Ex-Alpha's Regret: Siren's Comeback novel Chapter 125

POV: Seraphina

The project was complex, a multi-layered acquisition that required our complete focus. The sun had long set over Aethelgard, leaving the ocean outside my office window a vast expanse of shimmering black. Inside, the only light came from the soft glow of the holographic data screens hovering between me and Killian. We had been working for hours, fueled by coffee and a shared, intense concentration.

The atmosphere was comfortable, a seamless rhythm of professional intimacy we had developed over the last three years. We debated logistics, argued financial models, and built upon each other's ideas with an ease that felt as natural as breathing.

We were analyzing a potential shipping route through a hazardous but potentially lucrative chain of islands. The holographic map displayed a familiar coastline, a place I had visited with my family as a child, long before my world had shrunk to the size of a gilded cage.

"The currents there are treacherous," I murmured, tracing a line on the map with my finger. "My father used to say that only a fool or a genius would try to navigate the Serpent's Teeth during monsoon season."

The memory surfaced without warning. A sudden, vivid image of my father, strong and smiling, his hand on the tiller of a small boat, the sea spray on his face. The memory of a simpler, happier time. The grief, fresh and sharp, ambushed me. A wave of profound sadness for the man he had been, and for the life that had been stolen from us all.

I must have faltered. The easy flow of my analysis stopped for a half-second too long. My gaze unfocused, the light in my eyes dimming as the shadow of the past fell over me. It was a fleeting, almost imperceptible shift, but he saw it.

Killian, who had been listening intently, didn't pry. He didn't ask "what's wrong?" or "what were you thinking about?" He didn't call attention to my moment of weakness or force me to explain it. He simply registered it.

He paused the conversation, his expression unchanged. "I think we've reached a good stopping point on this section," he said, his voice calm and even. "I need to stretch my legs for a moment."

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