Chapter 24
Devon's POV
I am Devon Kane, CEO of Kane Technology and controlling shareholder of a business empire valued at over thirty billion dollars. At thirty-five, I've been called everything from "Wall Street's most eligible bachelor" to "tech's coldest strategist." The New York Times once wrote that I have "the Midas touch in an era where silicon dreams can vanish overnight." Forbes put me on their cover last year with the headline "The Man Who Never Sleeps."
They had no idea how literal that description was.
From my office window on the top floor, I watched Aria Harper enter the building hours ago. Claire informed me immediately, as instructed. She's still waiting in the lobby, apparently determined to see me.
My fingers traced the edge of the investment report justifying the termination of our contract with Stellar Impressions. The numbers were accurate, the risk assessment sound. But they weren't the real reason.
In my thirty-five years, women have never been scarce in my life. Models, heiresses, entrepreneurs—all eager to share my bed and my fortune. Yet none have held my interest beyond a few encounters. The public sees a young billionaire with limitless potential. What they don't see are the sleepless nights that have plagued me since college, growing worse with each passing year.
It's not anxiety about work—I've always been confident in my business decisions. The insomnia simply exists, resistant to medication, meditation, and every other remedy money can buy. Until recently.
Until a young woman knocked on my hotel suite door wearing a housekeeping uniform that didn't quite fit her. Aria Harper was beautiful, yes, but so are countless women who have tried to get close to me. Something about her was different. Perhaps it was her determination, or the fire in her eyes when she thought I wasn't looking.
That first night with her, I slept better than I had in nearly a decade. I assumed it was coincidence, but in the days that followed, my insomnia returned with a vengeance. When I discovered her boutique marketing firm was negotiating with one of my subsidiaries, it seemed like providence. A business contract became the perfect pretext to keep her close.
I told myself it was a simple transaction—her body for my money. Each party getting what they wanted. But last night, when I entered the hotel room and found her already asleep, tears streaking her face as she whispered "Mom" in her dreams, something unexpected happened.
Instead of waking her, instead of feeling cheated out of our arrangement, I found myself gently wiping away her tears, carefully adjusting her blankets. I watched her sleep for nearly an hour, feeling an unfamiliar tightness in my chest.
I barely slept that night. Without her in my arms, the insomnia returned, along with something else—a restlessness I couldn't name.
By morning, I was furious with myself for that moment of weakness. Devon Kane doesn't do tenderness. Every kindness in business has a price, and Aria Harper needed to understand that.
So I called in the investment team. Told them to find reasons to terminate the contract. Instructed my assistant to block Aria's number. It was petty, beneath me, but necessary. Whatever power she was beginning to hold over me needed to be recalibrated.
And yet here she sits, hours later, stubbornly waiting in my lobby.
"Mr. Kane?" Claire's voice came through the intercom. "The investment team is ready for you in conference room A."
I pushed thoughts of Aria aside. "I'll be right there."
She would eventually give up and leave. And if she didn't? Well, I could always reinstate the contract—under stricter terms. Terms that would remind us both exactly what our relationship was.
Business. Nothing more.
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Aria’s POV
By 5:45, my resolve was weakening. Had I miscalculated? Maybe Devon truly intended to cut ties completely. Just as I was considering defeat, Claire reappeared.
"Mr. Kane will see you briefly after his meeting concludes at six," she said. "Please follow me."
The executive floor was eerily quiet as Claire led me to Devon's office. She opened the door without knocking and gestured for me to enter. "He'll be with you shortly."
Devon's office was exactly what I'd expected—spacious, minimalist, and dominated by floor-to-ceiling windows offering a spectacular view of Manhattan. One wall displayed framed magazine covers featuring his face and achievements. The desk was a massive slab of what appeared to be volcanic stone, with a single laptop and nothing else disturbing its pristine surface.
I paced nervously, rehearsing arguments in my head. Ten minutes passed before the door finally opened.
Devon walked in, his expression inscrutable as he moved to stand by the window, back partially turned to me. He was dressed in a charcoal suit, his posture rigid with controlled power.
"You have quite the persistence, Ms. Harper," he said without looking at me. "Coming to my office unannounced and waiting all day. What urgent matter brings you here?"
"You know exactly why I'm here," I said, struggling to keep my voice steady. "You terminated our contract without explanation or warning."
"I don't need to explain my business decisions." His tone was cold, detached. "Kane Technology works with the best. If we determine a partnership isn't beneficial, we end it."
"That's bullshit and you know it," I said, stepping closer. "Our proposal addressed every concern you raised. This is about last night."
Devon finally turned to face me, his gray eyes narrowed. "Coming to my office to discuss our personal arrangement is highly unprofessional, Aria."
"Canceling a legitimate business contract because I fell asleep is what's unprofessional," I countered.
A flicker of something—amusement?—crossed his face. "Is that what you think happened?"
"What else could it be? You summoned me to your hotel suite, and because I passed out from exhaustion instead of providing the services outlined in our agreement, you're punishing my company."
Devon shook his head slightly. "I don't mix business with pleasure, contrary to what you might believe." He moved to his desk and sat down, regarding me with that maddeningly calm expression. "The termination decision came from my investment team after reviewing your company's financial stability. The timing is... unfortunate coincidence."
I didn't believe him for a second. "My company's finances were the same when we signed the original contract."
"Perhaps my team was overly optimistic then. Or perhaps they've grown concerned by the CEO's apparent lack of professionalism."
"What does that mean?"
"It means," Devon said, his voice dropping lower, "that I don't make a habit of working with people who waste my time, Aria. It's precious to both of us."