Chapter 16

Kiara POV

I did my research. I had to.

I did not expect to be caught in the middle of two men. One…named Lucian Hartford, one of the richest billionaires out there. But is secluded with little to no information about him.

Though there was speculations that he was in the mafia. No one have ever seen any other emotions on his face. And then there is Jason, the man with a playful personality. Chill but dangerous.

Because no way someone who is playful graduated top from an ivy League institution and started a business that became so successful and popular before he reaches thirty.

Yet by some divine favor I had been caught in the middle of both last night.

Tell me, isn't it wonderful?

No it isn't. Luckily no one can recognize me because I don't need to be recognized as I am planning to get down pretty low to destroy both Jessica and Gabriel, I just need them to make a tiny little mistake.

I arrived at work feeling like I had a giant, invisible target on my back. The events from last night had left me anxious, wondering if anyone would recognize me. I mean, I was wearing a mask the whole time, right? Still, the tabloids were relentless, and the fact that they were talking about me—even if they didn't know it was me—had me on edge.

Stepping through the front doors of the building, I kept my head down, trying to blend in as much as possible. As I passed by some coworkers, I could hear snippets of conversation.

"Did you see that girl with Jason Lincoln Cole last night? No one knows who she is, but they say Lucian Hartford was involved too. Like…she was so lucky."

"Yeah, she was all over the headlines this morning. Some people think she's a model."

"Or a prostitute. People said she goes there every night kissing different men. Unfortunately no one knows how she looks. Beside that's an high end bar, not just anyone can get in."

"Pfft, doesn't make her rich. She probably slept with someone to get in."

I winced. Great.

The last thing I needed was to be the topic of everyone's gossip. It was only a matter of time before someone connected the dots and I would he the most hated woman. I pushed the thoughts away and made my way to the elevator, focusing on breathing and keeping calm.

Just as I was about to step inside, I bumped into someone, the impact knocking me slightly off balance.

"Oh, sorry," I muttered, looking up.

The guy I had bumped into grinned down at me, his hands brushing against mine as he steadied me. "No worries. Guess I should watch where I'm going," he said with a chuckle.

I looked him over, quickly assessing him. Tall, sandy brown hair, sharp green eyes, and a killer smile. He seemed friendly enough.

"I'm Kiara," I said, straightening myself.

"Alex," he replied, extending his hand. "You work here, huh?"

I nodded. "Yeah. Assistant Tech Manager. You?"

"New here, actually. Just started in the Marketing department." He smiled again, and I had to admit, it was kind of contagious.

"Well, welcome to the madhouse, Alex." I smirked, giving him a mock salute.

"Thanks. Maybe I'll see you around then?"

"Maybe," I said, stepping back as the elevator doors slid open.

I caught a glimpse of him watching me as I entered the elevator, but I had bigger things to focus on. For now, I needed to get to my office before I accidentally ran into anyone else.

When I got to my floor, I exhaled slowly, trying to shake off the lingering embarrassment. So far, no one had recognized me, but I couldn't let my guard down.

As I made my way to the tech department, I could already hear the angry grunts and the Something was off. And I knew exactly what—or rather, who—was the source of it.

Jo.

I pushed open the door to our office and spotted him immediately, pacing near his desk with his phone pressed against his ear. His dark hair was tied back in a neat ponytail, and he was wearing his usual no-nonsense attire—black blazer, fitted pants, and polished shoes that clicked sharply against the floor with every step.

He hadn't noticed me yet, but I could tell by the tightness in his jaw and the way he kept tapping his pen against his thigh that something was wrong.

"Jo," I said quietly after he hung up the call, not wanting to startle him.

He turned to face me, his dark eyes locking onto mine, and for a moment, I could feel that familiar spark—the one I'd been trying to ignore. The one that made the air between us feel charged, like we were both waiting for something to happen.

"Hey," he said, his voice a little strained. "Rough morning."

"Yeah, I could tell." I stepped closer, trying to figure out what had him so worked up. "What's going on?"

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "We've got a situation with the software update. It's a mess. The clients are pissed, and now I have to figure out how to clean it all up before the higher-ups get wind of it."

I frowned. "That bad?"

"Worse," he muttered, dropping into his chair. "I swear, sometimes I think I'm the only one who knows what they're doing around here."

I hesitated for a second before moving to sit on the edge of his desk, facing him. "Well, you're not alone. You've got me."

Jo glanced up at me, and for a split second, the tension between us shifted. It was subtle, but it was there. I could feel it in the way his eyes lingered on mine, in the way his lips parted slightly as if he was about to say something but stopped himself.

"I know," he said softly, his voice barely above a whisper. "But sometimes it feels like..."

"Like what?" I asked, leaning in just a bit closer, my heart speeding up in my chest.

Jo shook his head, breaking the moment and standing up abruptly. "It's nothing. Let's just focus on the work."

I swallowed the lump in my throat and nodded. "Right. Work."

But as he walked over to the whiteboard, starting to jot down notes on how to salvage the situation, I couldn't shake the feeling that there was something more going on here. Something between us that we both refused to address.

And the worst part? I wasn't sure if I wanted to address it. There was already so much happening in my life—between the mess with Jason, the disaster last night with Lucian, and now being caught up in this tech drama at work—I didn't know if I could handle another complication.

But damn, did Jo make it hard to think straight.

I forced myself to focus, standing up and walking over to him. "Alright, what's the plan? How do we fix this?"

He looked at me, his eyes softening slightly before he turned back to the board. "We need to run a diagnostic on the system and figure out where the glitches are coming from. If we can isolate the problem, we can patch it before it affects more clients."

"Got it," I said, grabbing a tablet and pulling up the system data. "Let's get to work."

For the next few hours, we worked side by side, our usual rhythm returning as we tackled the problem together. But every now and then, I'd catch Jo looking at me out of the corner of his eye, and that spark—whatever it was—would flare up again.

By the time lunch rolled around, we had made some progress, but the tension between us was still there, simmering just below the surface.

"Want to grab something to eat?" Jo asked, breaking the silence.

I hesitated. "I probably should stay and keep working on this."

Jo smirked. "You know, sometimes you can take a break. The work will still be here when you get back."

I gave him a half-smile. "Yeah, but the sooner we fix this, the sooner we can stop worrying about it."

He raised an eyebrow, clearly amused by my dedication. "Fair enough."

As Jo walked out of the office, I exhaled, feeling the weight of the morning settle on me. I couldn't wait for Jo to leave.

And have the whole office to myself.

I grinned.

With a sigh, I turned back to my screen, forcing myself to focus on work. But then a certain smirk passed through my mind.

No. No. I shook my head cleaning it from my mind.

There is no way I am going to be thinking about Jason. Never. Nope. Not at all.