She thought of Ethan’s hand holding hers through days she could not remember.
She thought of all the times she had mistaken a request for a relationship.
The quiet inside her did not feel peaceful.
It felt final.
“I’m not answering that,” she said.
Ethan nodded.
“Then don’t,” he said.
Mallory took screenshots.
She saved the transfer receipt.
She forwarded everything to Ethan and Jenna.
Not because she expected a war.
Because payroll managers learn one rule early.
If it is not documented, someone else will rewrite it.
At 7:42 p.m., someone knocked on the front door.
Three hard knocks.
The kind that do not ask whether it is a good time.
Ethan stood first.
Mallory pushed her chair back slowly and braced one hand on the table.
Her legs were already trembling, and she hated that her body chose that moment to show weakness.
Ethan looked through the peephole.
