MEETING.

Right in front of me was Seth… with his secretary.

They were both half-dressed.

The moment they saw me, they sprang apart from each other.

She hurriedly scrambled to gather her clothes while Seth frantically searched for his pants.

I felt the entire world freeze around me.

Everything stopped.

The air.

The sounds.

Time itself.

My legs weakened beneath me as I struggled to remain standing.

“Honey, it's not what you think. I can explain—please, just let me explain.”

Seth started moving toward me.

The sight of him made disgust coil violently in my stomach.

I stepped away from him.

How could he?

How could he do this to me?

“How could you do this to me?”

My voice came out weak… small… barely above a whisper.

My whole body trembled violently from the shock crashing through me.

“Alda, please, let me explain. She means nothing to me. You are the one I love. You know I love you, right? I was just having fun with her, that's all.”

His words hit me harder than what I had just witnessed.

Just having fun?

I stared at him in disbelief.

How could he possibly say that to me?

How could he reduce this… us… to something so meaningless?

I suddenly felt like I couldn't breathe.

The pain in my chest tightened until it felt suffocating.

I needed air.

I needed space.

I needed to get away from him.

Away from this room.

Away from the shattered remains of everything I thought my marriage was.

Without another word, I grabbed my handbag and lunch box and headed straight for the door.

“Alda, please hear me the fuck out!”

His voice exploded behind me.

I froze for a fraction of a second.

Did he really just yell at me?

A part of me wanted to turn around and dump the food right in his face.

But I couldn't.

I just couldn't.

I needed to leave.

The pain inside me was becoming unbearable.

Hot tears streamed uncontrollably down my cheeks as I practically ran out of his office and toward the elevator.

“Alda! Alda, you stop right there! Don't walk away while I'm talking to you!”

His shouting echoed through the hallway behind me.

Heads started turning.

Employees began peeking out from their offices and desks, trying to figure out where the commotion was coming from.

The attention only made the humiliation worse.

I felt exposed.

Broken.

Humiliated.

And somehow… he was still chasing after me like I was the one doing something wrong.

I rushed into the elevator and immediately pressed the button for the ground floor.

I never thought Seth would cheat on me.

Never.

I never imagined he could betray me like this… and yet he had looked me straight in the eyes and told me he loved me.

I felt the little hope I had been desperately rebuilding inside myself shatter into a million pieces.

A sob slipped past my lips before I could stop it.

I quickly covered my mouth, trying to suppress the sound.

The moment the elevator doors opened, I rushed out.

I needed to get away from this place.

Away from Seth.

Away from the suffocating pain crushing my chest.

I didn't want to see him again until I could think properly.

I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't notice someone walking toward me until I crashed into them and lost my balance.

I fell hard.

“I'm so sorry… please pardon me,” I said quickly, struggling to pull myself up from the ground.

“Here, let me help you.”

His voice was deep, firm… yet strangely pleasant to the ears.

I looked up and found a pair of grey eyes staring down at me.

“I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bump into you.”

I apologised again and immediately looked away.

Avoiding his gaze, I grabbed my bag and hurried outside the company building.

Wiping at the tears streaking down my cheeks, I walked aimlessly down the street until I found a small coffee shop.

I stepped inside and chose a seat tucked away from people's eyes.

“Ma’am, can I get you something?”

The bartender's voice reached me, but I wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone.

I simply waved him away.

God… I felt so stupid.

How could I have trusted him so completely?

The image of Seth and his secretary in that restroom kept replaying inside my head over and over again like a cruel nightmare I couldn't escape.

I felt like I was losing my mind.

I needed to talk to someone.

Anyone.

Before I completely broke apart.

I pulled out my phone and dialled Anna’s number.

Straight to voicemail.

“Anna…”

My voice cracked immediately.

“Anna, I'm seriously losing my mind. Please call me when you get this message. I need to talk to someone… or I might end up doing something stupid.”

I tried desperately to hold back my sobs as I ended the call.

Feeling even more shattered than before, I got up and headed toward the restroom.

Xender’s POV

I was caught off guard when someone suddenly slammed into me right outside the elevator.

“I'm so sorry… please pardon me,” she apologised, struggling to get herself off the ground.

“Here, let me help you.”

I extended my hand toward her.

She looked at my hand for a brief moment before finally lifting her gaze to meet mine.

Tears stained her cheeks.

Her beautiful brown eyes were filled with sadness.

Not ordinary sadness.

The kind of sadness that looked heavy… suffocating.

Like whatever had happened to her had completely drained the life out of her.

She looked like someone who desperately needed a break from whatever pain she was carrying.

