Chapter Six (Brian's POV)

The office windows stretched from floor to ceiling, letting the city skyline pour in like a taunt. The glass towers gleamed in the afternoon sun, perfect, controlled, orderly. Everything I was supposed to be.

I shoved the file shut with more force than necessary, my pen clattering across the desk. Another report, another demand from the board. Meetings stacked one after another until the day blurred into an endless cycle of numbers, contracts, and obligations. And yet, despite all the hours, all the supposed power in this corner office, I felt nothing but suffocation.

The clock on the wall ticked sharply, its hands reminding me of something I'd rather forget. Clarissa.

I exhaled, rubbing the back of my neck. It was nearly time to pick her up from the college. A ridiculous tradition, really, she had her own car, her own driver. But she liked the attention, the stares when I stepped out to open her door. The golden couple, paraded like trophies. And my parents loved it.

I gathered my keys, forcing myself to move, but a thought slipped in unbidden. Alice.

The memory of her lingered, her startled eyes meeting mine on campus, the quiet strength in her face even as exhaustion weighed her down. And then, at the gala, the way she looked was different from every other person . Something about it gnawed at me long after.

By the time I pulled onto campus, the weight in my chest had shifted. Against reason, against every careful boundary I told myself to keep, I hoped I might see her again.

The car rolled to a stop by the courtyard. Students moved in clusters, laughing, hauling books, living lives unburdened by board meetings and arranged engagements. I scanned them without meaning to, searching.

And then, there she was.

Alice.

She walked quickly across the quad, her books hugged tightly to her chest. A strand of hair had slipped from her ponytail, brushing her cheek as she moved. There was something about the way she carried herself, determined, guarded, but undeniably alive, that drew me in like a tide I couldn't fight.

For a second, I considered stepping out of the car. Closing the distance. Saying something, anything.

But the moment broke.

"Brian!" Clarissa's voice cut through the air like glass. She emerged from the crowd, flawless as ever, her hand already reaching for me. Students turned to stare, some whispering, some openly watching. The perfect picture, just as she liked it.

I hesitated, my eyes flicking back toward Alice. She had stopped, just for a moment, her gaze colliding with mine. The world seemed to still, the noise fading until it was just the two of us suspended in that fragile second.

Something unspoken passed between us. A question. A pull. A recognition neither of us dared name.

And then Clarissa's fingers curled around my arm.

The moment shattered.

I stepped out, opening the door for her as expected, slipping back into the role I was born to play. Alice turned away first, her shoulders stiff, her steps quick as if distance could erase what had just passed between us.

Clarissa smiled up at me, satisfied, oblivious. "Dinner tonight?"

"Of course," I said evenly, though my thoughts were nowhere near her.

As the car pulled away, I looked back once more, but Alice was already gone.

Still, her eyes lingered in my mind, haunting and unshakable.

Chapter Seven

Alice couldn't move.

The moment Brian's gaze found hers, everything around her, the chatter of students, the hum of car engines, even Sophie tugging impatiently at her sleeve, faded into a blur. It was ridiculous, how a single look could steal her breath and leave her standing there like she'd forgotten how to function. His eyes weren't soft, not exactly, but there was something steady in them, something that made her heart stumble against her ribs.

Then he was gone. The door shut, the car pulled away, and all that remained was the hollow ache of absence.

Alice exhaled shakily, pressing her books tighter against her chest. She told herself it didn't matter. It couldn't matter. He wasn't in her world,he belonged to someone else's. And yet...

"Wow," Sophie's voice cut through, laced with amusement. "I knew you liked books, Alice, but I didn't realize you were this interested in... tall, broody billionaires who look like they belong on the cover of Forbes."

Alice's head snapped toward her best friend, heat rising instantly in her cheeks. "What? No! I wasn't, I mean, I was just..."

Sophie's grin widened like a cat catching a canary. "Uh-huh. Sure. That was not just staring. That was full, on, lost in the sauce, swoony eyed staring. Should I fan you before you faint, or are you good?"

