Chapter 1

The coffee in Ryan's hand was getting cold. He'd been standing by my desk for ten minutes now, supposedly discussing the Morrison account, but neither of us had mentioned Morrison in the last five minutes.

"Your presentation yesterday was brilliant," he said, his voice dropping to that low tone that made my stomach flutter. "The way you handled their objections about the budget..."

I looked up from my laptop screen, and there it was again. That look. The one that made me forget we were in the middle of an open office with twenty other people around us.

"It was nothing special," I said, but I couldn't stop the smile tugging at my lips.

"Lia." The way he said my name should be illegal. "You know it wasn't nothing."

This had been going on for almost a month now. The lingering looks. The unnecessary meetings. The way he'd find excuses to stop by my desk. The way my heart would skip whenever I heard his footsteps approaching.

Maybe this time would be different. Maybe this time, I wouldn't mess it up.

Ryan set his coffee cup down on my desk and leaned closer. "Are you free for lunch today?"

The question hung in the air between us. We both knew this wasn't about lunch. Not really.

"I..." My mouth felt dry. "I think so."

"Good." His hand moved closer to mine on the desk. So close I could feel the warmth radiating from his skin. "There's this place I want to show you."

Around us, the office continued its usual hum of activity. Keyboards clicking. Phones ringing. Sarah from accounting complaining about the broken printer again. But all I could focus on was Ryan's fingers, now barely an inch from mine.

He was going to touch my hand. I could see it in his eyes, that moment of decision. The same look he'd given me yesterday when he'd walked me to my car. The same look from last week when we'd stayed late working on the Henderson proposal and found ourselves alone in the conference room.

But this time felt different. This time felt like he might actually—

"Lia." His voice was barely above a whisper.

I looked up, and he was closer than before. Close enough that I could smell his cologne. Close enough that I could see the tiny scar above his left eyebrow that I'd been wondering about for weeks.

This was it. This was actually happening.

My heart was beating so fast I was sure he could hear it. His eyes moved to my lips, then back to my eyes. The question was there, unspoken but clear.

I should move away. We were at work. Anyone could see us. But I couldn't make myself care about any of that right now.

Ryan's hand finally covered mine, warm and strong and perfect. "Lia, I—"

Ding.

The sound of my phone notification cut through the moment like a knife. Ryan's hand jerked back. The spell was broken.

"Sorry," I mumbled, fumbling for my phone. "I should just..."

But when I saw the name on the screen, my blood turned to ice.

Sera.

Hey babe! Guess what? I'm back in town and looking for a new job! Any chance your company is hiring? We need to catch up ASAP. How about coffee later? 💕

No. No, no, no.

Three months. She'd been gone for three whole months, and I'd actually started to believe... I'd started to hope that maybe this time would be different. That maybe Ryan and I could have something real without Sera swooping in to ruin everything.

"Everything okay?" Ryan's voice seemed to come from very far away.

I looked up at him, this man who'd been slowly breaking down my walls for weeks, and felt the familiar panic rising in my chest. The same panic I'd felt eight times before when Sera decided to test whether my boyfriends were "worthy" of me.

"It's..." I swallowed hard. "It's my friend Sera. She's back in town."

Ryan nodded, but I could see the confusion in his eyes. He didn't understand why a text from a friend would make me look like I'd seen a ghost.

How could I explain? How could I tell him that every relationship I'd ever had ended the same way? With Sera's beautiful face and her caring smile and her gentle voice saying, "I'm just looking out for you, Lia. If he really loves you, he won't be tempted by me."

And they were always tempted. Always.

"She's... she's looking for a job," I heard myself saying. "She wants to meet for coffee."

"That's nice," Ryan said, but his tone had shifted. Professional. Distant. The moment we'd almost shared was completely gone now.

My fingers were shaking as I typed back a response.

Sure! How about the café downstairs from my office? Say, 4 PM?

I hit send before I could change my mind. Before I could make up an excuse. Before I could protect this fragile thing Ryan and I had been building.

Because deep down, in the part of me that had been broken eight times before, I knew the truth.

Sera was back. And soon, Ryan would be gone too.

"I should get back to work," Ryan said, picking up his coffee cup. "Let me know about lunch, okay?"

But even as he said it, I could see the walls going back up. The careful distance returning. The moment we'd almost shared becoming just another "what if" to add to my collection.

I watched him walk back to his office, and my phone buzzed again.

Can't wait to see you! And maybe meet this new guy you're obviously hiding from me 😉 See you at 4! XOXO

My hands were definitely shaking now.

Sera always knew. Somehow, she always knew.