9. Eliana
Eliana
Walking into Ashford Holdings, I had expected cold marble floors, intimidating executives, and a billionaire who would barely have time to remember I existed.
Instead, Adrian was waiting for me in the lobby with a coffee in one hand and a paper bag in the other.
He spotted me almost immediately, and the easy smile I'd become dangerously accustomed to appeared on his face. "You skipped breakfast."
I blinked. "I didn't."
He raised an eyebrow.
I glanced at the coffee in his hand, then back at him. "I had coffee. It counts."
"It absolutely doesn't," he said, with such calm certainty that I couldn't help smiling.
Before I could argue, he handed me the paper bag. Inside was a small pastry and a sandwich, still slightly warm from wherever he'd bought them. "I bought them for you just in case you skipped breakfast."
I looked down at the food, touched and smiling to myself. "Thank you."
"You're welcome." His gaze lingered on me for a second before he gestured toward the elevators. "Come on. You can sit in my office while I work."
I followed him upstairs, trying not to stare at everything around me.
The headquarters was nothing like the dramatic offices I'd invented for my billionaire characters.
It was elegant without being unnecessarily flashy, with glass walls, quiet corridors, and employees moving efficiently between meetings.
Everyone seemed to know Adrian was nearby.
Some greeted him, others stepped aside, but nobody appeared afraid to approach him.
That surprised me.
I spent most of the morning sitting in a comfortable chair inside Adrian's office while he moved through one meeting after another.
His office overlooked Richmond through enormous glass windows, but Adrian barely seemed to notice the view.
His attention stayed on the documents in front of him and the people sitting across the table.
What surprised me most was how patient he was.
He really listened. Each one of them.
When a young intern presented a proposal that clearly needed work, Adrian didn't embarrass him.
He asked questions, pointed out the weaknesses, and then explained how he could improve it.
When one of his assistants brought him a revised contract, he thanked her by name before returning to the discussion.
He remembered everyone.
Names. Departments. Projects. Even tiny details people had mentioned in passing.
It wasn't until a negotiation turned difficult that I finally understood the intimidating reputation surrounding him.
One of the executives across the table pushed back on a decision Adrian had already made. Adrian didn't raise his voice. He didn't even interrupt.
He simply leaned back and looked at the man silently. The executive eventually cleared his throat and changed his argument.
I almost smiled.
So that's how he does it.
Adrian didn't need to dominate a room. He simply had to occupy it. When the meeting ended, the executives left with their documents, and Adrian leaned back in his chair.
"You've been staring at me for ten minutes," he said without looking up.
I nearly dropped my coffee. "I have not."
He finally looked at me with a teasing glint in his eyes. “You have.”
"I was observing."
"That sounds suspiciously like stalking."
"I'm researching."
"Ah." He nodded solemnly. "So you're doing it the legal way."
Before I could answer, the office door opened and Walter Briggs walked in carrying three folders, two coffees, and what appeared to be a small potted plant.
Adrian stared at him.
Walter stopped. "Before you say anything," he began carefully, "the plant was not my idea."
Adrian's expression remained blank. "Why is there a plant in my office?"
Walter looked at the pot. "I was told to bring the files from accounting."
"You brought a plant."
"I may have misunderstood."
"You think?"
Walter sighed and placed everything on the desk. "In my defense, the accountant said he needed something green on your desk."
Adrian closed his eyes for a moment. I pressed my lips together, fighting a laugh.
Walter glanced at me and gave me a conspiratorial smile. "Don't worry. He's like this before lunch."
Adrian opened his eyes. "Walter."
"Yes, sir?"
"Get the correct files."
"Of course."
"And take the plant."
Walter picked up the pot. "What if the plant wants to stay?"
"Then fire it."
I burst out laughing. Walter looked delighted. "See? She understands me."
"She's laughing at you," Adrian said.
"Still counts."
Adrian shook his head and muttered something under his breath.
Walter turned toward the door, then paused. "By the way, sir, I've been working for the company for twenty years."
"I know."
"You've threatened to fire me approximately four hundred times. And yet I'm still here."
Adrian gave him a long look. "That's the part that concerns me."
Walter grinned. "Job security."
He walked out before Adrian could respond.
I was still laughing when Adrian looked at me. "What?"
"Nothing," I said, trying to compose myself. "He's... interesting."
"He's a professional nuisance."
"You've kept him for twenty years."
"Temporary lapse in mine and my father's judgment."
I smiled. For the first time, watching him in his own world, I realized something I'd never been able to capture properly in my novels.
Adrian Ashford wasn't powerful because people feared him.
He was powerful because he never needed to prove that he was.
And somehow, sitting quietly in his office while he worked, I found myself wanting to know what else there was beneath that effortless confidence.
Just as I began to relax into the strange comfort of Adrian's office, the doors opened without warning.
A striking young woman walked in, her sunglasses resting on top of her perfectly styled hair.
She took two steps inside before noticing me, then stopped so abruptly that her expression changed instantly.
"...Her? What's she doing here?" she asked, staring at me as though she'd walked into something she wasn't supposed to see.
Adrian sighed from behind his desk. "Good afternoon to you too, Sophia."
I recognized her immediately. Sophia Ashford.
I'd seen her face while researching Adrian, and it was difficult not to recognize one of the world's most successful supermodels.
She was an international model and the brand ambassador for several luxury fashion and beauty houses, with photographs of her appearing everywhere online alongside headlines about fashion weeks, exclusive campaigns, and the Ashford family's influence.
Yet the woman standing in front of me wasn't looking at me with the usual curiosity I'd expected.