Alice groaned, trying to hide behind her books, but Sophie pried them down with a finger. "Come on, spill. What's going on in that head of yours?"

"Nothing," Alice muttered. "Absolutely nothing. He just... happened to look this way, that's all."

Sophie arched an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced. "Alice monroe, you're the worst liar I've ever met. And I've dealt with Clarissa faking humility for years."

That earned a reluctant laugh from Alice, though she quickly shook her head. "You're imagining things."

"No, darling, you're imagining things," Sophie shot back with mock drama. "Like a whole future where you and Mr. Dark and Expensive Suit run off together to his penthouse in New York while I cry alone at our graduation."

Alice swatted at her arm. "Stop it!"

Sophie only leaned in closer, lowering her voice conspiratorially. "You do realize Clarissa nearly combusted when she saw you two exchange looks, right? I swear if glares could kill, you'd be six feet under right now."

Alice blinked, startled. "She noticed?"

"Oh, she noticed," Sophie said, her grin turning wicked. "And you know Clarissa, she'll pretend she's too perfect to care, but in reality she's probably already planning to bribe the dean, hire a private investigator, and poison your coffee. In that order."

Alice groaned again, burying her face in her hands. "Sophie, please don't joke about that. She already hates me."

"Good," Sophie declared, tossing her hair. "Her hatred is a badge of honor. And if she ever tries something, I'll be right there with my sharp tongue to cut her ego into confetti. No one messes with my best friend."

Alice peeked at her through her fingers, a small smile tugging at her lips despite the knot in her chest. Sophie always knew how to take the weight off, even when Alice's thoughts were spiraling. But still... she couldn't shake the memory of Brian's eyes on hers, the way it had felt like he saw her, really saw her, if only for a heartbeat.

And maybe that was the most dangerous thing of all.

Clarissa's POV

Clarissa Stone adjusted her compact mirror, lips curving into a practiced smile as the car rolled smoothly away from campus. Brian was seated beside her, his attention fixed on his phone, the glow of the screen illuminating the hard angles of his face. To anyone else, it looked like nothing ,just another busy man distracted by work.

But Clarissa had seen it.

The flicker in his eyes when they lingered on Alice Monroe.

Clarissa's fingers tightened around the mirror until her knuckles whitened. It had been quick, barely a second, but she knew what she'd witnessed. Brian's gaze had slipped, and it hadn't landed on her. It had landed on a nobody.

Alice Monroe.

The name soured on her tongue. The scholarship girl with threadbare clothes and downcast eyes who never belonged in their circles. Clarissa had dismissed her before, too busy reveling in her own superiority. But now... now Alice was a problem.

Clarissa snapped the mirror shut with a soft click, slipping it back into her designer purse. Outwardly, her smile didn't falter. She leaned closer to Brian, resting her hand on his arm, radiating poise and elegance like the perfect fiancée she was expected to be.

Inside, though, her thoughts sharpened like glass.

Alice Monroe needed to be reminded of her place.

And Clarissa intended to do it in a way that would make sure Brian never again looked at anyone but her.

Chapter Eight : Brewing Storm

Alice had promised herself she wouldn't think about him again.

She told herself that the look Brian gave her that day was meaningless. A slip. A mistake. Something her tired brain made into more than it was. But no matter how many times she repeated it, the memory lingered. It clung to her like perfume you couldn't wash off.

Now, sitting on the campus steps with Sophie, she tried to shove the thought down. Sophie was rambling about a professor who gave her too much homework and how she planned to bribe him with cookies, her voice quick and playful, her hands moving as if she was on stage. Alice smiled, but her thoughts drifted again, drifting where she didn't want them to go.

She hated that Brian Carter had taken up space in her head. She hated it even more that she noticed the way her heart had stumbled when his eyes locked on hers.

"You're not listening to me," Sophie announced suddenly, poking Alice in the arm. "I'm here pouring my soul out about my academic suffering and you're staring into thin air like you've seen a ghost."

