Chapter 40 FORTY
Lennox took the subway to Brooklyn because taking the car felt too obvious. Honestly, she just wanted to feel like herself again.
The youth center was closed Thursdays but there was a park across the street. Benches, screaming kids on playground equipment, pigeons everywhere. She got there early, bought a pretzel from a cart even though she wasn't hungry. Just needed something to do with her hands.
Adrian showed up right at two. Walked over casual, like this was completely normal.
"Hey. Thanks for coming."
"What's this about?" No point in small talk.
He sat down, left space between them on the bench. "I wanted to talk to you."
"About what?"
"How well do you know Victor?"
That wasn't what she expected. "Victor? I don't know, not that well. He's on the board. Close with the family. Why?"
"Just wondering." Adrian was watching her weird. Too closely. "He talks about you a lot when we're working. Says you're smart. Asks questions about what you do, where you go."
Her stomach dropped. "What kind of questions?"
"Nothing specific. Just... interested, I guess. In you. Your background. What you and Callum do together." He shrugged. "Seemed odd to me. Like he's keeping tabs or something."
"Why would he do that?"
"No idea. But I figured you should know." He pulled out his phone, pretended to check something. "He asked me to report back to him. About you. About Callum. Said the company's at a delicate point and he needs to make sure nothing goes wrong."
Lennox's brain was screaming warnings. "And you're telling me this because...?"
"Because it feels wrong. I don't like being used to spy on people." He put the phone away, looked at her. "You seem like you pay attention. Thought maybe you'd noticed things too."
"What things?"
"I don't know. That's what I'm asking you."
This whole conversation felt off. Like a test or a trap or something she couldn't figure out. Was Adrian actually warning her about Victor? Or was he up to something more sinister?
"I don't know what you want me to say," she said carefully.
"Just be careful. That's all." He stood up. "Victor's not what he seems. Watch your back."
Then he left. Just walked away across the park like he hadn't just made her paranoid about everything.
Lennox sat there, pretzel getting cold, trying to figure out what the hell that was about. Was Victor suspicious of her? Did he know about her digging into company files? What was Adrian trying to achieve here exactly?
She threw the pretzel to the pigeons and headed back.
The whole subway ride home her brain wouldn't shut up. Victor asking about her. Adrian warning her or testing her or whatever that was. The security breach investigation that was absolutely about finding her even if they didn't know it yet.
Everything was tangled up and she couldn't see clearly anymore.
She arrived back at the penthouse around four. It was quiet and Callum's door was closed.
She showered, changed into leggings and a t-shirt, tried to calm down. Tonight they were supposed to talk. About San Francisco.
She had no idea what to say to him.
Around six his door opened.
She found him in the kitchen looking almost human again. Clean clothes, damp hair, still exhausted but awake at least.
"Hey," he said. "Better?"
"Yeah. You?"
"Getting there." He poured coffee, handed her a cup without asking. "We should talk."
"I know."
They just stood there. Kitchen island between them like some kind of barrier. Neither sitting down, neither getting closer.
"San Francisco," he started.
"Was a mistake."
He blinked. "What?"
"Wasn't it? We crossed a line we shouldn't have." She was talking too fast but couldn't stop. "The contract says this is supposed to be professional. Fake. We have rules."
"Lennox..."
"You said it yourself this morning. We need to talk about what it means. And I think it means we can't do it again."
He was quiet. Staring at the mug on his hand like it might explain something. "You think it was a mistake?"
"Don't you? This whole thing is complicated enough without adding sex into it."
"Sex." He said the word flat. Empty.
"What else would you call it?"
"I don't know. But that feels..." He shook his head. "Wrong somehow."
"But accurate." She set her cup down. "Look, we got caught up. The trip, the wine, whatever. It happened. But it complicates everything and we both know it."
"So we just pretend it didn't happen."
"We acknowledge it happened and agree it can't happen again. That's different."
"Is it?" He looked at her finally. Really looked at her. "Because it feels the same to me."
Her chest hurt. "What do you want me to say, Callum? That I want to keep sleeping with you while we're in a fake marriage that has an expiration date? That sounds healthy."
"I didn't say that."
"Then what are you saying?"
"I don't know!" His voice rose. Frustrated. "I don't know what I'm saying because I don't know what this is or what I want or how to navigate any of it."
"Well I do." Lie. Complete lie but she said it anyway. "I want to stick to the agreement. Keep things simple. Professional."
"Professional."
"Yes."
"Like business partners."
"We are business partners. That's literally what the contract says."
Something in his face shut down. That mask sliding back into place. "Right. The contract. Of course."
"Don't do that."
"Do what?"
"Act like I'm the bad guy for wanting to follow the rules we both agreed to."
"I'm not." But his voice was cold now. Distant. "You're right. It was a mistake. It complicates things. We should stick to the original arrangement."
"Good. Okay. So we're on the same page."
"Same page. Yeah."
The silence was awful. Like all the ease from San Francisco had evaporated and they were back to being strangers.
"I have work to do," she said finally.
"Me too."
She started to leave, stopped at the doorway. "Callum?"
"What?"
"It wasn't..." She couldn't finish. Couldn't tell him it wasn't actually a mistake, that she'd wanted it, that she was terrified of how much she'd wanted it. "Never mind. See you tomorrow."
She went to her room, closed the door, slid down to sit on the floor.
They'd just agreed to pretend San Francisco didn't happen. To go back to being contract associates who barely talked. It felt like the worst decision ever but also the only safe one. She couldn’t afford to get her feelings mixed in this when she knows there isn’t any future for them.
She went to bed thinking on how her life got this complicated.