enterprises didn't do mistakes like this.Not at this scale.Not ever.
A pause.Then—
"We've scheduled a joint legal resolution meeting tomorrow," he rushed out. "The main branch of Mariano Industries is sending their top legal authority to handle it."
My jaw tightened slightly.
"Who?"
There was hesitation.And then—
"Attorney Mariano, sir."
That meant nothing.
Not immediately.
"Full name," I said, quieter now.
Another pause.
Then—
"…Attorney Jasper Jean Mariano."
And just like that—Everything stopped.
Not outwardly.I didn't move.Didn't react.
But inside?
Seven years collapsed into a single second.
"…repeat that," I said again, but this time—my voice wasn't as steady.
"Jasper Jean Mariano, sir. She'll be flying in tomorrow morning—"
I ended the call.
Because I heard enough.
Because I didn't need anything else.
Because after seven years of distance… of silence… of watching her from shadows I promised I'd never step out of—
I was finally going to see her.
Not from across a street.Not from a crowd.Not from a place where she couldn't feel me there.
But right in front of me.
Where she could look at me and choose not to.
My hand ran through my hair slowly, a breath leaving my chest that felt heavier than it should've.
"Jay…" I muttered under my breath, the name unfamiliar on my tongue after so long—and yet the only one that ever stayed.
I didn't give myself time to sit in it.
Instead—I made another call.
Rory picked up first. "Tell me you got the news—"
"I did."
A pause.Then—
"…it's her, isn't it?"
I closed my eyes briefly.
"Yeah."
That was all it took.
Within minutes—Edrix and David were looped in too, all of us on the same line, the same silence settling between us before it broke into something almost… unreal.
"She's coming here?" Edrix asked, disbelief barely masked.
"Tomorrow," I confirmed.
David let out a quiet breath. "After all these years…"
Rory scoffed lightly, but there was no humor in it. "Damn. Mutya's really walking back into our lives like a legal storm."
I didn't say anything.
Because none of them knew what it meant like I did.
They missed her.
I lost her.
And tomorrow?
I'd be standing in front of the girl who once told me to leave her life—and meant it.
—
The next morning came too fast.
Or maybe I just didn't sleep.
By the time we stood outside the Mariano London building—sharp suits, files in hand, legal teams already moving around us—I could feel it.
Seven years—and somehow, this moment felt exactly like standing on the edge of something I wasn't ready for.
Rory adjusted his cufflinks beside me. "You good?"
"No," I answered honestly.
Edrix let out a low whistle. "Well, that's new."
David glanced at me briefly, quieter. "You don't have to—"
"I know," I cut him off. "But I will."
Because I didn't come this far—didn't wait this long—to walk away now.
Not when she was finally on the other side of that door.
"She's inside," Rory muttered, more to himself than anyone else.
Yeah.
I knew.
I could feel it.
We stepped inside together.
The building was polished, controlled—exactly what you'd expect from Mariano Industries.
The elevator ride was silent.No jokes.No usual chaos.Just four people carrying the same past into one room.
The doors opened.The conference hallway stretched ahead.
And at the end of it—That door.
Rory and Edrix went in first, pushing it open without hesitation.
David followed.
And then—It was my turn.For a second—I didn't move.
Because this?
This was it.No more distance.No more shadows.Just her.
I stepped in and I saw her.
Sitting at the head of the table.
Perfect posture.Black three-piece suit.Hair pulled back clean, sharp, not a single strand out of place.
Controlled.Powerful.Untouchable.Nothing like the messy girl I remembered.
And yet—Everything still looked like her.
Her eyes were fixed on the document in front of her, pen resting lightly between her fingers—but the moment I stepped in—
Her hand stopped.Just for a second.So small no one else would notice.But I did.Because I wasn't looking at anything else.
And she didn't look up.Not once.Not even a flicker.Like if she did—something would break.
The room settled.People adjusted.Chairs moved.
But for me?
Everything narrowed down to that one space between us.
Seven years.And she still couldn't look at me.
Or maybe—She wouldn't.
My chest tightened slightly, something unfamiliar pressing against it—but I didn't let it show.
I wouldn't and most certainly not like this.
So I straightened slightly, stepping fully into the room, taking my place like this was just another meeting.
Like she was just another lawyer.
Like I hadn't spent years memorizing the way she existed.
My gaze didn't leave her.Not once.And then—
I cleared my throat.
The sound cutting through the silence just enough.
