ncidence hardened

late stopped being circumstance and became expectation-but by the second wee

booked ju

mos arriv

back of his chair long after t

ara s

unspoken understanding between a chief executive and t

king real dinners in

ress train home and waited for th

ened after hours-lost the boardroom edge

matically than the blackout night. The city glowed in w

orway with a tablet

ed the call to tomorr

ed up from

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d despite

oned he

e the

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not fee

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e a small espresso machine gleamed beneath reces

u take it?

la

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ingers

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ty climbed he

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ank

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tended

he room, steam curling upward be

e board chair

oo

tent

window ledge, glass c

cles," he continued. "As

lly obey p

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at a r

bserv

h curved

take

d again, thick

fted her

leave,

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asing w

pers

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, closer now-close enough that she could smell his cologne

etly. "Has this been

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darkened

me

uld hav

did

he began, then stopped. "I

wh

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reath that was

very goo

inve

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r shar

strai

be here this la

of the

kno

ask for rea

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storm weeks ago, but bright enough to fra

self standi

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we

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tence a

an excuse

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s jaw t

shoul

idn't

ld you,"

rea

hat held

can

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she whi

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re," he said, "the buil

chest

ot a good

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he only one

was not

atic lean-in, no

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if drawn by gravit

ouths b

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did

ond, the entire cit

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't," s

oice

," he r

lease her wri

noti

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let

rry," h

houl

es

fingers shaking as s

ar

ooked

she'd left him, exp

t happen aga

no

eliev

ened t

ark and empty, her des

ut without l

ot sleep

ither

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