The next day Lucas invited Aria to his office.

Aria stepped into Lucas’s sleek, glass-walled office, the afternoon sun cutting through the blinds in sharp lines across the polished floor. She took a deep breath, letting the calm but dangerous air she carried settle around her. Lucas, as always, looked impossibly composed, lounging in his chair as if the entire world owed him attention.

“Oh, you’re punctual,” he remarked with a smirk. “I like that.”

“I don’t like waiting,” Aria replied smoothly, crossing her arms as she scanned the room. Her eyes landed on the figure standing quietly by the window—tall, muscular, wearing an expression that balanced alertness and nonchalance...