Chapter 9 Long-Distance and Lies

The first week without James was... strange.

Not devastating, not unbearable-but undeniably empty. Agnes Hart moved through her days like a well-oiled machine. She rose at six, arrived at work by eight, and poured herself into the European Expansion strategy like a woman who had something to prove.

Because she did.

With James thousands of miles away in London, there was no more shadow to stand in, no more powerful gaze hovering near the conference room door, no soft glance to reassure her after a tense meeting. Agnes had to hold her own now-completely.

And she was doing it.

But every night, when the office lights dimmed and her apartment grew quiet, the ache returned.

James called. Every night. Without fail.

Sometimes it was late for him. Sometimes it was before she'd even made coffee. But the calls came like clockwork-his voice the one thing grounding her when everything else felt like an illusion.

"Did you eat today?"

"Yes."

"Are you sleeping at all?"

"Barely."

"Still wearing my shirt to bed?"

She'd laugh.

"Still feels like you're here."

But the longer he was away, the more real the distance became.

And the more cracks started to form.

Cracks in the Foundation

By the end of the second week, Agnes began noticing little changes.

James sounded... tired. Distracted. Their conversations grew shorter. His laughter dimmed. When she asked about his meetings, he answered vaguely.

"Just work stuff. I'll tell you when I get back."

And that would be the end of it.

At first, she brushed it off. Jet lag. Pressure. Fatigue.

But then came the rumors.

A message pinged on her phone late Friday evening, while she was still buried in reports.

Claire: Just heard something you're not going to like. Call me.

Agnes stepped into the empty stairwell and dialed immediately.

Claire answered on the first ring.

"Don't panic," Claire began. "But someone at Denville Partners posted a photo."

"Of James?" Agnes's chest tightened.

"Yes. Leaving a restaurant with someone. A woman."

Agnes's silence was immediate and deep.

"It could've been nothing," Claire said quickly. "Business dinner. Casual exit. But the caption was... not ideal."

Agnes found the post moments later.

@insidetheboardroom:

London's favorite shark seen leaving La Rue with mystery brunette.

Billionaire bachelor back on the market?

📸: James Reed, London, 9:23 p.m.

The photo wasn't blurry.

James, in a navy coat, stepping into a black car. The woman beside him? Elegant. Smiling. Close.

Too close.

The Doubt Begins

Agnes didn't sleep that night.

Her brain cycled through every possibility.

It was just a colleague.

Just a dinner.

Just a coincidence.

But somewhere deep inside, the scar from Matthew's betrayal pulsed. Familiar. Raw.

By Saturday morning, she caved and called.

James didn't pick up.

For the first time in eighteen days, he didn't call back.

The Confrontation

He finally rang her Sunday afternoon.

"Agnes," he said, voice low, cautious. "I'm sorry I missed last night. Got pulled into a dinner with investors and-"

"La Rue?" she interrupted.

A pause.

Then, "You saw the photo."

"I saw a lot more than that, James."

Another beat of silence. "It wasn't what it looked like."

Agnes exhaled, pacing her apartment. "Then explain it."

"She's part of the merger team. We had dinner with two VPs and their spouses. The others left early. She and I happened to be going the same way."

"And the smile?" Agnes asked. "The one that made it look like she was going home with you?"

His voice turned defensive. "Are we really doing this?"

"Yes," she snapped. "Because I know how this game works. I've played this game."

"I didn't lie to you."

"No," she whispered. "You just didn't tell me."

A heavy silence fell between them.

"I should've said something," James finally admitted. "But I didn't want to give the press more fuel."

"This isn't about the press," she said, quieter now. "It's about us."

James's voice cracked. "I didn't cheat on you, Agnes."

"I know," she whispered. "But I felt like I lost you anyway."

Time, Space, Silence

They didn't talk for three days after that.

For Agnes, the quiet was deafening. For the first time since James left, there was no call at night. No voice in her ear. No soft words of reassurance.

Only her own thoughts. Her own fears.

And a growing storm of uncertainty.

Claire tried to distract her with coffee dates, strategy meetings, even yoga.

But nothing worked.

Because Agnes knew this wasn't just a misunderstanding.

It was fear.

Not just hers-James's.

Because she saw it now.

He was pulling back.

Not to hurt her.

But to protect himself.

He was afraid of getting too close... of not knowing how to stay when things got messy.

And maybe, just maybe... Agnes was too.

The Apology That Meant Something

On Friday night, just as Agnes was about to turn off her phone and accept the silence, it rang.

James.

She answered, breath shallow. "Hi."

"Hi."

He sounded exhausted.

"I messed up," he said without preamble. "I thought keeping work and us separate would make it easier. Safer. But instead, I made you feel like you were on the outside."

She said nothing.

"I let fear dictate my decisions. Again."

She closed her eyes.

"I'm scared, Agnes. Of messing this up. Of becoming the man your ex was. Of proving everyone right-that I don't know how to do real love."

Agnes's voice cracked. "Then stop running from it."

"I'm not," he said. "I'm flying home."

Her breath caught. "What?"

"I land Sunday. Cancelled my meetings. I need to be where you are."

She smiled, eyes filling. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too."

A pause.

"Agnes?"

"Yes?"

"I'm not perfect. But I'm choosing you. Every day. Even when I'm afraid."

She whispered, "Then I'll choose you too."

Home Again

James arrived Sunday morning, disheveled, tired, and smiling like he hadn't in weeks.

He knocked on her door like a man coming home-not to a place, but to her.

When Agnes opened it, she didn't say anything.

She just wrapped her arms around him and let the silence be their apology.

Their promise.

Because love wasn't about perfection.

It was about staying.

Even when you were scared.