“You could at least pretend to care that I’m leaving.”

Adele’s voice, in a single moment, destroys the quiet like a fork dragging across glass. Sharp. Childish. Desperate.

Reo doesn’t look up from the screen. His fingers dance over the keyboard as corporate lingo flickers across a glowing spreadsheet. Mergers. Legal clause modifications. A red warning on the Morikami stake review. He’s too wired to feel anything else.

“I booked a first-class ticket. International. Gone for two months. You know what the press’ll say, right? You, all broody and cold. Me, glowing in Bali with a new contract and no ring.”

Reo sighs. Loud enough to be heard. Not loud...