Morning sunlight spilled across the glass façade of the business tower, making the whole building gleam.
Niamh stepped into FY.
“Are you sure this is really okay?” she asked, glancing at Peter beside her.
Peter gave a wry smile. “It’s not much, but if I can’t even offer you a fully equipped workspace, what good am I?”
“Well, thank
you, seriously! You’re a lifesaver,” Niamh replied, her smile as radiant as the sunlight outside.
“Niamh…”
“Hmm?”
She noticed Peter hesitating, as if something was on the tip of his tongue but just
wouldn’t come out.
“What is it?” Niamh prompted.
“It’s nothing…” Peter shook his head, then blurted out something completely unlike him: “It’s just–you look even more beautiful these days.”
Niamh blinked in surprise, then tossed her hair with exaggerated flair. “Well, you’re not wrong. I do look more beautiful.”
Peter couldn’t help but laugh at her playful self–mockery.
“Is it because, you know… now that the divorce is final, you feel lighter?” he asked, his voice cautious.
He didn’t want to upset her, but he couldn’t help testing the waters.
“Absolutely. I feel like a huge weight’s been lifted,” Niamh answered without a moment’s hesitation.
Relief washed over Peter. Thank God…
From the look of things, Niamh really had moved on from Jonathan.
Truthfully, Peter had been a bundle of nerves before meeting Niamh today–more nervous, even, than when he first founded FY and the company’s future hung in the balance.
00.00
He’d always felt he owed her. When the world had turned against Niamh and she’d been utterly alone, all he’d managed to do was offer a few words of support over the phone–never anything more substantial.
There had always been rumors about him and Niamh at the office, but nothing serious, nothing that ever caught the attention of the public. Besides, her marriage to Jonathan had never been public knowledge, so the whispers never amounted to much.
But now, The Thomas Group had made a public show of cutting ties with Niamh, turning her into a convenient target for every keyboard warrior online. The Neville Corporation and The Burton Group both pretended she didn’t exist.
If Peter spoke up for her now, people would take it as proof there was something more going on between them–even if he was only trying to clear her name. The FY board had made it clear: under no circumstances was he to get involved. If he did, FY would be dragged into the mess as well.
They didn’t care about Niamh’s wellbeing, or even his reputation. All that mattered to them was FY’s interests, and anything that threatened those was strictly
forbidden.
He’d had more than one meeting about it. Neil, the current chairman and largest shareholder–who’d co–founded FY with him–sat him down for a serious talk.
In the end, Peter caved. When Niamh became the center of a storm, he retreated, keeping his head down and his mouth shut.
The result? Her studio went bankrupt.
He’d thought about offering her financial help, maybe even helping her start over. But he knew Niamh–she’d never accept it. Worse, she might think he was just being patronizing or pitying her.
The more Peter thought about it, the more convinced he became that he and Niamh couldn’t even be friends anymore.
That terrified him. He dreaded the thought of her shutting him out, treating him with cold indifference. And the truth was, he probably deserved it.
“Peter… Peter?”
Niamh’s voice called him back from his thoughts.
“What’s got you so distracted?” she asked.
Peter managed a faint smile, eyes fixed on her, unable to look away. Niamh shifted,
suddenly self–conscious under his gaze.
