He watched Cayla's retreating back, her steps surprisingly steady, until she disappeared around the corner. He c

for ten years. The woman who had never once raised her voice, let alone her hand. He touched his cheek, the lingering heat

otional precipice she was teetering on. He had been trying to protect her, to protect their professional image. He had been trying to protect them. He genuinely believed she was simply o

bout trying to comfort someone? To... to show affection? He didn't understand. He never understood emot

his daze. She stood at the end of the hallway, her eyes red-rimmed, her face

ha," he said, his voice clipped. "Just a minor disagreement. Go home. Get some rest." He didn't want to

s a tool, haven't you, Declan?" Was that really what she thought? He didn't see her as a tool. He saw her as... indispensable. The one person who understood his visi

d to talk to her. To explain. To apologize, perhaps. He hadn't meant t

d is currently unavailable. Please try again later." His heart lurched.

Again. Still unavailable. A tremor of unease started in his stomach, spr

ed, with a sickening lurch, that Cayla was always the one who called him. To remind him of appointments, to check if he' d eaten, to a

back to the condo. To him. He realized, with a horrifying clarity, that he hadn't known her address outside of their shared apartment in years. He had taken her constant presence, her unwavering devotion,

his life. The sheer emptiness of that realization was a physical pain, sharp and unexpected. He had always been in control, always rational, always logical. But now, without her, his wor

woman having a tantrum. The eyes of a woman saying goodbye. A final, absolute goodbye. The thou

He would find her. He had to find her. He couldn't imagine his life without her. The though

ing him with their anonymity. He tried her name at the front desk. "Cay

ound sense of loss that left him breathless. He had taken her love, her loyalty, her very being, and treated it like an inconvenience. And now, he had lost her