Chapter 5: A Game of Power
Maddox sat at the edge of his desk, the cold glow of his laptop casting an unflattering light on his tired face. His fingers hovered above the keys, but he couldn’t bring himself to type. The contracts, the numbers, the deals they were all distractions. He had built an empire, but now, with every passing day, it felt like the walls were closing in. And the only person who seemed to have the answers, the control, was the one woman he could never have.
Cambria.
The name echoed in his mind, filling the empty space around him. Her face, her voice, the way she had looked at him with those cold, knowing eyes. She was no longer the woman he had once loved. She wasn’t even the woman he had betrayed. She was something more someone who knew how to play the game better than he ever had.
The door to his office creaked open, and without looking up, Maddox knew it was her. No one else moved through the space with such purpose, such command.
"Are you just going to keep staring at that screen?" Cambria’s voice was smooth, but there was an edge to it. "Or are we going to get down to business?"
Maddox looked up, his expression unreadable. "Business," he repeated quietly. "That’s what you’re here for, isn’t it? To take control."
She leaned against the doorframe, her arms crossed, and looked at him with an expression that said everything he already knew. "That’s what you want me to be here for. But we both know it’s more than that."
Her words hung in the air, challenging him to deny the truth. He couldn’t.
"Why do you keep doing this, Cambria?" he asked, his voice hoarse. "What do you want from me?"