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Brynn was on the other side of that door, and I wasn’t going to let her out of my sight until she answered every last one of my questions.
Chapter Four
Brynn
I knew I wouldn’t be alone for long.
Years had passed since I last laid eyes on Leo, but he hadn’t changed much. His dark hair, although now sprinkled with gray, was always perfectly in place and the sharpness in his gaze remained the same. What had changed, though, was the dynamic between us. I had the upper hand now, and it was clear from the tension radiating off him that it drove him insane.
The door to my office creaked open, and Leo strode in with Sig trailing behind him like a shadow. Sig, ever the observant one, gave me a nod, silently asking if this was okay. His eyes flicked to Leo, then back to me, assessing. I returned the nod and moved behind my desk, taking my seat in the large leather chair that dominated the space.
Leo stepped in fully, his eyes roaming the room, but Sig didn’t follow. He simply shut the door behind Leo, leaving the two of us alone.
I leaned back in my chair, hands resting on the polished wooden surface of my desk, watching Leo as he took in my office. The dark green walls seemed to absorb the tension in the room, though they did nothing to quell the thrum of power I felt in this moment. My desk was simple but sturdy, a reflection of my tastes—clean, elegant, and designed to last. Expensive paintings adorned the walls, mostly abstract, chosen to evoke calm or contemplation, depending on the light. In front of the desk sat two plush armchairs, inviting but also firm enough to remind whoever sat in them that they weren’t here to relax.
Leo’s gaze finally landed on me. “You always loved this shade of green,” he said, his voice soft but charged with something I couldn’t quite place.
I tilted my head slightly, a small smile playing at the corner of my lips. “Yeah, you’re right.” My voice remained even, betraying nothing.
He moved to one of the armchairs but didn’t sit. Instead, he stood in front of it, hands slipping into the pockets of his tailored pants, his eyes never leaving me. There was something different about him, something in the way he was trying to measure the situation. Leo was always the one with control, and now that it was me holding the cards, he didn’t quite know how to act.
“Nice office,” he added after his gaze swept over the bookshelves. “Romance novels?” His brow arched slightly as he read the spines of the books lining the shelves.
I couldn’t help but chuckle. “What, surprised I don’t fill my shelves with textbooks or legal volumes?” I leaned forward, resting my elbows on the desk. “You forget, Leo, I have many interests.”
His smirk was almost nostalgic. “I suppose I did.” He finally sat down, his posture tense. “But this... this is different.”
I leaned back again, studying him. “A lot has changed.”
He scoffed quietly, shaking his head. “You’re telling me.” His eyes hardened, and I saw the frustration simmering just beneath the surface. “So, are we going to talk about it?”
It. The unspoken elephant in the room.
I let the silence stretch a little longer than necessary, watching as Leo’s patience thinned. “We can talk about many things, Leo,” I finally said, my tone deliberately measured. “But first, tell me—how does it feel?”
He blinked, clearly not expecting the question. “How does what feel?”
“Being the one in the dark for once.” My voice was sharper than I intended, but I didn’t mind. I wanted him to feel the shift in power.
His jaw tightened, and I saw the flicker of annoyance cross his face. “I’m not in the dark,” he said, but even he didn’t believe his own words.
I raised an eyebrow, unconvinced. “Oh really? Because from where I’m sitting, it looks like you have no idea what’s going on. And it’s eating you alive.”
His lips pressed into a thin line, and I thought he might lash out. Instead, he took a slow breath, his gaze narrowing. “Fine. You’ve got me. I don’t know everything.” He leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. “But I’m here now. So why don’t you enlighten me? Tell me how the girl I knew years ago turned into a woman I have no clue about.”
“Another thing you’re annoyed about,” I said, watching Leo closely. “You thought you had your eye on me all these years, but you didn’t.”
He didn’t miss a beat. “Not so much annoyed as just wondering how I got the information I did.” He leaned back in his chair, casual, but I could see the tension in his shoulders. “You were a secretary for Mark James at Wayne Plastics.”
I smiled, just enough to let him know there was more to the story. “I was, for a time. But then... things happened.”
Leo spread his hands in front of him, a small gesture of impatience. “And those things would be what?” His voice sharpened, his frustration peeking through.
“Well,” I said, leaning back in my chair, “there are a lot of little things, but they all come back to Jason James.”
Leo narrowed his eyes at me, clearly not recognizing the name. “Am I supposed to know who that is?”
“Mark’s brother,” I explained, tipping my head to the side. “He happened to come into the office about two years after I started working for Mark.” I watched his face for any sign of recognition. “You might know him by a different name, though.”
