Wild Flower

y's

mong the polished floors and even more polished people. My fingers gripped the edges of

h that. It

dinner than I made in a year? But then I thought about the painting tucked under my arm, the

ought ab

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eity. Billionaire. Genius. Control freak. He was everything I wasn't: structured, calculated, untouchable. B

in my

field I'd painted over and over again. Watching me. Always silent, always distant. Until last

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it meant, but I w

s Ha

o had approached me. She was sleek and professional, he

, my voice stead

ill see you no

to the private elevator, my hear

en, I was greeted by a sprawling office with floor-to-ceiling windows t

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ce it, he practically did. His broad shoulders filled out his perfectly tailored suit,

se

locked onto mine with an intensi

with impatience. "I don't usually entertain unannou

or a warm

htly as I set the canvas down and began unwr

nd for the first time, his mask of indifference slippe

" I said quietly, w

g, the wildflower field, bathed in golden light

ce?" he finally asked, hi

een it. In my dreams. And..." I hesitated, my

me, sharp and probing. "W

ecently, you started showing up in those dreams. I didn't know who you were until last

d see the wheels turning in his he

g with skepticism. "You want money. A sho

ere for your money. I'

e photograph, holding it out to him. Hi

age was clear: a younger version of Elliot, sta

torm brewing in their icy dep

aid softly. "I don't know how or why, but you we

s something?" he interrupted

ans everything

n thick enough to cut with a knife. Then, his

, his expression darkeni

aving," I s

to a thin line. "Stay if you want. Bu

g, my mind spinning. This was supposed to give me cla

ation, something about a breach

t," he said sharply. "

project. That was the name of the

ack to me, his eyes blazing. "You said your

d. "Eleano

time, I saw something crack in h

mself. Then his eyes locked onto mine, and

id quietly, his

ha

ve.

pped me. Without another word, I grabbed the painting an

feeling that I'd just stepped into something far bi