The moment Lillian disappeared down the hallway, the entire executive floor of Sovereign fell into a strange, uncomfortable silence.
No one spoke.
Keyboards stopped clicking.
Employees pretended to stare at their monitors, but everyone had heard the argument.
Everyone had seen it.
Sebastian Wolfe stood in the middle of the hallway for a moment, his jaw tight, his expression unreadable.
Then he turned sharply and walked back into his office.
The door shut behind him with a heavy click.
Inside, he walked straight to his desk and opened his laptop as if nothing had happened.
As if he hadn't just shattered someone's heart in front of half the company.
A few minutes passed.
Then the door burst open.
Chloe marched in without knocking.
She slammed the door behind her so hard the glass walls rattled.
Sebastian didn't even look up.
"If you're here to yell," he said calmly, typing on his keyboard, "make it quick. I have work to do."
Chloe stared at him in disbelief.
"Are you serious right now?"
Sebastian continued typing.
"You humiliated her."
His fingers paused for half a second.
Then continued moving again.
"She caused a scene," he said flatly.
Chloe took a step closer to his desk.
"She was worried about you."
"I didn't need that."
Her hands clenched at her sides.
"You are the most stubborn man I have ever met."
Sebastian leaned back in his chair slowly.
"If you're finished—."
"I'm not finished."
Her voice echoed through the office.
Outside the glass walls, a few employees froze in place.
Chloe pointed toward the hallway.
"Do you even realize she left the building crying?"
For the first time since she entered the room…
Sebastian looked up.
His expression remained cold, but there was a brief flicker of something in his eyes.
It vanished just as quickly.
"She'll get over it."
Chloe stared at him like she couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"No," she said quietly.
Her voice had lost its anger.
Now it sounded tired.
"I don't think she will this time."
Sebastian's jaw tightened.
"She's emotional. It'll pass."
Chloe laughed bitterly.
"You really don't get it, do you?"
Sebastian said nothing.
Chloe shook her head slowly.
"She stayed in your mansion for a week and in the hospital for two weeks taking care of you."
Sebastian's expression hardened.
"I never asked her to."
"That doesn't mean it didn't matter!"
Her voice rose again.
"She helped you bathe when you couldn't move properly."
Sebastian's eyes flashed.
"Enough."
"She made sure you took your medication."
"Miss Jones."
"She stayed up at night because of your insomnia."
"I said enough."
But Chloe wasn't stopping.
"And today? Today she came here because she was worried you were pushing yourself too hard after surgery!"
Sebastian slammed his laptop shut.
The sound echoed through the office.
"You're done," he said coldly.
Chloe glared at him.
"You're unbelievable."
Then she turned and walked toward the door.
Before leaving, she stopped.
One last thing.
"You just pushed away the only person who actually cares about you."
The door closed behind her.
Sebastian sat there in silence.
After a moment, he opened his laptop again.
Work.
That's what mattered.
Not emotions.
Not arguments.
Just work.
But as he shifted in his chair, a sharp pain shot through his back.
He froze.
Three weeks ago he had undergone surgery.
The recovery was supposed to take time.
Time he didn't have.
He adjusted his position and tried to ignore the pain.
His assistant knocked gently before entering.
"Mr. Wolfe, the documents for the—. "
She stopped mid-sentence.
"Sir… are you okay?"
Sebastian didn't look up.
"I'm fine."
"You look uncomfortable."
"I said I'm fine."
She hesitated.
"You had surgery recently. Maybe you should—."
Sebastian's voice turned sharp.
"Do you have the documents or not?"
"Yes, sir."
She placed the files on his desk quickly.
"Then that will be all."
She left without another word.
Sebastian exhaled slowly.
The pain in his back hadn't disappeared.
If anything, it was getting worse.
He stood up from his chair.
The movement sent another sharp ache across his spine.
His hand gripped the edge of the desk for a second.
And suddenly a memory surfaced.
Lillian standing in the doorway of his study a few nights ago.
