Celeste’s focus was fixed ahead. Her phone in one hand, her coffee in the other, and her mind already buried in the long day waiting for her in her office.
She didn’t see him at first. Not until her shoulder collided with sothing solid.
No, soone.
The impact sent a sharp jolt through her, and the lid of her coffee nearly ca loose. She steadied it just in ti, her brows furrowing as she looked up. And then, she froze.
Landon.
He was the last person she wanted to see this morning, or any morning.
He stood too close. His hand was shoved casually into his pockets, and his mouth curved into that sa half-mocking, half-knowing smirk she used to hate even when they were together.
"Still walk like you own the place," he said. "I heard Dominic was the one who got you a position here."
Celeste exhaled, long and slow through her nose. Her gaze flickered past him toward the elevator doors behind him. "This is my place," she said, her voice even, clipped. "You shouldn’t even be here."
However, before she could take a step, his hand shot out. His fingers curled around her wrist, firmly, and before she could blink, he had pulled her into the elevator with him.
The doors slid shut behind them with a soft chi that sounded far too annoying than it should have.
Celeste’s jaw clenched. The air shifted instantly, growing dense, and charged.
She yanked her hand free, her eyes snapping to his. "What do you think you’re doing?"
Landon leaned back against the mirrored wall, his reflection smirking back at her from every angle. "Relax. I just wanted to talk."
"Try scheduling an appointnt next ti."
He scoffed under his breath. "You look good," he said instead, his eyes dragging over her from head to toe. His tone wasn’t flattering. It was taunting, laced with sothing that felt like a dare.
Celeste’s lips curved faintly. Her smile was cold. "You should keep your eyes where they belong, Landon."
He chuckled. "Can’t help it," he murmured, his gaze unapologetically lingering lower, then eting hers again with a spark of mischief. "You look... so good, Celeste. You’ve been well showered with wealth."
She stared at him lazily, unfazed, though her fingers tightened around her phone. "You still talk too much."
He moved slowly, taking deliberate steps as he circled her the way a predator might circle sothing it already owned in its mind.
Celeste stayed perfectly still, her eyes fixed on the elevator door, and her expression blank. Her irritation was sharp.
Landon stopped behind her. She could feel the warmth of his breath ghosting over her neck before he even spoke.
"You really should be careful around ," he whispered, his voice low, brushing directly against her skin. His tone wasn’t playful anymore. It was darker now, added with a pinch of lust. "Who knows... I might be the one to deliver you to Carlos."
Celeste didn’t move, not imdiately. She just let out a quiet breath through her nose, forcing the rage that pulsed beneath her ribs to stay still.
Then she turned, slow and asured, eting his eyes head-on. Her voice was calm when she parted her lips.
"Dominic would kill you if you dare."
Landon’s smirk widened. The sight of it was so cruel. "You really forget who I am to Dominic, don’t you?" he asked, leaning closer. Now, his face was just inches from hers. His breath was warm, laced with that expensive cologne he always wore.
"He carried as a baby," Landon went on, his tone almost nostalgic, and proud. "He cared for . Trained . Protected . You think he’d kill ?" His smile deepened. "Dominic can’t kill , even if I point a gun at his forehead."
Celeste didn’t flinch.
Her voice ca quiet, sharp, and perfectly clear. "Then I’ll be the one to kill you."
Sothing flickered in his eyes then. He paused, not expecting her to an it that much.
Her gaze road. He stared at the outline of her pretty neck, and salivated.
The elevator chid softly, breaking the tension like a blade.
Celeste stepped past him, brushing her shoulder against his as she moved toward the door.
Before stepping out, she paused — just for a second — and said, without turning back, "Tell Carlos I said hi. I don’t think we should remain strangers since we’ll et one day."
Landon pressed a button quickly, closing the elevator doors again. Celeste turned to him, disinterested.
The elevator humd, and the doors closed again.
Landon walked towards her, and now, stood too close. He always did that. He always took up the wrong amount of space like he owned it. He smiled with the kind of charm that wanted to be forgiven in advance.
"You look good," he said again, like he’d been granted the right to repeat himself. He reached out, his fingers ghosting a centiter along her arm. The touch was casual, and precise. ant to rile her up.
Celeste kept her voice flat. "Don’t."
He laughed, soft and easy, like he hadn’t just ignored her. "Relax. It’s morning." He leaned in.
Then he moved faster than the thought that pushed her back. One hand was at her shoulder, the other against the mirrored wall beside her head, and he pinned her there. The elevator shrank to his face. There was a grin in his eyes that was not a joke.
"You’re mine to play with, Celeste," he murmured, and the words were soft and full of a promise she did not want. He bent toward her mouth.
She felt the heat of him before the rest of it. He was too close, and wrong. Her head snapped to the side reflexively. His lips almost brushed her cheek. And just when he thought he had the mont, her slap landed before he had ti to register the movent.
It was clean, and hard, ant to stop him mid-sinister. It echoed in the small space. His head jerked. His surprised breath puffed out, and for once he was off balance.
He didn’t expect that.
She didn’t stop. Her hand ca up, then, and she spat right between his brows. It hit him in the middle of his stupid smile. He stood there, blinking, as the wetness dried on his skin.
He was red now. Anger flared up in him. He opened his mouth to say sothing, sothing ugly, and she cut him off.
"The next ti," she said, her voice low and calm and far more dangerous for its quiet, "I’ll have your tongue cut off if you try this."
He went pale for a second. Not fear for himself. He was too arrogant for that, but the idea of soone else doing sothing to him made his smile twitch.
He lunged forward with a threat like he was used to being the one giving them. "You forget who I am—"
"I don’t forget who you are," she snapped, cutting him off. "I rember exactly who you are. Dominic rembers too." She stepped away from him. "You do this again and Dominic will know everything. And he will make sure you regret it. Not for , but for yourself."
He blinked. Her voice carried a coldness he had never heard from her before. It was not hysterical. It was asured. It landed heavier than anything she had scread.
The elevator chid.
The doors slid open. The hallway outside was bright and empty. She walked out before he could compose whatever threat was forming in his mouth. He watched her go, chest heaving, stubborn and furious, but he did not follow.
Reviews
All reviews (0)