Page 72 of Surrendering to the Obsession

‘Is she going to help James?’ His eyes darkened, rigid with fury, fixed on Mia’s movements. His mind raced, chaos and fear colliding. ‘Is she going to come to me, asking me to help him? Or is she going to intervene on his behalf?’

The memory of how she had defended James by never telling him about the kidnapping, even while lying in his arms in bed, burned through his chest like a live coal. Two full days had passed, and she hadn’t uttered a single word about the incident, not when he held her close, not when she slept in his arms. That silence gnawed at him like fire.

His lips curled into an angry snarl as he watched her on the computer, eyes dark, heart thundering, veins tense. Mia’s gaze fixed on the news made him almost lose control. The fury became unbearable.

Without a second thought, he stormed out of his office, the floorboards echoing with his steps, and made a beeline for the secretary department. His eyes, dark and glinting with barely contained fury, scanned the room, seeking Mia.

Just as he reached the doorway, Savannah, oblivious to the storm behind them, turned to Mia.

“What do you think about this?” Savannah asked. “I think we should call a meeting. Businesses don’t need to resort to this kind of chaos. Situations like this… they create far more problems than they solve.”

Alexander froze at the doorway, his chest tightening, every nerve in his body straining as he observed Mia. His heart thundered in his chest, a deafening rhythm echoing his rage and tension. ‘Is she going to defend him?’ he thought, his fingers curling into fists so tightly that the knuckles whitened. ‘If she cares… if she’s still in love with him… she’ll try to save that bastard. Is she going to ask me to save him?’

Mia shrugged lightly at Savannah, her voice casual but edged with detachment. “Do whatever they want. None of my business,” she said with a small laugh, brushing her hands off as if the matter were trivial. “I’m not getting paid to talk about their business, save their business, or come up with ideas for them. Why would I waste my time?”

Savannah chuckled at her, shaking her head, and Mia turned back to her desk, moving as though nothing had happened, the morning just beginning as usual.

Then, she leaned toward Savannah again, a sly grin spreading across her face. “I think Mr. Graves is going easy on them. Maybe if they caused a little more chaos, we could take over Sinclair Corporation entirely. Who knows—maybe I could even become the CEO,” she teased, eyes sparkling with mischief. “If that happened, I wouldn’t have to work this hard… just sit in the CEO office all day, giving orders. I really hate working.”

Poppy burst out laughing, her amusement spilling over as she leaned back in her chair. “Mia, all day? You’re just playing games on your computer! You actually already have the dream job of every employee in this office!”

Mia gave her a deadpan frown. “It’s still a job, Poppy. I don’t want to have a dream job. A dream job that still makes me work? No thanks. That’s like a nightmare in disguise. I just want… actual dreams. Preferably with naps. And in my dreams, coffee magically appears in my hand.”

They giggled together as Mia continued with mock solemnity, “When we take over Sinclair Corporation, if I become CEO, I’ll make you two my secretaries. Then we can relax all day, go to the spa, and eat chicken whenever we want.”

“That’s a deal!” Poppy said, pulling Mia into a playful hug, laughter filling the room.

But that little scene was enough to pierce the wall of tension Alexander had been holding for days. His body, rigid as steel, relaxed slightly. The gnawing question that had tormented him—whether Mia loved James enough to defend him, even die for him—began to fade. He exhaled slowly, tension in his shoulders easing just a fraction.

And then, without warning, Alexander was there. He strode through the office with purpose, his long legs eating up thedistance in a few steps. His hand closed around Mia’s wrist, pulling her from her chair with an intensity that silenced the murmurs around them.

Everyone in the office froze, eyes wide in shock, but Alexander didn’t care. His gaze bore into Mia’s, dark and commanding, and he said, low and firm, “Everything will be handled by my men. Don’t worry about this matter.”

He pointed toward the TV, still showing the video of James’s company in chaos. Mia’s heart thudded in her chest, startled by his sudden presence, but she nodded obediently, words caught in her throat.

“Come with me to my office. I need to talk to you,” he added, pulling her along without another word.

Mia felt the curious stares of the entire office on her as they followed, but she didn’t dare pull her hand free. After two days of his cold indifference, his attention now felt like a blessing. And she clung to it, silently grateful.

She let him lead her silently, only stopping when they reached his office.

Once inside his office, he pressed a button on the desk. A quiet click confirmed the door locked from the inside. Only then did he release her wrist and turn fully toward her, his eyes dark, intense. The room seemed to shrink around them.

Chapter 13 Ungrateful

Alexander didn’t look the same as when he had left for the office. His collar was rumpled, his hair messy from running his fingers through it repeatedly, and his body was taut with tension. His eyes burned as they locked onto hers.

Without a word, he reached up, grabbed the glasses perched on his nose, and tossed them onto the desk with a sharp clink. The sound echoed through the office, making the silence heavier. Then he turned fully toward her.

“Do you have something to tell me?” His voice was low, controlled, yet every syllable carried the weight of anger barely contained. The silence that followed his question felt suffocating.

Mia blinked, confusion clouding her eyes. “Tell you what?” she asked softly.

His jaw tightened further, muscles working visibly beneath his skin, and the intensity in his expression deepened. Without another word, he snatched his phone from the desk, pressed a few buttons, and swiveled the screen toward her.

On it was the video—her and James in that cheap club. Mia froze. The dim lights, James beside her—and then herself, trembling as the gun pressed to her temple.

Her entire body went rigid, a shiver running through her spine. Alexander, however, didn’t look away. He stepped closer with every passing second of the video, and by the time the clip ended, he was standing directly in front of her, dark eyes locked onto hers.