Maya's POV
Sebastian's stare burned into me with absolute certainty, like he held all the cards in whatever twisted game we found ourselves trapped in.
Like every move had been calculated before I even stepped into this room.
But there was something I had to understand first, something clawing at my chest since the moment I saw him again.
"Why did you disappear?" The words came out quieter than I meant them to.
Confusion shadowed his features.
"What are you talking about?"
"That morning. The hotel room. You..." My throat tightened, betraying the hurt I'd tried so hard to bury. "You were just gone. No note, no explanation, nothing."
A flash of something crossed his expression. Shame? Remorse?
It vanished before I could decode it.
"I had business to handle," he replied, his tone carefully neutral.
"Business? At seven on a Saturday morning?" I lifted an eyebrow.
"It wasn't about you, Maya."
Four words that landed like ice water in my veins.
