Chapter 868

The afternoon sun cast long shadows across the office as Lucian prepared to leave for yet another meeting. His schedule was relentless these days.

"You should go," Rosalind said, glancing up from her sketchbook. "I'll stay and finish these designs."

Lucian paused by the door, his gaze intense. "Don't even think about disappearing again. I mean it."

Rosalind rose on her toes and brushed her lips against his. "Relax. I'm not going anywhere."

"Promise me you'll still be here when I return."

"I promise."

Only then did Lucian finally leave, though not without one last lingering look.

Rosalind settled back into her work, the quiet hum of the office soothing her thoughts. The scratching of her pencil against paper filled the silence—until the door swung open unexpectedly.

A smile tugged at her lips as she glanced up. "Back so soon—"

Her words died in her throat.

It wasn't Lucian.

Reginald stood in the doorway, his expression unreadable.

"Reginald," Rosalind said, caught off guard. "What brings you here?"

He stepped inside, arms crossed. "Expecting someone else? Lucian, perhaps?"

The edge in his voice was unmistakable. Rosalind had long since accepted that Reginald despised her. "He's in a meeting. Did you need him?"

"No." His gaze pinned her in place. "I came to see you."

"Me?"

A humorless laugh escaped him. "Word travels fast. Lucian carrying you into the office like some prized possession? I knew it. Three years apart, and he still falls right back into your trap. What kind of witchcraft do you have over him?"

Rosalind's fingers tightened around her pencil. "We used to be friends, Reginald. What happened?"

"Friends?" He scoffed. "As if someone like me could ever be friends with a privileged heiress like you. Please. You and Julian are cut from the same cloth. Lucian's just your plaything, isn't he?"

"That's not true!" Rosalind shot to her feet. "I love him—"

"You love him?" Reginald's voice turned razor-sharp. "Then why did you betray him? Why did you sleep with Julian?"

The accusation struck like a physical blow. Rosalind's breath hitched. "What are you talking about? I never betrayed Lucian! I never—"

"Still lying?" His lip curled. "You only came back because Lucian became CEO of Quantum Innovations. Don't act innocent. You're the most manipulative person I know."

Rosalind opened her mouth, but no words came out. The accusations were so absurd, so vicious—

A cold voice sliced through the tension.

"Reginald."

Rosalind's head snapped up.

Lucian stood in the doorway, his presence commanding and his expression glacial. "What are you doing here?"

"Just having a chat with Rosalind," Reginald said smoothly.

Lucian moved to stand beside Rosalind, his posture protective. "Whatever you have to say, say it to me."

"But she doesn't truly care about you—"

The sharp crack of a folder slamming against the desk cut him off.

Lucian's eyes darkened. "If you value our friendship, you'll never speak to her like that again."

Reginald's jaw clenched. "So that's how it is? You'll defend her no matter what? Fine. Understood."

With a violent kick that sent a trash can clattering across the floor, he stormed out, leaving silence in his wake.