But instead of taking my hand, she quickly looked away, avoiding my gaze.

“I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bump into you.”

She pushed herself to her feet, grabbed her handbag, and rushed off.

I watched her disappear.

What the hell had left her in that state?

“Sir, I couldn't get hold of Mr. Sebastian.”

My secretary’s voice pulled me out of my thoughts as she approached.

“He better not go silent on me,” I muttered coldly. “Or he'll live to regret it.”

I was furious.

How could he play games with my business… and my contacts?

“Sir… does that belong to you?”

Rosa pointed toward a lunch box lying on the floor.

I hadn't even noticed it after the woman from earlier ran off.

“Damn it… that belongs to the lady who just left.”

“You mean the lady in the blue dress?” Rosa adjusted her glasses. “I saw her running down the street. Do you want me to go after her and give this to her?”

I don't know why she has to be this annoying.

This is Charles’s fault.

God, how I miss Jane.

“Rosa, what exactly is your job as my secretary?”

“Answering phones, ordering office supplies, recording company meeting minutes, supervising new employees, scheduling appointments, and many more,” she replied while adjusting her glasses for what felt like the hundredth time.

“Does any of that involve handling lost and found items?” I asked, unable to hide the irritation in my voice.

“No, sir.”

“Good. Now get in there and get me a meeting with Mr. Sebastian.”

“Yes, sir.”

She rushed toward the elevator in her usual clumsy manner.

Two seconds later, she tripped.

Again.

I watched as files exploded across the floor.

Wonderful.

I let out a long, frustrated sigh as she scrambled around trying to gather the scattered papers.

I seriously needed Charles to find me a new secretary before Rosa completely ruined my sanity.

I walked past the lunch box and stepped into the elevator, waiting for Rosa to join me.

But…

I couldn't just leave the lunch box there.

Damn it.

I stepped back out of the elevator and stood beside it, debating whether I should pick it up or not.

I'm sure she'll notice it's missing and come back for it.

I turned to walk away.

But I couldn't get that woman's expression out of my head.

Those sad brown eyes.

That broken look on her face.

With an annoyed exhale, I turned back and picked up the lunch box.

“Rosa, can you tell me which direction the lady went?”

“She went into a coffee shop down the road,” Rosa replied after finally managing to collect the last sheet of paper.

“Go set up the meeting with Mr. Sebastian. I'll be back in less than fifteen minutes.”

“Yes, sir.”

“And Rosa…”

She froze.

“Do not trip again. Do not send my files flying through the air again. And stop adjusting your glasses every five seconds. It's annoying and distracting. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Good.”

I grabbed the lunch box and headed off in search of its owner.

When I reached the coffee shop, I took my time scanning the room for her.

Nothing.

No blue dress.

No sad brown eyes.

No sign of her.

I walked toward the counter and decided to ask the bartender. Maybe she had seen something useful.

“Sir, what can we get for you?”

She greeted me with a flirtatious smile while adjusting her shirt low enough to reveal more cleavage.

Right.

This never gets old.

I smirked back, matching the same ridiculous smile she was giving me.

“I actually need to ask you something.”

“Anything for you, handsome,” she replied, licking her lips before biting down on them afterward.

I wanted to tell her this wasn't a damn nightclub.

If I were her boss, she would've been fired already.

“Have you seen a woman in a blue dress come in here? Blonde hair. Around five feet tall.”

Even while I was asking the question, she seemed far more interested in staring at me than actually listening.

Okay.

This is getting stupid.

I can't believe I abandoned my meeting to look for someone I barely met for ten seconds.

“Never mind. She's probably not here.”

I turned to leave.

Then she grabbed my hand.

“Can I have your number? You're totally my type.”

Her voice came out soft, but I heard every word.

“Okay.” I leaned closer. “Come here. I don't want anyone hearing this.”

Her face lit up immediately as she leaned in exactly like I asked.

“You should learn how to focus on your job,” I whispered near her ear. “I could easily make you lose it if I filed a report against you.”

I pulled back slightly.

“And button up your shirt while you're at it. You don't really have much to show anyway.”

The shock on her face was immediate.

Yeah.

She definitely didn't see that coming.

I grabbed the lunch box and walked out of the coffee shop.

I seriously couldn't believe I had delayed my meeting just to return this thing.

I was absolutely putting it back where I found it.

Maybe the woman would eventually find her way back to it.

I stood outside the coffee shop, weighing my next move.

Suddenly, someone brushed past me.

I almost turned around to snap at them to watch where they were going.

But when I turned—

I froze.

The same sad brown eyes from earlier were staring back at me.

I found her.