Rose's POV

His expression remained calm, but something softened in his eyes. He shook his head slowly. “No. I had no idea you worked for the company when I acquired it. The purchase was purely business — a strategic move that had been in the works for months. I only discovered you worked there when I saw you during the tour.”

I exhaled a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding, a strange mix of relief and disappointment washing over me. So it wasn’t some calculated plan. It really had been a shocking coincidence.

He continued, his voice dropping lower, more intimate. “But I have been searching for you ever...