Chapter 285 What Are You Doing Here ?

“Oh my God, Nancy! I saw the fire trucks this morning. Please tell me you weren’t stuck in that horrible elevator!”

Antonella from HR gripped her Starbucks coffee tight, her eyes wide with office gossip excitement.

Nancy looked up from the budget reports on her desk and rubbed her head. “Yeah, that was me.”

“No way! You’re the woman everyone’s talking about downstairs! Karen said they had to use those big metal cutters to get the doors open!”

Nancy let out a shaky laugh. “Sure felt like it.”

What a crazy situation. She almost died in that metal box, but got all her memories back because of it.

Nancy didn’t know if she wanted to laugh or hide under her desk.

Tyler , the HR director, rushed over when he saw the crowd around her office. Sweat was already forming on his forehead. Workplace accidents meant lawsuits, and lawsuits meant trouble for him.

“Nancy, you need to go home. I’ll call Elara and explain everything. We’re giving you emergency leave with full pay. Company policy for all senior staff.”

Nancy shook her head and opened her computer files. “Thanks Tyler, but I’m okay. Really. The board meeting is tomorrow and these financial reports need to be finished.”

“I know what I can handle. Work will help keep my mind busy.”

What she didn’t say was this: going home meant dealing with Yardley.

The man she had hurt years ago was now sleeping in her bed every night. She remembered everything now but had no idea how to face him.

It was better to hide behind spreadsheets and meetings while she figured out what to do next.

She decided to keep pretending she still had amnesia. For now.

—

Elara heard about the elevator problem through the building’s emergency email system.

She called right away, interrupting Nancy’s work on the quarterly reports.

“Nancy, honey, are you okay? I got emails about the elevator breaking and emergency workers coming. Why didn’t you come home? You should be relaxing with some wine, not doing math!”

Elara’s real worry made Nancy feel warm inside.

“I’m alive, El. That’s what matters. Plus, these budget numbers can’t wait any longer.”

Elara kept trying to convince her, but Nancy was too stubborn.

Finally, Elara gave up with a frustrated sigh and hung up the phone.

Alpha Dominic had been grabbing his keys to head out when he noticed the worry in her voice during the call.

“What’s wrong with Nancy?”

Elara told him about the elevator accident. Something flashed in Dominic’s dark eyes as he grabbed his phone.

“I’ll text my brother. Trust me, Yardley will take care of this.”

He typed quickly: “Nancy got trapped in an elevator this morning. She’s at work acting like she’s fine. Thought you should know.”

Elara nodded. “Good idea. She shouldn’t handle this alone, especially when she’s being so stubborn about it.”

Yardley had been stuck in board meetings all day with his phone buzzing in his jacket pocket.

Between budget talks and merger deals, he barely had time to breathe, let alone check his messages.

It wasn’t until almost five o’clock that he finally looked at his iPhone and saw Dominic’s text from hours earlier.

His face darkened as he read it twice.

Elevator broke down. Nancy trapped. Acting like nothing happened.

“Damn it,” he said under his breath, already standing up and grabbing his keys. Yardley walked straight out of the building and got into his black Porsche.

The engine roared as he drove toward Nancy’s office building.

—

At Nancy’s office, it was already past six o’clock, but she was still sitting at her computer, pretending to work on spreadsheets she’d finished an hour ago.

“Night, Nancy! Working late again?” Antonella called out as she grabbed her purse.

Nancy forced a smile. “Go ahead, Antonella. I’m almost done here.”

Antonella was heading toward the elevator when she almost ran into a tall, incredibly handsome stranger near the front desk. Her breath caught in her throat.

“Um, excuse me? The office is closed. Can I help you?”

“I’m here for Nancy. My wife. Is she still upstairs?” His voice was smooth but firm.

Antonella ’s eyes went wide. “Oh! Yes! She’s still here. This way!”

As she led him toward Nancy’s office, Antonella thought to herself: How do Elara and Nancy both end up with men who look like movie stars? This is so unfair. All the good guys are definitely taken.

Nancy was scrolling through her phone and writing yet another text to Yardley about working late when she looked up and nearly jumped.

Those intense eyes were watching her from her office doorway.

“What are you doing here?”