The Contract Said Leave After, His Mind Said Please Stay Chapter 02
The next morning, I sat at the dining table eating breakfast.
Julian walked in right on schedule. Sharp suit, perfect hair, expression cold enough to cause frostbite.
He sat down, picked up his coffee, and didn’t so much as look at me.
[She’s wearing white today? That neckline is — don’t look. Don’t look. Don’t look. You’re a creep if you look.]
I nearly spit out my milk. I lowered my head and faked a cough.
He finally glanced over. “You okay?”
His tone gave away nothing — like he was asking about the weather.
[Why is her face red? Is she getting sick? I should call a doctor — no. If I make a big deal out of it, she’ll think I’ve lost my mind.]
I shook my head. “I’m fine. It just went down the wrong pipe.”
He gave a curt nod and went back to his coffee.
[Choked… Did she not sleep well last night? Was that because of me? Was I too rough? No — it was twenty minutes. How rough could I have been in twenty minutes? Fuck. It was just too short.]
I stared intensely at my cereal bowl. Please, for the love of God, stop thinking.
I was going to lose it.
He set down his coffee and stood.
“I’m heading to the office.”
[Should I get her something today? No — too random. Last time I bought her a necklace and all I got was “Thank you, Mr. Sterling.” Thank you, Mr. Sterling. Like I was her fucking accountant.]
He walked to the door and stopped.
[Maybe I should come home early tonight. No — too obvious. Get a grip, Julian. You’re a CEO. Act like one.]
The door clicked shut. I sat alone at the table, not sure whether to laugh or scream.
Julian. Your big, bad CEO persona just crumbled all over my breakfast table.
I set my spoon down and finally asked myself the real question — where had this mind-reading thing come from?
I ran through last night in my head. I hadn’t been struck by lightning.
I hadn’t touched anything weird or taken the wrong pill.
The only thing different was the thought that had crossed my mind right after we finished.
“What is Julian actually thinking?”
And just like that, I could hear every single thought in his head.
I stared at the vase on the dining table. “What are you thinking?”
I got nothing back. Right — because it was a vase.
I tried the bird outside the window. Nothing from that, either.
Maybe this only worked on people. Or maybe it only worked on Julian.
Either way, none of that mattered, because this was the part that did.
I now knew a secret that changed everything. Julian — the man with all the warmth of a walk-in freezer — had feelings for me, and they weren’t casual.
He’d been holding them in for three years, and the pressure was starting to crack him from the inside.
And all that time, I thought I was nothing to him.
I left the second it was over, every single time, because I was afraid.
If I lingered even a moment longer, something real might slip through. A sugar baby wasn’t supposed to catch feelings, and I knew better.
I’d take the money, do the job, and never get attached. That was my rule.
But now… I leaned back in my chair, and a slow smile spread across my face.
Maybe the rules were due for an update