Chapter 5 Just for a moment

Ava didn't move from the door.

She stood there, clutching the edge of her coat, staring at nothing while the apartment buzzed with silence. Her skin still tingled where the cold from the photo seeped into her bones. Someone had been near-close enough to snap a picture. Close enough to send a warning.

By the time Dominic knocked, she was pacing like a caged animal.

She yanked the door open without a word. He took one look at her and stepped inside, locking it behind him.

"What happened?" he asked, his tone low but urgent.

She didn't speak. I just handed him the phone.

He stared at the screen for a long moment, then slowly looked up at her.

"Where was this taken?"

"Tonight. Outside the gala."

His jaw clenched. "They're following you."

Her chest rose and fell, uneven. "And they know about you."

Dominic didn't move for a moment. Then he set the phone down on the counter like it might explode. "Did they say anything else?"

She shook her head. "Not yet."

He stepped toward her. "You shouldn't be alone right now."

Ava folded her arms. "I can take care of myself."

"That's not the point."

"Then what is it?"

His eyes burned into hers. "The point is, whoever this is-they're pushing. Watching. Escalating. And I'm not going to wait around for them to strike."

Ava turned away, struggling to keep her composure. "They've done it before," she said softly. "They know how to hurt without leaving marks."

Dominic froze behind her.

Her voice barely held steady. "You think you can protect me, Dominic? That's noble. But this is bigger than us. It always has been."

He walked to her side. "Then let me be part of it. Whatever it is. You don't have to fight alone anymore."

She blinked up at him, the vulnerability in her gaze crashing hard against the iron walls she'd built around herself. His voice had softened, but his presence-it had never felt more solid.

For a moment, she almost leaned into him.

Almost.

But she stepped back instead. "You should go."

He didn't argue. Just nodded once, jaw tight. But as he turned for the door, he paused.

"I meant what I said, Ava. This time, I'm not walking away."

She didn't reply. Just watched him leave.

Later that night, she checked the door twice. Pulled the curtains tight. She sat on her bed staring at the walls until her eyes ached. But even then, sleep didn't come.

And when her phone buzzed again at 2:41 a.m., this time there was no message.

Just a voicemail.

She hesitated, then pressed play.

A voice crackled through the line.

"Tick-tock, Ava. Secrets rot when they stay buried too long. You're running out of time."

She dropped the phone.

Her breath caught in her throat.

This wasn't a threat anymore.

It was a promise.

The mysterious stalker's game has begun-and Ava is no longer in control of how deep her past resurfaces.

The morning after the voicemail, Ava barely recognized herself in the mirror. Her eyes were hollow from lack of sleep, her skin pale beneath the bathroom lights. She could still hear the distorted voice echoing through her head.

"Tick-tock, Ava..."

She splashed cold water on her face, willing herself to stay calm. Fear was exactly what they wanted-whoever they were.

When she got to the office, Dominic was already there, leaning against her desk like he belonged there. He didn't look up from his phone until she set her bag down.

"You didn't call me back," he said, his voice calm but not casual.

"I didn't need to."

He looked at her, eyes sharp. "You didn't sleep."

"I don't need a babysitter either, Dominic."

His lips curved slightly, but there was no humor in them. "No. "You need someone who knows what kind of games people like this play."

She froze. He hadn't said it directly, but she heard it. People like this. It meant one thing-he knew something. Maybe more than he was letting on.

"You've dealt with this before?" she asked slowly.

He hesitated. Just enough to tell her the answer was yes.

Her heart twisted. "Then why didn't you say something?"

"Because I thought we had time," he said, stepping closer. But we didn't. Whoever sent that photo isn't just watching-they're making moves."

She crossed her arms. "So what now? You want to put a tail on me? Lock me in a safe house?"

"I want you to tell me the truth, Ava."

The air shifted.

She turned away, but he was already moving around to face her.

"Who's doing this?" he asked. "Is it someone from your past? From the time you left?"

