Cassie’s POV
Dear Cassie,
We regret to inform you that Wolfe Group has decided to withdraw the employment offer previously extended to you.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your understanding.
Regards,
Human Resources
Wolfe Group.
I stared at the email for a full two minutes, reading the same lines over and over as if the words might rearrange themselves into something that made sense. My eyes kept snagging on the same cold phrases—withdraw the employment offer, regret to inform you- until they blurred. I kept waiting for the part where it said this was a mistake, that the email had been sent to the wrong person. It never came.
Employment withdrawn. Just like that. I was supposed to go in tomorrow for what I thought was the final step. Now there was nothing. The thought of going back to Blackwood Holdings made my stomach twist. Working for Damien had become too complicated, too heavy. Every day felt like I was walking a line I didn’t understand, and it was slowly wearing me down.
I opened a new email and typed a careful message, polite but firm, asking them to confirm that this hadn’t been sent in error. Maybe there was another Cassie. Maybe the system had glitched. I hit send and sat there refreshing my inbox like the reply might change if I checked it enough times.
When it came, the response was short and final. The withdrawal was intentional. It was for me. No further explanation. No room to push back. Just a polite wall.
I sat back in my chair, the glow of the screen the only light in the room. What had gone wrong? I had done everything right. My experience was solid. My interviews had gone well. Nothing about this made sense. Eventually I forced myself to close the laptop. There was nothing left to do but accept it and start over.
That night sleep barely came. My mind kept turning the same questions over without finding answers. I drifted in and out, half-dreaming about closed doors and unread emails, until the sky outside my window started to lighten.
Morning arrived without kindness. I had maybe two unbroken hours of sleep in total. My body felt heavy when I finally sat up and reached for my phone. The inbox was a quiet disaster. A few automated rejections. The rest still unread, which somehow felt worse. I stared at my CV on the screen—the same document I had spent hours refining—and felt a dull frustration settle in my chest. On paper I looked hireable. In reality, no one seemed interested.
I dragged myself to the kitchen. Kate was already there, flipping pancakes with the kind of easy focus that made ordinary mornings look simple.
"Good morning, Cassie."
"Katie." My voice came out rough. I dropped into the chair closest to the table and rested my elbows on the surface.
She glanced over her shoulder, then turned fully when she saw my face. "Why do you look like you’ve been hit by a truck?"
I let out a long breath. "Kate... Wolfe Group withdrew the offer. I’m genuinely confused. I have no idea what went wrong." I paused, staring at the grain of the table. "I did everything right."
Kate’s expression shifted. "Cass, when did this happen?"
Before I could answer she was already moving, phone in hand, stepping into the hallway. I could hear the low urgency in her voice even if I couldn’t make out the words. A few minutes later she came back, her face tighter than before.
"Cass, I’m sorry. Nothing can be done. He said it was an order from his boss."
I looked up. "His boss? Since when does he oversee recruitment?" The words tasted bitter. "None of this makes sense."
I had already texted the office that I wouldn’t be coming in. They had given me the day. I hadn’t expected to still be under Damien’s roof next week. This whole thing was a disaster.
My phone lit up on the table. A message from Edward.
Are you free? Can we see each other this evening? Just sit out and talk.
Part of me wanted to refuse. Another part knew sitting alone with my thoughts would only make everything louder. I typed back a quiet yes before I could change my mind.
I got dressed and left the apartment with a folder of printed CVs under my arm. If emails weren’t working, I would try in person. I needed something—anything—that didn’t lead back to Damien. The thought of looking him in the eye and admitting I might need my job back made my skin feel too tight. He had already tried to convince me to stay once. I had told him I was done. Going back on that would feel like losing.
The questions followed me all the way into the first office I visited. I sat across from the HR with a kind face and a tired smile, only half-listening until she gently called my attention.
"Ma’am? Are you with me?"
I blinked and straightened. "Sorry. Yes. I emailed my CV yesterday. I haven’t gotten a response, and I really need this job."
She asked for my name. I gave it. She typed, scrolled, then looked at her screen for longer than felt comfortable. When her eyes finally lifted, the kindness was still there, but something else sat underneath it.
"Your CV is strong," she said carefully. "I’ll... get back to you."
She left me alone in the small office. I stared at the framed certificates on the wall and tried to slow my breathing. A quiet prayer slipped out before I could stop it. At this point I wasn’t even sure why I was fighting so hard to leave Blackwood Holdings. Was it pride? Was I ashamed to admit I might not be able to resign after all? Or was it the other thing—the situation with his brother that was getting harder to ignore? Secrets had a way of surfacing, and I wasn’t ready for the fallout.
