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I shove the bag back at her. "I'm not taking a pregnancy test in the executive bathroom of Elysian Holdings. That's career suicide waiting to happen."
"Fine." She returns the test to her bag. "But promise me you'll take one tonight. For my peace of mind, if nothing else."
"If it will make you stop looking at me like I'm an incubator, fine." I straighten my blouse, attempting to regain my professional composure. "Now can we please go to lunch? I need to eat something bland before my one o'clock with the fabric suppliers."
Olivia links her arm through mine as we exit the bathroom. "Of course. And while we eat, you can tell me all about how your boyfriend is taking your ex's floral harassment."
"He's not harassing me," I say automatically, though even I don't believe it. "And Roman is... handling it."
"Handling it how?" Olivia raises an eyebrow. "Because if my billionaire boyfriend found out some cheating ex was sending me flowers about 'second chances,' I'd expect at least a restraining order, possibly an arranged accident."
I can't help but laugh despite my unsettled stomach. "Roman's not a mobster, Liv. He's just... made it clear to Camden through mutual business connections that his attentions are unwelcome."
"Boring but effective, I suppose." Olivia sounds almost disappointed. "Though I was hoping for something more dramatic. A confrontation in a dark alley, perhaps."
"Sorry to disappoint your soap opera fantasies," I say dryly. "But we're handling this like adults."
The truth is, Roman's reaction to Camden's persistent attempts at contact has been remarkably restrained. Initially furious, he'd respected my wishes to handle it myself. But after this last delivery —a rare vintage design book I'd once mentioned coveting—even my reassurances that Camden was harmless hadn't stopped Roman from having a "discreet conversation" with a senior partner at Camden's law firm.
I'm still not entirely sure what was said, but the deliveries stopped for a week. Until today, apparently.
Lunch passes in a blur of Olivia's chatter about the magazine's upcoming feature and my own distracted nodding. Despite my protests, I can't stop thinking about the pregnancy test in her bag, about the possibility I've been refusing to consider.
Roman and I haven't discussed children. We've barely acknowledged that what we have is a relationship rather than an "arrangement." A baby would complicate everything—my career just as it's taking off, his business empire, our still-evolvingdynamic. The very thought makes me simultaneously terrified and, in some small corner of my heart I'm not ready to examine, oddly hopeful.
"Earth to Cassie," Olivia waves her hand in front of my face. "Did you hear anything I just said?"
"Something about the September issue?" I hazard, knowing I've been entirely absent from the conversation.
"I said Roman is by the door, looking like he's trying to decide whether approaching us would be appropriate or career-ending." She nods toward the entrance, where Roman is indeed standing, looking uncharacteristically hesitant.
When he catches my eye, he gives a small nod, professional but with that undercurrent of intimacy only I would recognize. I return the gesture, then watch as he's intercepted by a board member, drawn into what appears to be an intense conversation.
"Still keeping things quiet?" Olivia asks, following my gaze.
"For now," I confirm. "The board's still deciding on my brand proposal. If they approve, we'll figure out how to handle the personal side professionally."
"And if they don't approve?"
I consider this, watching Roman across the room—confident, commanding, entirely in his element. "Then I have a decision to make," I say finally. "About whether I can be both his partner and his employee if there's no path forward for my independent vision."
Olivia squeezes my hand. "For what it's worth, I think you're overthinking this. Roman Kade didn't become a billionaire by letting talent slip through his fingers, regardless of who that talent is sleeping with."
"It's not that simple, and you know it." I sigh, pushing away my barely-touched salad. "Dating the boss comes with complications, no matter how supportive he is. People will always question whether I've earned my opportunities."
"People like your sister?" Olivia asks gently.
I wince. Mia doesn't know about Roman and me yet—a deliberate choice to allow her to establish herself at Elysian without the added complication of her sister dating the CEO. "She'll understand," I say, with more confidence than I feel. "Once she gets to know him."
"Convenient timing, then," Olivia nods toward my phone, which is lighting up with a text. "Isn't that dinner tonight?"
I check the message—Roman confirming our reservation for seven. The plan is for Mia to join us after her first day, a casual introduction without the pressure of revealing our relationship immediately.
"Just a normal dinner," I remind Olivia. "Sister meets boss, no revelations about said boss also being sister's boyfriend."
"Totally normal," Olivia agrees, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "What could possibly go wrong?"
As it turns out,quite a lot.