Selena dove into the rest of the morning with laser focus. Tile selections. Lighting configurations. Carpet samples. Anything to keep her mind away from him.
But it didn't work.
Jared's words kept echoing in her head.
> "Every day since."
Every damn day since.
What the hell did he mean by that? That he missed her? That he regretted losing her? Or was it just another manipulation wrapped in honesty?
"Selena?" one of the junior designers asked, snapping her back to the present.
She blinked. "What?"
"The meeting with the structural engineer. It's upstairs. Jared said he'd join."
Of course he would.
She climbed the stairs two at a time, gripping the railing like it might keep her upright. The project was moving fast—too fast for her emotions to keep up.
When she stepped into the suite on the top floor, Jared was already inside.
He stood by the window, sunlight turning his profile into something out of a magazine. The man was impossibly composed, damn near carved out of steel and secrets.
"Miss Moore," he said, not turning.
"Mr. Cole," she replied, voice clipped.
He finally faced her. "We need to talk."
"No. We need to work."
"It's about the rules."
She exhaled. "Which one did I break?"
He didn't smile. "None yet. But we should be clear before this spirals."
Selena crossed her arms. "Go on."
Jared stepped closer, not enough to touch, but enough to invade her breath. "No personal history. No unfinished conversations. We don't talk about the past unless it affects the project."
"Agreed."
His gaze flicked to her lips, then back to her eyes. "And if it gets messy—emotionally—you walk away."
Selena nodded slowly. "And if you cross a line?"
"I'll walk," he said. "No questions asked."
Her heartbeat tapped faster. "Fine. We have rules. Boundaries."
"Walls," he murmured.
She smirked. "You were always good at building those."
He flinched. Just a little. But she saw it.
The engineer arrived moments later, sparing them both from saying anything else. Blueprints came out. Dimensions were debated. Business resumed.
But underneath it all, tension simmered like a slow boil.
By the end of the walkthrough, Selena's head throbbed with more than logistics.
Jared held the door as she passed. "We're professionals now," he said quietly.
She glanced over her shoulder. "Let's keep it that way."
But deep down, she wasn't sure how long they could