MYKEL'S POV:
Percy's phone sat in my hand like a loaded weapon.
I leaned back in my office chair, the leather creaking softly beneath me, my thumb scrolling through the messages exchanged between him and her over the past few days.
The rain incident.
That one stupid, insignificant moment when he had "helped" her.
If only I had known then.
If only I had realized that a single moment was enough for a rat like him to slither his way into spaces he had no right to enter.
The office around me was quiet..too quiet.
Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked the city, but the skyline did nothing to calm the storm inside me. The faint hum of the air conditioner, the ticking clock on the wall, the distant echo of heels and muffled voices beyond my office door… all of it blurred into nothing as my eyes stayed fixed on the glowing screen in my hand.
Message after message.
Each one more disgusting than the last.
Flirting.
Teasing.
Smiling little words dressed up like innocence.
But I knew exactly what it was.
I knew exactly what he wanted.
And what shattered something inside me was the fact that she had answered him.
Not just politely.
Not just out of kindness.
No.
She had let him in.
I stared at one message so long the words burned into my skull.
"You looked so beautiful in that dress at the party. Honestly, I couldn't stop staring."
My jaw tightened.
Another one.
"I miss spending time with you. If you didn't have a husband, maybe we could hang out without sneaking around like this."
A sharp pulse of rage throbbed at my temple.
Then another.
"I love the shirt you gave me that day. It's too cool, Percy 😂"
My fingers tightened around the phone.
And then....
The final message.
The one that made the air in the room turn red.
"I made your favorite chocolate chip cookies. Wanna come over? Mykel's too busy today, so he'll be home late. We can watch a movie together at my place."