"Shall we begin?"
JAY'S POV —
"Shall we begin?"
The moment the words leave his mouth—I look up.
Sharp. Direct. Controlled.
"We're waiting for one more, Mr. Watson," I say evenly, my voice cutting clean through the room. "Then we'll begin."
And just like that—our eyes meet.
Seven years.
Seven years of distance, silence, everything unsaid—and somehow it all sits right there between us in one look that lasts a second too long and says far too much.
I don't let it linger.
I don't allow it to.
Because the moment I do—I'll lose control.And that's not happening.
Not here.Not in front of them.Not in front of him.
My gaze shifts—deliberate, detached.
David first.Then Rory.Then Edrix.
Faces that once felt like home now sitting across a table like strangers in expensive suits and unresolved history.
Funny how life does that.
A chair shifts beside me.
Jeremy leans in slightly, just enough that no one else notices, his voice low against the side of my ear. "You okay Jay?"
I don't look at him.
"I'm fine," I reply quietly.
Because I am or at least—I will be.
Right on cue, the door opens again.
"Apologies for the delay—I had an important call to take..," Chris says, slipping in like he owns the room, dropping into the seat beside Keifer with an easy familiarity that almost makes me exhale.
Almost.
"Let's begin then," I say, already standing.
Jeremy moves with me instantly, files in hand, screen lighting up behind us as I take my position at the head—not as the girl they once knew, but as the one I became without them.
"Good afternoon, everyone," I start, voice steady, measured, every word placed exactly where it needs to be. "I'm Jasper Jean Mariano, Co-CEO of Mariano Industries and Head of Legal Operations."
A beat.
"And first and foremost—on behalf of Mariano Industries, I extend a formal apology for the legal discrepancies caused by our London branch."
Then the screen shifts.Data. Contracts. Numbers. Losses.
"Now, moving forward—these are the corrective measures we've implemented."
I walk them through everything.Clause by clause.Error by error.Solution by solution.
Every flaw exposed.Every correction backed.Every loss calculated and compensated.
Questions come.Sharp ones.About trust.About reliability.About whether this mistake could ever happen again and I answer all of them.Without giving them anything personal to hold onto.
Because this?
This is what I built.
This version of me—the one that doesn't shake, doesn't fold, doesn't feel unless she chooses to and I don't choose to.
Not when he's sitting across from me watching like he's trying to read something I refuse to show.
The entire room shifts into that same rhythm—formal, detached.
Last names only.
"Mr. Watson.""Mr. Willow.""Mr. Braselton."
"Mr. Abejar.""Mr. Peñaflor."
No past.No familiarity.Just business.Just distance.Exactly the way it should be.Or at least—that's what I tell myself.
By the time we reach the final terms, the tension isn't explosive—it's contained.
Like everything else in this room.
"Any further questions?" I ask, closing the file in front of me.
For a second—no one speaks.And then—
Keifer.
"Everything seems thorough, Attorney Mariano," he says, voice calm, professional—but there's something underneath it. Something quieter. "But what about the people accountable for this?"
Of course.
Of course he'd ask that.
A small smirk tugs at the corner of my lips before I can stop it.
Because I was waiting for it.
"Don't worry, Mr. Watson," I say smoothly, meeting his gaze head-on. "They've already been relieved of their positions."
A pause.
Then, just slightly—
"Because as you know… trust should never be placed in the wrong people because they tend to break it...."
I hold his eyes when I say it.
Just for a second.
Long enough for the words to land the way they're meant to.Professional on the surface.
Personal underneath.Then I break it.
Like it meant nothing.
Like he meant nothing.
I slide the documents forward across the table.
"Here are the documents,kindly review and sign them. These documents contains the revised terms and compensation agreements."
One by one—they sign.No arguments.No resistance because there's nothing left to challenge.
Because I made sure of that.
"Thank you for your cooperation," I conclude, gathering my files neatly. "This resolves the matter from our end."
Chairs shift.People stand.Voices return—low, professional, detached.
The legal teams begin filing out, one after another, the room slowly emptying of everyone who doesn't belong to what this really is.
Until—It's just us.
Me.Jeremy.Chris.And them.
Keifer.David.Rory.Edrix.
No screens.No presentations.No buffers.
Just seven people and seven years of everything sitting quietly in the space between us.
No one moves.No one speaks and for the first time since this meeting started—
It's not about business anymore.
It's about what happens next.....