Her voice soft but firm.
"You shouldn't be working like this yet."
Sebastian closed his eyes briefly.
Then pushed the thought away.
He sat down again.
And kept working.
Across the city, Lillian stepped out of her car in front of Chloe's apartment building.
Her chest still felt tight.
Her eyes burned.
She walked inside quickly and took the elevator upstairs.
Chloe had given her a spare key months ago.
Her hands trembled slightly as she unlocked the door.
The moment she stepped inside…
The silence hit her.
She closed the door behind her.
And the tears finally came.
Her bag slipped from her shoulder and landed on the floor.
Lillian leaned against the door, covering her face.
She tried to stop crying.
But she couldn't.
Sebastian's words echoed in her head.
"I never asked you to."
"You were hovering."
"Stop acting like you know what's best for me."
She slid down the door slowly until she was sitting on the floor.
Her phone buzzed in her hand.
A message from Chloe.
Chloe:
Are you okay?
Lillian wiped her face before replying.
Lillian:
I'm at your apartment.
The response came almost instantly.
Chloe:
Good. Stay there.
Lillian:
I can't go back to the mansion.
A moment passed.
Then another message appeared.
Chloe:
Then don't.
Chloe:
I'll come home after work.
Lillian stared at the screen for a long moment.
Then set the phone down.
Hours passed.
The sun slowly disappeared outside the windows.
By the time Chloe returned home, Lillian was sitting at the kitchen table with her laptop open.
Chloe stepped inside and immediately noticed her.
"You've been sitting there the whole time?"
Lillian looked up slowly.
"Pretty much."
Chloe walked over and dropped her bag on the counter.
"What are you doing?"
Lillian turned the laptop slightly.
Chloe leaned closer.
Then froze.
On the screen was a document.
A resignation letter.
Her eyes widened.
"Lillian…"
"I can't work there anymore."
Chloe pulled out a chair and sat across from her.
"You love your job."
"Not enough to be treated like that."
Her voice was quiet.
But firm.
"I won't let him humiliate me again."
Chloe rubbed her forehead.
"You're really quitting Sovereign?"
Lillian nodded slowly.
"I'll send it tomorrow."
Chloe sighed.
"He's going to lose his mind."
"I don't care."
Her voice cracked slightly.
But she forced herself to stay composed.
"I meant what I said."
Chloe studied her friend carefully.
"You told him you don't care about him anymore."
"Yes."
"But do you actually mean that?"
Lillian didn't answer.
Late that night, Sebastian finally left the Sovereign building.
The office floors were almost empty.
His back still ached from hours of sitting.
He walked to the underground garage and got into his car.
The engine started with a quiet hum.
But he didn't drive.
Instead, he picked up his phone.
He scrolled through his contacts.
Until he found her name.
Lillian Parker.
His thumb hovered over the screen.
Then he pressed call.
The phone rang.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
No answer.
His jaw tightened.
He tried again.
Ring.
Ring.
Ring.
Still nothing.
Sebastian stared at the phone for a moment.
Then typed a message.
Sebastian:
We need to talk.
The message sent.
A second later it showed delivered.
But not read.
Across the city, Lillian's phone lit up on the kitchen table.
Chloe noticed it first.
"Your phone."
Lillian glanced at the screen.
Sebastian's name stared back at her.
Her chest tightened.
She didn't pick it up.
Instead, she slowly turned the phone face down.
Chloe watched silently.
"You're ignoring him?"
"Yes."
"Good."
Back in his car, Sebastian looked at the screen again.
Still no response.
Something felt wrong.
Very wrong.
For the first time that day…
His mind replayed the moment in the hallway.
The look on Lillian's face.
The hurt in her eyes.
And her final words.
"I don't care about you anymore."
His chest tightened slightly.
A strange warmth mixed with unease spread through him.
A feeling he didn't understand.
Sebastian Wolfe stared at the silent phone in his hand.
And for the first time in years…
He felt something dangerously close to fear.