Chapter 3 Boardroom Bombshell

On a Monday morning, Ava Monroe stepped into the elevator of Blackwood Enterprises, where the lobby was still quiet from the early hour. Her heels clicked softly against the polished marble as she kept her gaze steady, every muscle taut beneath her blazer.

She'd told herself the weekend had been a glitch. A lapse. A much-needed rebellion against everything she'd bottled up.

But the truth followed her, which was the burn on her lips where his kiss still lingered, the bruised ache behind her ribs where his voice still echoed, the shameful longing she couldn't reason away.

She hadn't even gotten his name. As the elevator rose, she rehearsed her game face, which was a night couldn't define her. The promotion was gone, but her ambition wasn't. She had work to do, walls to rebuild, and no time to indulge fantasies born of whiskey and pain.

Soon, the elevator chimed, and as the doors slid open on the executive floor, she stepped into the familiar hum of early morning meetings and bitter coffee. She passed her desk without pausing, heading straight toward the glass-walled conference room where the week's leadership briefing was about to begin.

Lila caught her eye from across the hallway and gave her a raised brow that said spill everything later, and Ava gave her the briefest nod, being aware of this.

However, inside the conference room, sleek leather chairs lined the table, and Blackwood's top executives milled about with tablets and espresso shots. Ava slipped into her usual seat-two down from the CEO's, and with that, she opened her tablet, checking numbers she'd already memorized.

But then... a hush.

The air shifted again, that same magnetic pressure that had pulled at her spine days before. Only this time, it came not from the bar across town, but the threshold of the conference room.

The new interim CEO had arrived.

She glanced up and froze instantly as time didn't slow; rather, it collapsed.

There, striding into the room with a quiet command that silenced chatter and straightened spines, was the man from the penthouse. The man whose mouth had been on her throat. The man whose hands had memorized her body.

Ava's stomach dropped like an elevator in free fall.

He wore the same tailored presence, the same unshakable gaze. Only now, it was colder and sharper. As if nothing had passed between them.

As if he didn't recognize her.

"Good morning," he said, voice like smooth gravel. "I'm Grayson Blackwood."

Ava's lungs seized.

Blackwood.

The CEO.

The boss.

The man she had slept with, nameless, faceless, only now he had a name that carried the weight of an empire.

"Effective immediately, I'll be stepping in to oversee operations while the board initiates its long-term leadership strategy," he continued. "Some restructuring will take place in the coming weeks, and I expect full cooperation."

Murmurs echoed around the table, but Ava didn't hear them as her ears rang.

With that, Mr. Blackwood moved to the head of the table, resting one hand casually against the polished oak surface. His eyes swept the room and, for the briefest second, paused on her with no flicker of recognition or shift. If he knew her, but he didn't show it.

Meanwhile, Ava forced her face to remain neutral as her back was straight, but her insides were spiraling.

Had he known who she was all along? Had it been some cruel joke? Or had she truly been just another woman to him, who was nameless, voiceless, and disposable?

Notwithstanding, the meeting proceeded, as talks of quarterly targets, market analysis, and brand revamps got issued. She answered one question mechanically, her voice steady despite her pulse skidding wildly.

And Grayson? He never faltered.

He led with precision and command. No stumbles or awkwardness. If anything, he looked more dangerous in daylight, less intimate and more unreachable. The kind of man who didn't make mistakes.

But Ava was his mistake.

Or maybe... he was hers.

As the meeting wrapped, she bolted not fast enough to draw suspicion, but too fast to be casual, and finally, she made it to the hallway before her breath rushed out while it was shallow.

And soon, a hand touched her elbow.

"Ava," Lila's voice cut through. "You okay? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Ava shook her head, her voice thin. "Just a long weekend."

Before Lila could press further, a deeper voice sliced through the space.

"Ms. Monroe."

Hearing this, she turned, only to see Grayson standing a few feet away, his expression unreadable.

"I'll need to speak with you in my office," he said, with a commanding tone.

Knowing she was trapped in every way, Ava swallowed hard as her expression was fearsome.

With that, Lila glanced between them, feeling the tension, she was prompted to ask. "Everything okay?"

"Everything is fine, I'll catch up," Ava replied with a nod as she followed him down the corridor, her heart a live wire as every step toward his office felt like she was walking into a firestorm blindfolded.

Soon, he opened the door and gestured for her to come in, and she stepped inside at once and the moment the door clicked shut behind them, silence fell.

Then he turned, as neither of them spoke.

Eventually, he said softly, "You left without saying goodbye."

The words hit her like a slap.

Ava blinked. "You didn't even ask for my name."

"I didn't need to," he said, moving closer. "I knew I'd see you again."

She stiffened. "This is inappropriate."

"Yes," he agreed. "It is."

Silence stretched between them, heavy and taut.

Ava crossed her arms. "So, what now?"

Grayson's eyes locked with hers, unflinching. "Now, we pretend it never happened. Unless you choose otherwise."

Her breath caught. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"That I'm not the kind of man who mixes business with pleasure," he said quietly. "But I'm also not the kind who forgets what real looks like."

Hearing these words from him, she couldn't reply, because part of her wanted to forget, and another part... never would.

So, Grayson stepped back, creating a distance again as he continued.

"You're dismissed, Ms. Monroe."

Without hesitation, she turned on her heel and walked out, pulse roaring in her ears.

And as the door shut behind her, she knew one thing with terrifying certainty: that this wasn't over, not even close.