Her mouth opened-then closed again. She couldn't say it. Not yet. The truth wasn't just painful. It was dangerous.

Instead, she changed the subject.

"I'm going to the partners' meeting this afternoon," she said flatly. "It's time I reminded them that I'm not just your shadow."

He looked at her for a long moment before nodding. Then let's give them something to talk about.

The meeting was a battlefield in disguise.

Crystal chandeliers. Long mahogany table. Expensive suits and tighter smiles.

Ava stepped into the room like she owned it-and Dominic followed a step behind, silent but solid.

She laid out her proposal with flawless control, hitting every target, every concern before it could be raised. Her voice didn't tremble once.

By the end of the presentation, the room was silent.

Then one of the older partners leaned back, studying her with narrowed eyes. "Didn't you resign a few years ago?"

"I did," she said smoothly. But I never left the industry. If anything, I came back stronger."

There was a beat of silence. Then another voice chimed in-slicker, cooler.

"We'll see how long that lasts."

Dominic's eyes snapped toward the speaker. Ava followed the sound and felt her blood chill.

It was him.

Damian Wolfe.

He sat near the end of the table, perfectly composed in his three-piece suit, but his smirk was sharp. And his eyes locked on hers like he already knew too much.

He was never supposed to be here.

Ava kept her face neutral, but her chest was tight.

After the meeting ended, she barely made it to the elevator before Dominic grabbed her arm.

"You didn't tell me Damian Wolfe was involved in this firm."

"Because he wasn't."

His eyes narrowed. "You're sure?"

She nodded slowly. "I checked the board when I returned." He wasn't listed."

Dominic's voice dropped. Then someone brought him in recently. Quietly."

Ava stared ahead, her pulse pounding.

This wasn't just about sabotage anymore.

This was personal.

Damian Wolfe has returned-and he's closer than ever, with motives unknown. Ava's past isn't just haunting her... it's sitting at the table.

Ava sat on the edge of her office chair, her body motionless, but her mind was spiraling. Damian Wolfe was in the building. Not as a visitor. Not as a ghost from her past. But as a stakeholder, now woven into the fabric of everything she'd been trying to rebuild.

She hadn't seen him in years-not since the night she walked away, cutting ties with a version of herself she vowed never to revisit. And yet, there he was today, polished and poised, his smirk just as sharp, his eyes just as cold. Like he'd been waiting for this exact moment.

Dominic stood across the room, arms crossed, jaw tight. "You need to tell me what happened between you two."

Ava stared at him. "Why? So you can use it against me?"

His expression didn't change. But the silence that followed was louder than any accusation.

She finally looked away. "He was there, before everything collapsed. He was part of the reason I left."

Dominic's eyes narrowed. "Did he hurt you?"

Ava shook her head, but her voice betrayed her. "Not in the way you're thinking. He tried to control me. Own me. He said I owed him my loyalty because he gave me a chance."

"Typical Wolfe behavior," Dominic muttered. Then, stepping closer, he added, "You should've told me."

She turned back to him, her voice raw. "I didn't tell anyone. Not then, not now. Because if I say it out loud, it becomes real again."

Dominic paused. Then, in a rare moment of gentleness, he said, "It's already real, Ava. You just have to decide how you want to face it."

That night, Ava returned to her apartment, hoping for silence, for stillness. But instead, she found an envelope sliding under her door.

Her name was handwritten on the front. No return address.

With trembling fingers, she opened it. Inside was a single photo.

Dominic. Her. Laughing.

It wasn't recent. It was from before. From before everything.

But scrawled across the bottom, in red ink:

You never should've come back.

Her hands clenched around the paper, her heartbeat in her thudding ears. Whoever was watching her wasn't just playing games anymore. They were digging up her past, piece by piece. And now, they were dragging Dominic into it.

Her phone buzzed.

Unknown Number: Tell him the truth, Ava. Or I will.

Someone is watching Ava and they know everything. With Damian back and the threats turning personal, Ava has no choice left: She must confess her past to Dominic... or risk losing everything.