The CEO's Twisted Deception
lence of Apex Innovations. Mark slid into the booth across from me, a concerned look on his face. He' d
d," he said, his voic
eak smile. "N
loe did that in a pub
y coffee. "She's not the
. "Not since Liam showed up. I saw it starting b
g out of my garage. I had sold my vintage guitar collection, a prized possession from my father, to afford the servers we
?" Mark asked, pullin
admitted. "Find a job,
aning forward. "Come work with me.
k, you're just getting started
ng well, better than anyone expected. But I'm a good engineer. You're a brillia
h that I hadn't felt in years. "I don't have any capital
We'll work out the details with the lawyers. 40
re had been intertwined with Chloe and Apex. The idea of a new p
. The space felt cold and empty, filled with expensive furniture she had picked
h from our first year together, long before Apex. We were at the beach, young an
ath, I tore it in half, then in quarters, until it was just a pile of colored confetti i
was in the passenger seat. She got out of the car, and he leaned over and gave her a long, deliber
that would have been shattered
ion a strange mix of annoyance and u
lk about, Chloe," I sa
t where I was supposed to give in, to smooth things over after she'd created t
ly answer," I
in that familiar, placating gesture she always
before she could make contact. The motion was insti
first time I had ever physically recoiled from her touch. In that small, sharp movement, she