Gianna stood there, utterly speechless.
Not the composed silence she had perfected over the weeks—the one that unnerved boardrooms and froze negotiations—but a blank, stupid stillness that felt foreign in her own body.
Her mouth had opened, then closed again, her thoughts lagging behind the moment as if her mind had tripped over itself.
What the hell was that?
She cursed herself viciously, the words sharp and unfiltered in her head. What was wrong with her?
Zane was old news. Ancient history. Buried so deep she'd been certain it could never resurface.
And yet here she was, caught off balance like a girl with her first crush, snapping at a stranger and finally… making an absolute fool of herself.
She could feel Areso's emotion beside her—feel it in the subtle tension of her body, the barely restrained amusement vibrating through her.
Areso was holding in laughter.
