Nina had been playing the game well.
For the past week, she had managed to avoid Jeffrey Michaelson like a seasoned professional. If she saw him heading in one direction, she took another. If she heard his deep voice echoing through the office, she pretended to be too immersed in her work to notice.
So far, it had worked.
Until today.
She was sitting at her desk, finishing up a design proposal, when her phone buzzed.
Ryan: On our way up. Liam wanted to surprise you.
Her stomach plummeted.
No.
Her fingers trembled as she typed back. What was Ryan thinking coming to her office and also with Liam. Her palms became sweaty.
Nina: Ryan, I told you not to bring him here.
But before she could hit send, a small, familiar voice rang out behind her.
"Mommy!"
Her heart stopped.
Slowly, she turned in her chair.
Liam stood in the doorway, beaming, holding a brown paper bag with little grease stains at the bottom. Ryan was right behind him, looking completely unfazed.
"Surprise!" Liam grinned, running toward her.
Nina forced a smile, scooping him up into her arms as she shot Ryan a sharp look over his head,the one that could slice through a person without having to say a word.
"What are you doing here?" she asked through gritted teeth.
Ryan smirked, completely ignoring her warning glare. "Bringing you lunch, obviously."
Nina sighed, placing Liam on the desk. "You really shouldn't have,you know how Liam is,now that you've brought him here,he's going to try convincing you to bring him here whenever he misses me or just playing a tantrum."
"Hey, I thought you'd be happy to see us," Ryan teased, ruffling Liam's hair.
Before she could respond, a shadow loomed in the doorway.
And then she heard the voice that made her entire body freeze.
"Well, well. Who do we have here?"
Nina's breath hitched.
Jeffrey.
He was standing just a few feet away, his sharp blue eyes fixed on the little boy sitting on her desk.
Her world tilted.
Her fingers instinctively tightened around Liam's waist.
Jeffrey's gaze flickered from Ryan to Liam, then back to her. His usual impassive expression wavered,just for a second.
Something shifted in his eyes.
Liam, oblivious to the tension thickening in the air, grinned up at him.
"Hi!"
Jeffrey blinked, as if momentarily caught off guard.
"Hey, kid," he said slowly. "What's your name?"
"Liam!"
Nina's chest tightened.
Jeffrey's lips parted slightly, his eyes narrowing. "Liam," he repeated, almost like he was tasting the name.
Ryan, sensing the tension, casually stepped forward, placing a hand on Liam's shoulder. "We were just dropping off lunch for Nina."
Jeffrey's gaze snapped to Ryan. His expression hardened, assessing.
"And you are?"
Ryan held out a hand, smiling easily. "Ryan Carter. Nina's fiancé."
A lie.
But a necessary one.
Jeffrey didn't shake his hand. He barely acknowledged it. Instead, his eyes flickered back to Liam.
And then, finally, to Nina.
She could see the questions forming in his mind. The way he was looking at Liam now,it was different. Studying him. Noticing things.
Nina's pulse pounded.
She had to get out of here.
"Well," she said quickly, standing up and grabbing the lunch bag from Liam's hand, "thank you both for bringing me lunch, but I have a lot of work to do."
Ryan caught the hint immediately.
"Of course," he said, placing a gentle hand on Liam's back. "Come on, buddy, let's go."
Liam pouted. "But I wanted to eat with Mommy."
"We'll eat at home," Ryan promised, steering him toward the door.
But Jeffrey wasn't moving.
He was still staring at Liam.
As if trying to solve a puzzle.
"How old is he?" The question was casual, but his eyes were sharp.
Too sharp.
Nina's stomach twisted.
"Four," she said, forcing her voice to sound normal. "Why?"
Jeffrey didn't answer immediately.
Then, very quietly, he murmured, "Interesting."
Her throat went dry.
Ryan cleared his throat, stepping protectively in front of Nina. "We should get going."
Jeffrey finally tore his gaze away from Liam. He looked at Ryan. Then at Nina.
And for the first time, she saw it,the seed of doubt. The flicker of suspicion.
The moment Jeffrey walked out of her office, Nina collapsed into her chair, her heart pounding so hard she could hear it in her ears.
He knew.
Or at least, he suspected something. The way he had looked at Liam,studying him, questioning his age,made her stomach twist in fear. She had been so careful for the past four years, and now, in one careless moment, everything was at risk.
With trembling fingers, she grabbed her phone and dialed.
"Sienna," she whispered the moment her best friend picked up. "I think he knows."
There was a pause. Then, "Nina, breathe. What happened?"
"He met Liam today," Nina choked out. "And the way he looked at him, Sienna,he saw it. He saw the resemblance. He even asked his age."
Sienna cursed under her breath. "Damn it. Okay, listen to me. You need to act normal. Don't panic, don't change your routine. If you start acting weird, it'll only make him more suspicious."
"But what if—"
"Stop. Everything will be fine," Sienna reassured her firmly. "He has no proof, and he won't get any. Just keep it together."
Nina swallowed hard, gripping the phone.
She hoped Sienna was right.
___
That night, Jeffrey sat in his penthouse, staring at a tumbler of whiskey, lost in thought.
The kid's eyes.
They were blue.
His exact shade of blue.
It was probably a coincidence. It had to be.
And yet…
He couldn't shake the feeling that he had seen them before.
He reached for his phone.
"Evelyn," he said when his secretary picked up.
"Yes, sir?"
"Run a background check on Nina Carter."
There was a slight pause. "You already asked me to do that."
"Then do it again. And this time, dig deeper."
"Understood."
Jeffrey ended the call, leaning back in his chair.
He didn't know what he was looking for.
But something told him he was about to find it.