AJ offered a quiet smile in response to Evelyn's remark, one of those subtle, measured expressions that said more than any full-throated laugh or flamboyant gesture ever could. "Just catching up, and talking business. He was suggesting some contacts that may help me bring the family business further forward again. Much appreciated, Daniel." The words slipped from his mouth with practiced ease, but their meaning carried weight for him - more than he perhaps wanted to admit aloud.
He had been speaking with Daniel for a while now, longer than he'd initially expected to. The conversation had been productive, yes, but also steeped in an undercurrent of memory and familiarity that had taken him somewhat by surprise. The idea of breathing life back into the family business, restoring something that had meant so much to those who came before him, now felt less like a distant ambition and more like a tangible goal, one being mapped out with the help of someone he hadn't seen in far too long.
But even as his mind churned with thoughts of strategy, expansion, and legacy, he couldn't help but be drawn to Evelyn. He took her in with the kind of gaze he didn't bother hiding - had always had that effect on him. She looked as though she had stepped out of a painting, timeless and composed, her poise entirely unstudied. Radiant, as always. There was something maddeningly effortless about the way she presented herself - polished without pretence, as if beauty and grace were her birthright. Classic Evelyn.
"You look beautiful. I had a great time in your company last night. It felt great to be back in this space."
There was something raw in the way he said it, a genuine confession nestled among the courtesies. And for him, it was true. Last night had been one of those rare moments when everything seemed to align - where the surroundings, the company, and the history they shared gave way to a kind of emotional clarity he hadn't felt in years. There had been music, movement, a blur of familiar faces, and the comfort of losing himself in the atmosphere. But most of all, there had been her.
Now, with the sunlight pouring through the tall windows and the air heavy with the scent of morning - coffee, polished wood, maybe a hint of the garden beyond - he felt exposed in a way that had nothing to do with vulnerability and everything to do with presence. No music to distract. No social obligations to weave through. No excuse to look anywhere else. It was just him, Evelyn, and the quiet gravity of her family's home. The same house he had left as a servant and now returned as a member of high society. Perhaps it was time. Perhaps it was absence. Perhaps it was simply the weight of returning after everything that had passed between them.
Daniel had invited him to this follow-up meeting, a gesture that AJ had taken as both generous and purposeful. He had accepted almost immediately. The opportunity to further discuss potential collaborations was reason enough, but if he was honest with himself, it wasn't the only reason he came. There had been something electric and unresolved in the air last night, something that hummed beneath every shared glance and lingering silence. He didn't know what to expect when he walked in this morning, but he knew he wanted to see her again without the distraction of the crowd.
And yet, now that he was here, he felt the absence of her mother like a shadow on the edge of the frame. He hadn't seen her yet, and while he wasn't sure whether her absence was deliberate or incidental, he felt an undeniable sense of relief. The woman had always been perceptive to a fault, uncomfortably so, with a gaze that seemed capable of stripping away any veneer he put up. He respected her, of course, but he didn't relish the idea of being under her microscope so early in the day. Whatever judgment she might pass, he preferred to delay it.
The atmosphere of the room felt charged, not with tension exactly, but with a kind of expectation that pressed in around him. He was aware, acutely so, of how this space shaped people - how it had shaped Evelyn. This wasn't just a house. It was a stage, a sanctuary, a place where legacies were etched into the woodwork and whispers of the past lingered in every hallway. And in that space, every gesture seemed to carry more meaning, every word weighed more heavily.
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