The woman returned sooner than I expected. She sat down, folded her hands, and met my eyes with something close to regret.
"I’m sorry to tell you this, but we can’t move forward with your application."
I had braced for it, but the words still landed. "Is it something in my CV?"
"No. You’re not permitted to be employed here. You’ve been flagged. There’s nothing we can do."
I stood slowly. "Thank you for your time."
Outside, the afternoon light felt too bright. I knew then. This wasn’t bad luck. This was deliberate. Damien’s doing. The realization settled cold and heavy. If this was how badly he wanted to keep me, then fine. Two could play.
By the time I got home the day had already worn me thin. I showered, changed into jeans and a plain top, and left again before the quiet of the apartment could start asking questions I didn’t want to answer.
Edward was already at the restaurant when I arrived, sitting near the window. His face lit up the moment he saw me.
"Hi, Cass."
"Hey. Hope I didn’t keep you waiting long."
"Not really." His eyes moved over me with easy warmth. "You look gorgeous, by the way."
I managed a small smile. "Thanks. I didn’t put much effort in. It’s been a long day."
"Work?"
"Not exactly." I sat down and reached for the water. "I’m trying to resign from my current job. I’ve been looking for something new."
"It was about time," he said with a small shrug.
I raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by that?"
"Your boss gives off that vibe. Pain in the ass."
A short laugh escaped me. "You’re not wrong. He’s one of the main reasons I want out."
"How’s the search going?"
"Badly. No one will hire me. They keep saying I’ve been flagged. I’m almost certain it’s him."
Edward frowned. "Why would he go that far just to stop you from leaving? Is he obsessed with you?"
I exhaled slowly. "I don’t know. And I don’t want to talk about him tonight. I just want to have a good time."
"Fine, fine. No more annoying boss."
We shifted to easier things—school memories, old classmates, the way life had scattered everyone. Edward admitted he’d had a quiet crush on me back then but had been too shy to say anything. The confession landed softly, without pressure.
"I regret not telling you," he said.
"It’s okay. It’s in the past."
He hesitated. "Are you seeing anyone right now?"
"Not really. There’s... a situationship. Nothing serious." I turned the question back on him more out of politeness than real curiosity. "What about you?"
"I broke up with my ex a few months ago. Found out she was cheating."
"I’m sorry."
"It’s fine. I’m over it."
We kept talking. The drinks kept coming. I knew I didn’t handle alcohol well, but stopping felt harder than continuing. The edges of the day softened. Edward’s voice got warmer. At some point he looked at me more carefully.
"I think you should go home," he said.
"No. I still want to stay. I heard there’s a karaoke place nearby. We could go."
"Cassie. You should rest."
"Please. Just for a little while. I don’t want to go home yet."
He studied me, then sighed and helped me up from the chair. "One song. Then we’re leaving."
"Deal."
The karaoke bar was only a short walk away. It was quiet enough that we had the space mostly to ourselves. Edward took the microphone first. His voice was still good—warm, steady, the same way I remembered from school. When he finished I stood and clapped, grinning.
"You still have it," I said. "I forgot how good you are."
He laughed and held the mic out. "Your turn. Show me what you’ve got."
I took it. The opening notes of "All of Me" filled the small room. I closed my eyes and sang. Somewhere in the middle of the song my mind drifted—not to Edward, but to a different set of hands, a different kind of heat. The man from the club. And underneath that, uninvited, Damien. Not the cold, controlling version. The quieter one. The one who sometimes looked at me like he was trying not to.
When the last note faded I opened my eyes and found Edward watching me with open admiration. I laughed, a little breathless, and slid back into the seat beside him. Somehow I ended up closer than I meant to. The alcohol made everything feel simpler than it was.
I don’t remember deciding to do it. One moment I was smiling at him. The next I had pulled him in and kissed him—deep, unthinking, the kind of kiss that belonged to someone else.
Then reality snapped back.
I pulled away fast, heart hammering. Heat flooded my face. I started to apologize—
And then I looked toward the entrance.
A shadow was standing in the doorway.
It wasn’t moving, just watching, it was too dark for me to see his face. Our eyes locked from across the room.
The noise of the bar seemed to fall away.
Just as I was about to panic, it vanished, nowhere to be found.