Chapter 39 Resurfaced
I lay curled beside Jack, our bodies close in a way that still felt unfamiliar and yet strangely inevitable, like something that had been circling us for a long time before finally landing.
It shouldn't have happened but it did. I clasped my eyes shut, maybe I've just been lying to myself and maybe there's really no going back this time.
The sheets were warm, our legs tangled, his breathing steady against my shoulder.
Jack’s fingers traced slow, absent circles on my back, the kind of touch that usually grounded me but tonight, instead of calming my thoughts, it stirred them awake. Each pass of his hand felt like an invitation to speak, and to stop pretending I could carry everything on my own.
And my mind—traitor that it was—kept drifting back to the envelope and the photograph.
That unsettling sense that I’d brushed against something I wasn’t supposed to see.
“I need to tell you something,” I said quietly, my voice barely louder than the city outside.
Jack’s hand stilled instantly.
“What is it?” he asked, and there was no irritation in his voice, only attention. The kind that made it harder to hide my thoughts.
I shifted just enough to look at him, propping myself slightly on my elbow. “Someone dropped an envelope on my desk today.”
His brow creased. “An envelope?”
I nodded. “I don't know who sent it because there was no return address, just my name.”
Something flickered across his face—alertness sharpening into concern. “What was in it?”
“A photograph,” I said. Saying it out loud made my chest tighten all over again. “Black and white and old. My dad was in it.”
Jack didn’t interrupt me.
“There was another man with him,” I continued. “it wasn't Mark or anyone I recognize. But the way they stood… it didn’t feel professional...it felt intimate in a way I can’t explain. Like whatever connected them wasn’t meant to be—seen I guess.”
I swallowed. “I might be over thinking it but it felt like they were hiding something.”
Jack pushed himself up onto one elbow, fully focused on me now. “You think he’s connected to all of this?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted, my voice dipping.
“That’s the worst part. I don’t know enough to be sure of anything. I just… locked it away. Literally.” A weak breath escaped me. “I wasn’t ready to make it into something I have to wallow about.”
He studied my face for a long moment, then sighed. “In that case, I should probably tell you something too.”
My heart skipped. “What is it?”
“Mia,” he said. “After everything that day, I followed her.”
I blinked. “You followed her?”
“She went straight home,” he said quickly, like he didn’t want me to think he was reckless. “There was nothing suspicious or dramatic, but I put a tracker on her car.”
I pushed myself up slightly, sheets gathering at my waist. “You—Jack, you tracked her?”
“I needed answers,” he said calmly. “And I didn’t think confronting her would get us any, that's why I followed her.”
I searched his face, torn between concern and understanding. “And?”
“This morning,” he continued, “her car stopped near a building in the West End. She didn’t go inside.”
My stomach tightened. “But... someone else did?”
He nodded once. “Marcus Trent.”
The name, even though unfamiliar, landed between us like a crack of thunder.
I went very still.
Jack’s jaw tightened. “He used to work for your father, back when your father wanted me to come work for him. He was a fixer. The kind who cleaned up problems before they ever reached daylight. Officially, he was rumored to have retired and vanished years ago.”
“But he actually didn’t?” I said softly.
“No,” Jack replied. “He walked into that building like it belonged to him.”
My fingers curled into the sheets, my pulse loud in my ears. “Marcus Trent,” I repeated. The name felt sharp on my tongue.
“I’d bet anything,” Jack said quietly, “that he’s the man in that photo.”
Something inside me shifted—clicked into place in a way that made my skin prickle.
“I didn’t tell you earlier at the office,” I said after a moment, my voice low, “because I didn’t want to scare you or myself. I just kept hoping it was nothing.”
Jack nodded slowly. “And I didn’t tell you about tracking Mia because I thought keeping you in the dark would keep you safe.” He paused. “Maybe that was the wrong call.”
I reached for his hand, lacing my fingers through his. “Maybe,” I said gently. “But I understand why you did it.”
The silence felt like we were standing on the same ground, finally looking at the same threat.
