Mia's POV
I watched the city blur past the taxi window, my heart quieter than it had been in weeks. My leave was over. It was time to go back to work—to the one place I still felt like myself.
Eric had returned to his parents after their trip, and the penthouse felt cold again. Too quiet. Too spacious. And Ryan… well, he was quieter too. Our paths barely crossed since Diane's night over. He hadn't even offered an explanation.
Not that I was owed one.
But it still stung.
I stepped into Saint Haven Medical Center like I hadn't missed a day. My team welcomed me back warmly. Patients smiled. Children giggled at the plushies I offered. And yet, beneath my smiles, I was hollow.
Each moment reminded me of Eric. His laughter. His tiny arms wrapping around me when he was scared. His innocent, unconditional love.
I missed him. More than I should have.
But this was my world. Medicine. Children. Healing.
Not Ryan.
Not his penthouse.
Not his world of secrets and deals sealed with kisses that didn't belong to me.
Still… why did it ache?
---
Ryan's POV
The boardroom was silent as I clicked through the last slide of the presentation. My voice was steady, my words precise. Not a single error.
But none of it reached me.
All I could think about was the way Mia looked before she left that morning—wearing that soft white blouse, hair tied in a loose ponytail, her eyes dim, almost unreadable.
The air between us had grown ice cold.
I hated it.
And I hated how much it occupied my mind.
So I did what I always did.
I shut the door. I made the call.
"Diane," I said into the phone. "Suite 1704. One hour."
She didn't hesitate. She never did.
---
Hotel Suite – Later That Night
The hotel room was bathed in amber light. Diane stood by the window, wearing silk—black and form-fitted, teasing just enough to promise more.
"You look tense," she said as I shrugged off my blazer.
"I am tense."
"Well," she said with a sultry smile, "Let me help you forget."
She crossed the room slowly, unbuttoning my shirt, one deliberate motion at a time. Her lips found my collarbone, then my jaw. I grabbed her waist, lifted her with ease, and she wrapped her legs around me like it was second nature. It was.
We stumbled to the bed.
Clothes vanished. Heat followed.
My lips moved over her neck, her shoulder, down her spine. Her moans filled the room as our bodies tangled together—fast, urgent, desperate. A dance we'd done many times.
But even in that heat… I saw her.
Mia.
Her soft gaze.
The way she looked at Eric.
The way she made coffee.
The way she smiled when she thought no one saw.
I groaned and pulled Diane closer, trying to silence the thought. Drown it. Bury it beneath bodies and skin and pleasure.
But it stayed.
Even when I came undone, even when she whispered my name in breathy delight—
It wasn't her voice I wanted to hear.
It wasn't her warmth I needed.