The temptation of my brother-in-law-Chapter 125 - One Hundred and Twenty-Five

Chapter One Hundred and Twenty-Five

Alicia’s POV

I walked into the office the next morning with my shoulders squared. Ready for battle.

Madison had been a problem all week. Snide comments in the hallways. Pointed looks during meetings. Small acts of sabotage that were just subtle enough to deny.

But today she’d crossed a line.

I found her at my desk. Going through my files.

"What are you doing?" I asked. My voice was ice.

She looked up. Didn’t even have the decency to look guilty. "Just looking for the Henderson contract. I was told it was filed here."

"The Henderson contract is in the legal department. Not at my desk."

"Oh. My mistake."

She didn’t move. Just stood there. Smirking.

"Get away from my desk, Madison."

"Or what? You’ll run to your boss? Oh wait. You can’t. He’s not here today."

She was right. Malachi was at a meeting across town. Wouldn’t be back until afternoon.

"I don’t need Malachi to handle you," I said. "I can do that myself."

"Can you? Because from where I’m standing, you’re just the assistant. And I’m an employee with connections. My uncle sits on the board. Did you know that?"

I hadn’t. But it explained how she’d gotten hired so quickly. How she’d felt confident enough to harass me.

"Your connections won’t protect you if you’re caught violating company policy. Going through another employee’s desk is grounds for termination."

"Prove it. Your word against mine."

Other employees were watching now. Heads popping up over cubicle walls. Whispers starting.

This was exactly what Madison wanted. A public scene. A way to embarrass me. To show everyone that I wasn’t untouchable.

I pulled out my phone. Opened the security app. The one Malachi had given me access to months ago. The one that monitored all the cameras in the building.

I pulled up the feed from my desk. Showed her the footage of her going through my files. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"Still want to play that game?" I asked.

Her face went pale. "You’re bluffing."

"Try me. I can have this sent to HR in under a minute. Along with a formal complaint. Your uncle might sit on the board. But Malachi owns the company. And I’m his assistant. Who do you think they’ll believe?"

She stared at me. Calculation in her eyes. Trying to figure out if I was serious.

I was completely serious.

"This isn’t over," she said finally.

"Yes. It is. Stay away from my desk. Stay away from me. Or next time I won’t give you a warning."

She walked away. Head high. But I could see the anger in her shoulders. The way her fists clenched.

I’d made an enemy. A real one.

The other employees went back to work. The show was over.

I sat down at my desk. My hands were shaking. Adrenaline coursing through me.

That had been too close. Too public. But I couldn’t let her walk all over me. Couldn’t let her think I was still that scared girl from Dark City.

My phone buzzed. Another unknown number.

You handled that well. But you can’t hide forever. I’m closer than you think.

My blood ran cold. Whoever was sending these messages had been watching. Had seen the confrontation with Madison. Had been in the building.

Or had access to the building’s cameras.

I looked around. At all the people working. At the cameras in the corners. At the windows overlooking the street.

Someone was watching me. Right now.

I stood up. Walked to the bathroom. Locked myself in a stall. Tried to breathe.

Think. Think clearly.

The unknown numbers. The texts. The threats. Someone who knew about my silver hair. Who knew about Dark City. Who was watching me constantly.

Then it hit me.

The masked man. At the high school reunion ball. The one who’d asked me to dance.

He’d known things. Personal things. Had touched my hair. Had whispered in my ear about secrets and the past.

I’d thought he was just some creep. Some guy trying to be mysterious.

But what if it was more than that? What if he’d been the one sending the messages all along?

He’d had access to me that night. Had been close enough to touch. To observe. To learn.

And he’d disappeared before I could see his face. Before I could identify him.

My phone buzzed again.

Remember our dance? You looked beautiful that night. Scared. But beautiful.

It was him. The masked man. He’d been stalking me since the reunion. Maybe even before.

But who was he? What did he want?

I typed back. For the first time responding to one of the messages.

Who are you?

The response came immediately.

Someone who knows you better than you know yourself. Someone who’s been watching. Waiting. Soon you’ll understand.

I deleted the messages. Blocked the number. But I knew it wouldn’t matter. He’d just get another one.

I splashed water on my face. Tried to calm down. Tried to think of what to do next.

Tell someone. Tell Malachi. Tell Pa Wood. Tell anyone.

But what would I say? That someone was texting me? That I was scared? That I thought a masked man from a party months ago was stalking me?

It sounded paranoid. Crazy.

And I had no proof. No evidence. Just messages from unknown numbers that I kept deleting.

I went back to my desk. Tried to focus on work. But every person who walked past made me jump. Every notification made my heart race.

By the time lunch came, I was exhausted. Emotionally drained.

I decided to take a walk. Get out of the office. Clear my head.

I wandered through the building. Down hallways I rarely used. Past conference rooms and storage areas.

That’s when I heard voices. Coming from one of the smaller meeting rooms.

Cecilia’s voice. Clear and upset.

"I know. I know it’s hard. But it’s necessary. Just a little longer."

I stopped. Shouldn’t have been listening. Should have kept walking.

But something in her tone made me stay.

"He’s been wonderful. Really. I couldn’t ask for a better fake boyfriend. He plays the part perfectly."

Fake boyfriend.

My heart stopped.

"No. He doesn’t know I told you. But you’re my best friend. I had to tell someone. This whole pretending thing is exhausting."

Pretending. Fake boyfriend.

Malachi and Cecilia. Their relationship. It wasn’t real?

"I just hope it’s over soon. Once I get the inheritance. Once my father’s will is settled. Then I can stop lying. Stop pretending. And Malachi can go back to his life."

I backed away from the door. Quietly. Carefully.

My mind was spinning. Racing. Trying to process what I’d just heard.

They were fake dating.

All of it. The affection. The hand holding. The way he looked at her. The way she talked about him.

It was an act.

But why? Why would Malachi agree to that? What did he get out of it?

And if they were fake dating. If Cecilia wasn’t really his girlfriend.

Then what did that mean for us? For what we’d been doing? For the guilt I’d been carrying?

I walked back to my desk in a daze. Sat down. Stared at my computer screen without seeing it.

They’re fake dating?

The question kept repeating in my mind. Over and over.

Everything I thought I knew. Everything I’d assumed. It was all wrong.

Malachi wasn’t with Cecilia. Not really.

Which meant when he touched me. When he kissed me. When he looked at me like I was the only thing that mattered.

Maybe he meant it.

Maybe it wasn’t just an affair. Wasn’t just forbidden attraction.

Maybe it was real.

The thought terrified me. And thrilled me. And confused me all at once.

I needed to talk to him. Needed to know the truth. Needed to understand what was happening.

But I couldn’t. Not without admitting I’d been eavesdropping. Not without revealing how much I cared.

So I sat there. At my desk. Surrounded by work I couldn’t focus on. Thinking about Malachi. About Cecilia. About lies and truth and everything in between.

They’re fake dating.

And I had no idea what to do with that information.