Alice laughed weakly. "Sorry. I didn't sleep much."

Sophie tilted her head, narrowing her eyes. "Mmhm. Sure. And here I thought it had something to do with a certain tall man in a very expensive suit."

Alice stiffened. "What? No. Don't start."

Sophie grinned, wicked and sharp. "Oh, I saw it. I saw that look. He looked at you like the rest of us disappeared, and you looked at him like....well like I should go write the both of you into a romance novel."

Alice's cheeks burned. "You're making it sound like something it's not."

"Sweetheart, if it wasn't something, Clarissa wouldn't have looked ready to commit a crime right there in the parking lot."

The mention of Clarissa made Alice's stomach twist. She hated attention, and Clarissa thrived on it. The blonde girl was a shadow always looming over her, dripping with wealth, beauty, and everything Alice wasn't.

And as if the universe wanted to prove Sophie right, Clarissa's voice cut through the air like sharp glass.

"Well, well. If it isn't the charity case and her little sidekick."

Alice froze. Sophie groaned under her breath, already rolling her eyes before turning toward Clarissa.

Clarissa stood there with two of her friends, their arms crossed, smiles sharp. Her blonde hair gleamed under the sun, her outfit probably worth more than Alice's entire semester's rent. She looked down at them like a queen inspecting peasants.

Alice hugged her books tighter, wishing she could vanish. But Sophie shifted beside her, folding her arms and grinning like she'd been waiting for this.

"Clarissa," Sophie said sweetly. "Didn't your stylist ever tell you you're too young to look this washed out? Or is that just your personality shining through?"

Clarissa's lips thinned. "How cute. Always trying to cover for your little friend. Tell me, Sophie, is it exhausting babysitting her? She barely belongs here. Everyone knows she's here on scraps and handouts. Do you really want to waste your time?"

Alice's chest tightened. She wanted to shrink, to walk away, but Sophie wasn't having it.

"My time is my own," Sophie snapped. "And if I want to waste it on someone with an actual brain and heart, I'll do that. Better than wasting it on someone who thinks breathing is a talent just because their last name buys them everything."

The students nearby began to whisper, watching like it was entertainment. Clarissa's cheeks flushed, but her smile stayed fixed, though it faltered at the edges.

"Don't get too comfortable," Clarissa said coldly, her eyes sliding to Alice. "Some people need to be reminded of their place. Especially girls who think they can stare at men who are far, far above them."

Alice's stomach dropped. She knew exactly who Clarissa meant.

Sophie laughed loud enough for everyone to hear. "Oh, please. If you're so confident in your relationship, why are you pressed about a look? Maybe you should focus on keeping your man's attention instead of policing who he glances at."

Gasps rippled through the small crowd. Clarissa's face hardened, her composure cracking.

"You'll regret that," she said, her voice low and venomous. "Both of you."

She spun on her heel, her friends scrambling after her.

Silence hung for a moment, then Sophie stretched her arms wide like she'd just won a performance. "And that, my dear Alice, is how you deal with poisonous snakes."

Alice let out a shaky breath. "Sophie... what if she really does something? You know what she's capable of."

Sophie slung an arm around her shoulder. "Let her try. She can't scare me. And she shouldn't scare you either. You've got me. And trust me, I can fight dirt with dirt if I need to."

Alice smiled faintly, comforted, but the knot in her stomach didn't ease. Clarissa's words weren't empty. Alice had seen the way her eyes burned with promise.

As they walked away, Alice tried to laugh at Sophie's jokes, tried to focus on class and work, but her mind drifted again. Not to Clarissa. Not to the whispers around campus.

To Brian.

To the way his gaze had lingered, even if only for a moment.

She hated herself for it. She hated how her chest tightened and warmed at the thought, even while fear coiled around her ribs. Clarissa wasn't bluffing. She was planning something.

And Alice had a sinking feeling she had just been pulled into a storm that she couldn't run from.