Jack pulled me closer, resting his forehead against mine. “I guess we keep trying to protect each other with silence.”
I closed my eyes, breathing him in. “Maybe it’s time we stop doing that.”
He kissed me then—and I kissed him back.
By morning, Vale Corp felt different.
I felt it the moment I stepped inside.
I was the first to arrive, like always. My heels echoed softly against the polished floor as I walked in, the sound grounding me. My hair was pinned up neatly, my blazer sat perfectly on my shoulders, every detail of me arranged to project control. From the outside, I looked the same as I always did.
But inside… something had settled like I’d finally stopped spinning in place.
I felt less alone and less shitty. Maybe it was the sex and the shared understanding between Jack and I.
I set my bag down in my office and stood by the window for a moment, watching the city wake up below. People hurried along sidewalks with coffee cups and conversations and lives untouched by the games being played several floors above them. And for once, this view didn’t feel overwhelming, it felt promising.
Jack arrived about twenty minutes later and when I stepped out into the hallway, he was already there, coffee in hand, jacket slung casually over his arm. He looked the same as ever, but there was something sharper in the way he moved as we crossed paths mid-hallway.
Just one glance and everything was there—the understanding felt like alignment.
My chest tightened with purpose.
We didn’t stop to acknowledge each other, I guess that look said enough.And apparently, it said it loudly enough for others to notice.
The front desk assistants glanced up, then quickly looked away, exchanging looks they thought no one would catch. Whatever was happening between Jack and me didn’t need an announcement. It was already writing itself into the space we occupied.
Later, during the strategy meeting, it became impossible to ignore each other.
I sat at the head of the table, reports spread neatly in front of me, my voice steady as I led the discussion. Jack was at my right, focused and sharp, offering insights with the same calm confidence that had made people underestimate him before realizing they shouldn’t.
At one point, he slid a folder across to me and our fingers brushed. I felt a spark, that seemed like a reminder, and like a quiet possession.
I didn’t flinch nor pull away.
Jack saw the flicker of reaction in my eyes. His lips curved in the faintest smile, that was barely there.
“Thanks,” I said, my voice softer than usual.
“Anytime,” he replied, and the way he said it told me he meant more than the folder.
As expected, people noticed.
Mark lingered outside the glass walls longer than necessary, his gaze sharp and calculating.
And Layla passed by later, caught the energy immediately, and smirked to herself like she’d just confirmed a theory.
My assistant suddenly found her notes fascinating, eyes glued to her tablet like the room didn’t exist.
But no one said anything.
The real moment came in the elevator. It was just the two of us.
The doors slid shut, sealing us in a quiet hum of movement and suspended space.
Jack leaned back against the wall. “You’re quiet.”
“I’ve been thinking,” I said.
“About what?”
I hesitated, then answered honestly. “The company, my father and everything he’s still trying to control.” I paused. “And then, there's you.”
You, who I've fallen in love with.
I mentally kicked myself.
That made him turn fully toward me.
I stepped closer as my fingers found the edge of his collar, brushing lightly against his chest where his heartbeat was steady and real beneath my touch.
“I keep thinking about how easy it is to lose sight of what actually matters,” I said quietly.
“When you’re always chasing shadows.”
He caught my wrist gently, his hand warm, grounding. “So... what does matter?”
“This,” I said, holding his gaze.
He didn’t hesitate, he kissed me—like a decision was finally made.
My arms went around his neck without thought. His hands settled at my waist, firm but carefully keeping me stable. For a moment, the world narrowed down to breath and warmth and the undeniable truth of us.
When the elevator slowed, I pulled back just enough to breathe.
I giggled softly, but it sounded alien to my ears.
Jack stayed close, resting his forehead against mine.
“Tonight,” he said quietly.
I nodded knowing what he meant. “Tonight.”
When the doors opened, we stepped out side by side—my fingers lingered on his sleeve just a second longer than necessary.
He winked at me before walking away and just then, my phone vibrated with a text message from Layla.
'You look happy with him. Does this mean, you don't doubt him anymore?'
I stared at my phone longer than I intended before I raked my hand through my hair.