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I stand there, hidden from his view, taking in the way he works. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but something shifts in me. Jack is different here, like he’s shedding the layers of fame, the persona everyone expects, and showing a side of himself I didn’t know existed.

My thoughts are a jumble, but I can’t tear my eyes away. He looks beautiful, unforgettable. I tell myself I was right to have stayed away—because this scene may have changed me forever.

JACK

The moment she walks through the back door, I know. It’s like I can smell her before I even see her. I swear, her scent hits me first, that subtle mix of lavender and something else I can’t quite place. I stop what I’m doing immediately, my brush frozen mid-air. I turn toward her, instinctively covering up the canvas with my body, even though I’m not sure why I feel like I need to hide it.

Seeing her, all the walls I’ve built come crashing down. For every day she doesn’t stop by, I tell myself I’m happy. First, it means we don’t have to talk about my fake dates. Secondly, it means I don’t have to worry about my strange reaction to her presence. In all this time, I built my resistance. Or so I thought…

I thought not seeing her for a whole week would make my reaction to her fade, that maybe some time apart would lessen whatever this is between us. But as soon as I see her, I realize it’s only grown stronger. My heart pounds harder, my chest tightens, and every nerve in my body is on high alert.

She’s standing there, her expression unreadable, but something in her eyes makes me want to say the wrong thing so I can see that fire in her again.

Mia steps closer, her gaze dropping to the canvas, her curiosity piqued. “Can I see your work?” she asks, her voice soft but steady.

I turn the canvas away quickly, my hand brushing the corner protectively. “I don’t like people seeing it until it’s done,” I mutter, suddenly defensive. The words come out sharper than I mean them to, but I can’t seem to stop myself.

She doesn’t seem offended, though. Instead, she looks at me with that same steady gaze, not backing down.

“Okay.”

My heart softens. “What do you want?”

I can’t focus on anything but the way she’s standing there, the way her lips move when she speaks, the way her eyes shine with that unspoken challenge. It’s like she has a magnetic pull, and no matter how much I try to look away, I’m stuck.

Mia saunters over to me. “The list is complete.”

“What list?” Her sheer presence distracts me, and it’s hard to follow her words.

“The list of compatible women for you.”

None of that matters. Whoever the women are, I’m not the least bit interested in them, not with the woman standing in front of me.

“I think you should run them by Nova first.”

Mia smirks, already one step ahead. “I’ve sent the list to Nova. She’s confirmed and sent them NDAs. You have nothing to worry about.”

“Um…”

“They’ll keep this process confidential.”

“Okay…”

I don’t know what’s with me today. Maybe it’s the melancholic mood I’m in or the fact that I’ve really been thinking about the mess I’ve made of my young life, but I’m so attuned to Mia in a new way. She looks really pretty, her lips coated in a soft pink gloss. I don’t know what comes over me, but at that moment, all I want is to kiss her.

Mia’s voice pulls me out of my haze when she taps me on the shoulder. I blink, my mind struggling to catch up. “Why are you so lost in thought?” she asks, her tone more curious than anything else. “What’s on your mind, Jack?”

Before I even realize what’s happening, the words slip out. “I was just thinking about kissing you.”

The silence that follows is thick. Her face freezes, and she stares at me like I’ve just said something absurd. I instantly regret the words, but then something in her expression changes. Her gaze snaps down to my lips and back up to my eyes in a split second and in that moment we lock gazes, heat spreads through me. It’s there. Want. At this moment, she wants this as much as I do. She may regret it later, but right now, she wants it. Is that a risk I’m willing to take?

And then, in that split second of vulnerability, I do it.

I step toward her, close enough that I can feel the heat from her body, and without thinking, I kiss her. It’s messy at first, unsure, but then it deepens, the world narrowing down to just the feeling of her lips against mine. The tension from the past week, from all the strange moments between us, all melt away, and for the first time in what feels like forever, I forget everything else.

Mia kisses me back with more vigor than any woman ever has. It’s like she wants me with the same intensity, and she’s not afraid to show it in this fragile moment.

We hear footsteps approaching, and Brody’s voice cuts through the moment, causing us to jump apart like thunder just split through us. I pull back, immediately feeling like a fool for letting myself get carried away. But Mia’s still standing there, her lips slightly swollen, her expression caught somewhere between surprise and something else I can’t quite name.