Tempting my Billionaire

Late Night Confessions

★Cassandra★

The day had been long, and I was still furious. It had started with my mother’s announcement that LuxeLine would be partnering with Grant & Co. Marketing. The meeting had ended, and now it had ended with me sitting in my office after dark as I tried to pretend like I was fine with all of it. I wasn’t. I didn’t want to be working with Nathan. Not now. Not ever. The idea of spending time with him felt like a cruel joke. While I understood that it would be professional, it didn’t change anything for me. What I wanted to do was live my life without him. I shook my head as I tried to focus. The office was quiet now, almost hauntingly so. Most of the employees had gone home already, which left me with the faint hum of the air conditioning and the distant echo of the cleaning crew that I could hear just down the hall. The scent of fresh coffee still lingered, even though mine had gone cold hours ago. Pauline sat across from me at the small round table near the window, and her reading glasses were perched low on her nose as she reviewed my schedule for next week. Her calm efficiency was the only thing that kept me grounded.

“Wednesday morning, you have the marketing review with your mother,” Pauline said, as she tapped her pen against the paper. “Then the campaign follow-up meeting is at two in the afternoon,” I nodded without looking up.

“Right. And Thursday?”

“Thursday morning will be the preliminary meeting for the LuxeLine and Grant & Co. partnership,” she said carefully, as if choosing her words with precision. “Vivienne would like you to lead that discussion,” of course, she would. I exhaled slowly, as I forced my jaw to unclench.

“Fine. Add it to the list,” I said. Pauline glanced at me, her expression kind.

“Cassandra, I can tell you are upset, but this project might not be as bad as you think,” she said, and I gave a humorless laugh.

“You did not see his face today. He hated the idea as much as I did,”

“I doubt that,” she said softly. “From what I have heard, Nathan Grant is a professional. And he respects your mother,”

“I don’t care if he respects my mother,” I snapped before I could stop myself. “I care that I will have to sit in a room with him every day, pretending that none of the past exists,” Pauline didn’t flinch. She had worked with my mother long enough to handle temper.

“You are strong enough to handle it,” she said gently. “And you have worked too hard to let him throw you off balance now. And while I say that about him…it means everyone. No one should be able to throw you off balance,” her words settled something in me. I knew she was right, even if I didn’t want to admit it. I rubbed my temple and sighed.

“I know. I just wish it was anyone else,” I muttered. Pauline closed her folder and stood as she smoothed the front of her blazer.

“You should go home. It is late, and tomorrow will come faster than you think,”

“I still have emails to finish,”

“I will handle them in the morning,” she said firmly. “You need rest,” there was no arguing with Pauline. She had that motherly tone that even I could not deflect.

“Fine,” I said quietly. “But only because you asked nicely,” she smiled, as she gathered her things.

“Goodnight, Cassandra. Try not to dream about spreadsheets,”

“No promises…good night and thank you,” I said. When she left, the silence returned. I looked around the office one last time before I packed up my things. I switched off the light and headed down to the underground parking lot. The drive home was long, despite the fact that the roads were quiet. Well, except for the occasional car that sped past me. I rolled down the window slightly and breathed in the fresh air. It helped clear my mind, at least a little. By the time I got home, I was tired. All I wanted to do was order a pizza and binge-watch some TV until I fell asleep. But I froze when I saw someone sitting on the floor against my front door. He looked up, and I saw that it was my brother.

“Hey, Cassy,” he said as he got to his feet.

“Tim? It’s late…are you ok?” I asked as I eyed him closely. He looked tired. But my brother didn’t say a word as I unlocked the door. As soon as we were inside, I led him into the living room. Timothy didn’t say a word for a few minutes.

“Sienna and I broke up. Again,” he revealed, and I frowned.

“Aw, no…” I said. Timothy sighed, and I waited for him to tell me more.

“She said it is over this time,” he said finally. “For real,”

“She has said that before,” I couldn’t help but remind him.

“I know,” he said with a humorless laugh. “But I think she means it now. She packed her things while I was out and left a note,”

“Timothy…” I sighed. “Why do you keep going back to her?” he rubbed his face with both hands.

“Because I thought she would change. Because I thought we could fix it. I don’t know. Maybe I liked the fight,”

“The fight?”

“Sienna’s chaos made me feel alive. She is unpredictable, wild, exhausting, but somehow, that became normal for me. Every time we broke up, I missed the noise,” he explained. I listened quietly, letting him talk. There was something in his voice that I had not heard before: exhaustion, maybe even sadness. “But now I am just tired,” he admitted. “I am tired of pretending it doesn’t hurt. Tired of acting like it is all fine when it never is,” I reached over and placed my hand over his.

“Then stop pretending. You deserve peace, Tim. Not chaos,” I said, and he looked up at me, his expression softening.

“You sound like Mom when you say things like that,” he said, and I smiled.

“Maybe she was right about a few things,”

“I can’t go to Nathan’s tonight. He will make jokes or pour me a drink and tell me to move on. I wasn’t in the mood for that,”

“I understand,” I said. “You came to the right place,”

“I think I am done with her,” he said after a moment. “For real this time.”

“Good,” I said softly. “You have given her enough chances. It is time you start giving yourself one,” Timothy smiled faintly.

“Since when did my little sister get so wise?”

“Since I realized how exhausting it is to let the wrong people stay in your life,” I said, my voice quieter than I intended. He looked at me for a long moment before he nodded.

“You are right,”

“I usually am,” I shot back, and that earned me a laugh, small but genuine.

“Do you mind if I just crash on your couch tonight?” he then asked, and I smiled.

“Of course. I was going to order pizza and watch some TV,”

“Sounds like a brilliant plan,” he agreed. I watched my brother for a moment before I took out my phone to place the order. My brother had a big heart, and while I was sad that Sienna had pulled another one of her moves, I was glad that it was officially over between them. She wasn’t right for him. She was far too dramatic. And what made it worse is that Timothy never told any of us why she broke up with him. But I knew the truth. I kept it to myself, though. I already know that he wouldn’t want any of us to know.

★★★