The smell of coffee was the first thing that pulled me from sleep.
The second was the sound of rain tapping gently against the windows not heavy this time, just soft enough to make the world feel slower.
For a moment, I didn't move. I just lay there, tangled in the sheets, staring at the faint light pushing its way through the curtains. My body was tired, but my mind hadn't stopped running all night.
Liam Blackwood.
Kai Louis.
Cyrus.
All of it swirled together in a fog that refused to clear.
When I finally got up, the house was already awake. Cyrus was in the kitchen, of course. The man had an uncanny ability to function on two hours of sleep and a lifetime supply of caffeine.
"Morning," I said, voice still husky from sleep.
He turned slightly, one hand on the coffee mug, the other tucked into his pocket. "Morning," he echoed, his tone low and steady the kind that could mean anything.
I sat at the counter, pulling one knee up onto the stool. "You didn't sleep much."
"Neither did you," he said simply, and for a second, I hated how easily he read me.
He slid a mug toward me. No cream, just black. The way I took it when I needed to think.
"You always make it this bitter?" I teased, taking a sip.
He smirked faintly. "Keeps you awake. It's better that way."
He wasn't wrong. But today, the taste felt stronger sharper somehow.
ʚ♡ɞ ʚ♡ɞ ʚ♡ɞ ʚ♡ɞ ʚ♡ɞ ʚ♡ɞ ʚ♡ɞ
For a while, the only sound was the quiet hum of the refrigerator and the faint patter of rain outside. I watched him move calmly, deliberate, every motion purposeful. He was still in his usual white shirt, sleeves rolled up, tie hanging loose around his neck.
It was too composed for someone who had spent half the night uncovering corporate crimes.
I finally broke the silence. "About what you told me yesterday…"
He glanced up but didn't say anything.
"I've been thinking," I continued. "If Kai and Blackwood are connected, there's more going on than just business. Someone's setting something up, and we're in the middle of it."
He leaned against the counter, arms crossed. "That's exactly what I'm afraid of."
"You think I should back out of the deal?"
"I think you should be careful," he said. "Kai's smart. Too smart. He won't push you again unless he already has a backup plan."
I sighed, rubbing the rim of the mug with my thumb. "And what if that plan includes me?"
His gaze softened, and that was somehow worse than if he'd looked angry. "Then he'll regret it."
Something about the way he said it quiet, certain, and protective made my chest tighten. I looked away before he could notice.
The clock on the wall ticked, filling the silence between us. I caught my reflection in the window: messy hair, tired eyes, wearing one of his old shirts I must've stolen from the laundry pile. I didn't even remember putting it on.
"You're not going to work today," Cyrus said suddenly.
"Excuse me?"
"You need rest," he said, turning toward me fully now. "You've been running nonstop for days."
"I have a company to run."
He smiled faintly. "And it'll survive one day without you."
"Easy for you to say."
He tilted his head. "You think I'm wrong?"
"Yes," I said, though the word didn't sound convincing even to me.
He stepped closer, resting both hands on the counter between us. "Sienna, I'm serious. One day. Stay home, breathe. Let me handle the rest."
There it was again that tone. Firm, but not commanding. Protective, but not pitying.
And I hated that it made me want to listen.
ʚ♡ɞ ʚ♡ɞ ʚ♡ɞ ʚ♡ɞ ʚ♡ɞ ʚ♡ɞ ʚ♡ɞ
When he finally left the kitchen to take a call, I exhaled and pressed my hands against the counter.
He was right, of course. My body was exhausted, but my mind… it wouldn't stop turning over the same question: Why me?
Why did Kai want my company? Why did Blackwood's name keep circling back to my family? And why did Cyrus, of all people, seem to be at the centre of it too as if fate had dropped him there just to complicate everything?
There were still the two people I had no idea about and my so-called family.
I picked up my coffee again, staring into the dark surface. For a brief second, I caught my reflection in it sharp, tired, and unsteady.
Somewhere deep down, I knew things weren't going back to normal. Whatever was coming next, whatever Cyrus had found, it was already too close.