She looked frightened. Not jealous or rude, just genuinely frightened, and the uneasiness in her eyes made me wonder what she knew that I didn't. Her gaze remained fixed on me for several seconds before she turned toward Adrian.
"Can I speak to you?" she asked quietly.
Adrian went still for a moment, his eyes turning guarded as he followed her a few steps away in the corner. "What are you doing?" Sophia asked in a low voice. "After everything that happened? Have you forgotten what it did to you?”
Adrian's face darkened. "Enough, Sophia."
"I'm serious," she insisted, her voice barely above a whisper.
"So am I." His voice remained controlled, but I could see the tension gathering in his shoulders. "Can we just not do this here?"
Sophia stared at him, her expression softening for a moment. "Adrian..."
"Not here," he repeated, quieter this time, but there was something in his tone that made her stop.
Something passed between them that I couldn't understand. Before Sophia could say anything else, another voice filled the room. "Am I hearing my grandchildren arguing again?"
Everyone turned toward the doorway.
An elegant older woman stood there, one hand resting lightly against a silver-handled cane.
She wasn't particularly tall, but there was something about her presence that made the entire room seem to rearrange itself around her.
She carried herself with the kind of confidence that didn't need to announce itself, and even the way she looked around the office suggested she was accustomed to being listened to.
Adrian's face changed immediately. "Grandma Eleanor." He walked toward her, took her hand gently, and kissed her knuckles.
She smiled up at him. "There you are."
For a woman well into her years, Eleanor Ashford carried herself with remarkable confidence.
Her silver hair was swept neatly back, and every movement seemed deliberate.
There was an unmistakable authority in her posture, but somehow, when she looked at Adrian, that authority softened into something warmer.
Then her eyes landed on me.
Surprise crossed her face, followed almost immediately by unmistakable warmth. She walked toward me without hesitation and took both my hands in hers. "My dear," she said softly. "It's lovely to finally meet you. I've heard so much about you."
I glanced at Adrian, who suddenly looked almost uncomfortable.
"I hope he's been behaving himself," Eleanor added, her eyes twinkling.
I couldn't help smiling. "Mostly."
Adrian gave me an offended look, and Eleanor laughed softly. "Good. Someone needs to keep him humble."
"I'm standing right here, Grandma," Adrian reminded her.
"I know," she replied without missing a beat.
I laughed, and something in Eleanor's expression softened even further. She studied my face for a moment before saying quietly, "You remind me of someone."
I wasn't sure what to say, so I offered her a small smile. "Hopefully someone pleasant."
"Very pleasant." Her fingers tightened gently around mine. "It's wonderful to see Adrian smiling again."
My smile faltered slightly, and I looked at Adrian. For just a moment, his usual amusement disappeared. Something almost painful crossed his face before he quickly tucked it away behind that familiar smile.
Eleanor continued talking as though she hadn't noticed the change.
She asked about my writing, my teaching, and how I'd met Adrian, and I answered carefully, occasionally glancing at him whenever I wasn't sure which version of our story we were supposed to tell.
Apparently, Eleanor didn't need many details.
She simply seemed happy to have me there.
After several minutes, she clasped her hands together and smiled. "You two are coming to my house next weekend."
Adrian immediately straightened. "Grandma, we might not make it. We?—."
"You'll change your schedule." Eleanor didn't let him finish.
"I don't think?—"
"It wasn't a request."
Sophia looked down, clearly disturbed. Adrian stared at his grandmother for a long moment before finally surrendering with a resigned sigh. "Fine. We'll definitely visit."
The office door opened again, and Walter walked in carrying an elaborate silver tray filled with miniature sandwiches, pastries, and fruit. He stopped the moment he saw Eleanor and slowly backed toward the door.
Eleanor looked at him. "Walter."
"Yes, ma'am?" he replied cautiously.
"Come here."
Walter sighed and approached, placing the tray on the table with exaggerated care. As he leaned slightly toward me, he lowered his voice and whispered, "Never argue with Grandma Ashford."
I covered my mouth to hide my laugh, but Adrian heard him anyway.
"Walter."
"Yes, sir?"
"Put the tray down and leave."
"Already leaving."
He disappeared through the doorway before Adrian could say anything else, leaving me struggling not to laugh.
For a few minutes, everything felt almost normal. Almost.
It happened as I was gathering my things before leaving. Adrian had stepped into the hallway to take a phone call when Sophia quietly approached me. There was no hostility in her face this time, only concern.
"If you care about my brother," she said softly, "please… walk away before it's too late."
My smile disappeared. "Wh-What do you mean?"
She glanced toward the hallway, then back at me. I waited for an explanation, but her lips parted without a word coming out. Whatever she wanted to tell me, she seemed to change her mind. She gave me one last troubled look before quickly walking away just as Adrian returned.
He glanced after her before looking at me. "Who were you talking to?"
I forced a small smile. "It's nothing."
He studied my face for a second longer than necessary, but he didn't question me. Instead, he picked up his coat and said, "I'm sorry about my grandmother, and apparently, we're committed to spending next weekend at her house."
"I don't mind," I assured him.
"You can cancel if you want."
I shook my head. "No. I'd actually love to go. She's a sweetheart."
Something softened in his expression. "Thank you."
He slipped his coat over his shoulders before opening the door for me. "Let me make it up to you. Dinner?"
I smiled and nodded. "Okay."
As I followed him out, I glanced once over my shoulder at the empty office. Sophia's words remained lodged in my mind, refusing to disappear.
Walk away before it's too late.
I didn't know what she was warning me about, but I was beginning to realize something.
Adrian Ashford was hiding something. And whatever it was, his family knew.