Elise's POV
That afternoon felt heavier than usual, the kind of air that pressed down on your chest even before anything happened. I had just finished checking a stack of papers when a familiar voice called my name from the hallway.
"Elise."
I turned, and for a brief second, my entire body froze.
Standing there, looking perfectly out of place in his dark slacks and folded sleeves, was Carter.
"Carter!" I gasped, half-startled, half relieved.
"You're here already? You said you'd come by after lunch."
His smile was warm—familiar in a way that both comforted and frightened me. "Finished early," he said. "I couldn't wait."
I walked toward him before I could think twice, hugging him tightly. For a moment, I let myself forget everything else—the office, the walls, the guilt pressing in from behind me.
He kissed me softly on the forehead, then brushed his lips lightly over mine. It was gentle, familiar, safe… and felt nothing like the electricity that still lingered in my memory from another kiss.
"Come on," Carter said lightly, running his thumb along my cheek. "Mr. Jones said he wanted us in his office before the afternoon rounds."
I nodded, forcing a smile. "Of course."
We walked together, his hand resting comfortably at the small of my back.
Every touch drew out a wave of guilt that I hid behind strained composure. Inside the principal's office, Carter and Mr. Jones exchanged paperwork and polite laughter about the company's plans.
I stood there quietly, nodding at the right times, but my pulse wouldn't stop racing.
And then, of course, Mr. Jones had one more bright idea.
"Let's go greet a few of the classrooms," he suggested cheerfully. "It'll be good for the students to meet the man helping make all this possible."
Carter agreed easily. "Sure thing."
So we walked together: Mr. Jones leading the way, Carter holding my hand. We stopped by several rooms—quick introductions, brief smiles, and light applause. Everything was fine.
Until we reached that room.
The moment we stepped in, whispers hummed among the students, and I felt a deep, painful prickle run down my spine.
"Good afternoon, everyone," Mr. Jones announced. "I'd like to introduce you to a guest and benefactor, Mr. Carter Lewis, the son of the chairman of Westfield Enterprises, who will be funding the construction of our new building."
The class clapped politely, but my eyes had already found him.
Mason.
He sat there, arms folded, posture rigid, eyes locked straight on Carter—and then on me. His expression was unreadable, but the storm behind it was unmistakable.
Carter spoke politely to the class, a well-practiced set of lines about education, opportunity, and giving back to the community. His words barely registered in my ears. I could only feel Mason's gaze—anger burning quietly from across the room, cutting right through me.
Then Mr. Jones, with the best but worst timing possible, added cheerfully, "And, of course, many of you might not know this, but Mr. Lewis is also Ms. Morgan's fiancé."
There was a murmur across the class—a mixture of surprise and curiosity. I froze where I stood.
Mr. Jones kept smiling, oblivious to the tension. "Isn't it sweet? He's here to support both our school and his lovely fiancée. Truly a perfect example of partnership!"
Laughter rippled lightly around the room. Carter squeezed my hand and smiled, clearly proud, while my stomach twisted painfully.
I could barely focus on the rest of Mr. Jones's speech.
My eyes flicked to Mason again.
No reaction. No outburst. Nothing.
Just silence.
But in that silence was something even worse than anger—a wound so deep that even his stillness screamed.
When we finally stepped out of the classroom, I caught one last glimpse of him staring after us. The look in his eyes was something I knew I wouldn't forget: not hatred, not disbelief—just raw, broken fury.
Mason's POV
I'd known before she even said a word.
The moment Carter kissed her that morning, I felt the ground shift under me. I had been walking toward her office, still hoping for answers, prepared to listen despite everything. Then I turned the corner… and saw it.
Him.
His arms around her. Her face tilted up toward him.
It didn't look like guilt or pity—it looked natural.
Familiar.
As though she belonged there, wrapped in another man's embrace.
I remember gripping the edge of the locker until my knuckles burned, trying to convince myself to walk away. But I couldn't.
I watched as she smiled at him, a kind of happiness that I hadn't seen directed at me.
My chest tightened, my throat closed—and by the time I caught my breath, they were gone.
And now here they were again—in my classroom.
Carter stood beside her at the front of the room, saying all the right things, smiling that picture-perfect smile.
Every word that came out of his mouth felt like static in my head.
Then Mr. Jones said it.
Fiancé.
The word hit me like a punch.
I felt something in me snap so hard it nearly hurt. She wasn't just involved.
She was engaged.
While she looked at me the way she did. While she held my hand. While she let me believe everything we shared was ours alone.
Carter was still talking, gesturing modestly, completely oblivious. His hand brushed hers again, and that small, easy contact made everything inside me roar in silent anger.
All I could think about was how that same hand had touched her cheeks, her waist—the same way mine once had.
I wanted to walk up there and take her away from him. I wanted to yell and ask why him—
What made him better than me. But all I could do was sit there, staring, each second feeling like fire spreading across my chest.
When the visit ended, and they turned to leave, her gaze flicked to me for a heartbeat.
For that single moment, I swore the anger in me twisted into something else—grief, maybe.
And for the first time, she didn't look like a teacher. Or a woman I shouldn't want.
She just looked like someone who'd broken both our hearts at once.
Elise's POV
As soon as we stepped out of Mason's classroom, my hands trembled in Carter's grip.
Mr. Jones was still talking enthusiastically about donations and plans, but I heard none of it.
Carter was happy, completely unaware. And Mason—Mason's silence haunted every step I took down that hallway.
When Carter squeezed my hand again, I forced a smile, pretending that everything was fine, even though I could feel Mason's gaze still burning in the back of my mind.
Everything I'd tried so desperately to keep separate had just collided right in front of me.
And there was no way to undo it.