Chapter 115
115
~Elara’s POV
The work continued around me, and the entire office felt tense, as if the air was carrying a heartbeat of its own. Every sound was too loud, every pencil scratch felt like pressure, and every breath was a reminder that we were running out of time. I tried not to think about the leaked designs, as doing so only made the anger rise again. So, I forced my mind to stay focused on the page in front of me, sketching lines and shapes, letting the pencil create something new out of frustration and fear. Janae stood beside me, watching the lines appear, and I could feel how anxious she was, even if she tried to hide it behind her calm voice.
“Elara,” she said, clearing her throat a little as if she wasn’t sure if she should be speaking right now, “the seamstress from Alpha Darlon’s company is teaching our own tailors, and I think she is doing a really good job because the improvement is showing already. They are all learning very fast.” She paused and then added, “I think we can finish everything before fashion week if we keep going like this p>
I nodded and looked at her without stopping my hand from sketching. “Good. That is what we need. If we are going to survive this week, then we need everyone working with full focus and no excuses and no fear.” My voice cracked a little, and I hated that it did because I did not want to sound tired; I wanted to sound strong. “And we need to trust them. We cannot babysit everyone p>
She hesitated before speaking again. “I want to ask something. After the fashion show, should we talk about collaborating with Alpha Darlon’s company permanently? I mean, not as a favor but as something official. Like a partnership p>
I put the pencil down slowly and looked at her with disbelief on my face. “No. Do not ask him for that. If I mention collaboration, he might hand me the entire company like it is a birthday gift, and I am not ready for that kind of trouble. He is already giving too much because of me p>
Janae’s eyes widened, and she smiled with that teasing expression she always used when she caught me being emotional without admitting it. “I’m jealous of you, girl p>
I opened my mouth to answer, but the office door opened at the same time, and everything in the room changed like the atmosphere shifted direction. Every staff member went silent and stood up immediately because Darlon and David walked in, the presence of an Alpha filling the room like a heavy wave of energy. They all bowed and murmured greetings, “Alpha Darlon,” while David followed quietly behind him with that calm expression he always had, even when his eyes searched the room like he was looking for one person only.
“Everyone, stay seated,” Darlon said, lifting his hand in a gentle command. “Continue what you are doing. I just came to check in p>
But instead of walking anywhere else first, he came straight to me, every step steady and sure, like he didn’t care if an entire audience was watching. He stopped right in front of my chair and leaned down, pressing a soft kiss to my forehead in front of every single person, and I felt the whole room react at once, shock and whispers and eyes wide like they were witnessing something that should be private.
I swallowed, and my voice felt small. “Darlon, everyone is looking p>
“I know,” he said with a small smile, “and I do not care. Let them look p>
I felt my chest warm in a way that scared me because love was heavy, love was dangerous, love was the kind of thing that could ruin a person if they weren’t careful, but he made it feel safe. Beside us, David finally approached Janae, and his voice was softer than I had ever heard it.
“I missed you,” he said quietly. “I have been trying to act calm about it, but I missed you p>
Janae tried to act strong; she tried to control her face, but I saw her falter, and I saw that she had been waiting to hear those words longer than she wanted to admit. She nodded, pretending she was unaffected. “Okay. It’s fine. I missed you, too p>
Darlon looked around the room again and raised his voice just enough to reach everyone. “Take a break. All of you. There is a truck of food outside waiting for you. Eat something and rest your mind for a moment because you will work better after p>
Everyone looked stunned, then grateful, and one by one they bowed and thanked him before leaving the room, but I remained seated because my body was too tired to move and my head was too full to act like I deserved rest.
“We do not need a break,” I said quietly, still holding my pencil. “We have a lot to cover. We have designs to fix, fabrics to confirm, models to call, and only two weeks left. We cannot pause p>
He crouched slightly so his eyes met mine at level, not as an Alpha commanding but as a man who loved someone. “You need a break. You need to breathe. You are not a machine p>
“I cannot slow down,” I answered, shaking my head. “If I stop, I will think, and if I think I will remember everything that has gone wrong, and if I remember I will fall apart again, and I do not have time to fall apart anymore p>
He reached out and covered my hand with his, warm and steady. “Then don’t fall apart. Lean. On me. Let me carry what I can p>
“Didn’t you miss me?” he asked, leaning closer, his breath brushing the side of my neck. His voice was low, almost playful.
“I did,” I admitted, sighing out the words. “Of course I did p>
He smiled, like the confirmation fed a hunger he didn’t want to confess to. Before I could take another breath, he tilted my chin up and kissed me again, deeper this time, like he was trying to make up for every hour we had been apart. His hands held my waist, and I felt my body soften without permission. Maybe I was tired of fighting softness.
“Then say it properly,” he murmured against my lips. “Tell me you missed me, sweetheart p>
I swallowed, feeling my own stubbornness crumble. “I missed you,” I said, slower now. “I missed you more than I wanted to p>
He took that like a victory, smiling into another kiss, showering my face with small ones, across my cheek, the line of my jaw, the corner of my mouth, like he was afraid to stop.
Janae cleared her throat loudly, mostly to hide that David had pulled her into his side and was whispering something that made her blush. I didn’t even need to hear the words; her reaction was enough.
“Please,” Janae muttered, rolling her eyes at me. “If anyone here is a distraction, it is you two, not us p>
I glared at her half-heartedly. “Focus, Janae. We still have patterns to finalize. The fabric from your end must arrive by tomorrow. You promised. Don’t let David distract you p>