Can’t Win Me Back

Alyssa followed Jasper into the study.

The door closed behind her with a soft click. She didn't move to switch on the lights or sit down. Instead, she stood quietly in the dim room.

They faced each other, eyes locked. In the darkness, their gazes seemed brighter, charged with emotions that neither could put into words. Whatever stirred within them was tangled and silent kept at bay by something unspoken, as if a wall had formed between heart and mouth.

After a pause, Alyssa offered a faint smile. Her voice was soft, almost courteous. "Go ahead, Mr. Beckett. I won't be staying long tonight I've made other arrangements."

It was clear she didn't want to be alone in a room with him.

Jasper's chest tightened, overwhelmed by a surge of emotion he couldn't define. His voice was rough when he finally spoke. "You didn't vote against the motion at today's board meeting. I wanted to know... are we still on the same side?"

Alyssa's gaze lowered, her voice steady and calm. "You didn't object to Justin being named president because you haven't figured him out yet.

"You agreed to his demands temporarily to study him-because only when he's standing in the spotlight will he show his hand. You need that visibility. Otherwise, he stays hidden. A snake in the grass, waiting for the right moment to strike."

Jasper's breath caught. His heart raced, but he forced himself to stay composed.

"Yes," he murmured. "That's exactly it."

And for a fleeting moment, he felt that familiar connection that rare clarity only Alyssa could bring him. No one else ever saw him as clearly.

then, he took a step closer, just enough

are wrong about

breath hitched. "What was

his voice firm. "What he wants... is the

even if he becomes

expression hardened slightly as

had always respected ambition-true, bold ambition. If Justin had taken a just path, perhaps she could have

He had repeatedly hurt the one person she loved most. That, she

heard Sheryl's out on

hates us both. Ask Sean to stay

She simply

had insisted he be there. She wouldn't pull a man from his wife at such a time. She wouldn't put a growing family

always had, even before she

help worrying. "If

voice, Alyssa looked up. Then, slowly, she smiled-a sweet, radiant

but paused

"have you ever questioned Sheryl's true

"Have you found something?"