Chapter 5 The Unexpected Re-encounter

The lobby of the Hilton sparkled with soft amber lighting, casting warm shadows against the marble floors as the hum of conversation echoed off the high ceilings. Glasses clinked faintly, laughter rose and fell in waves, and somewhere near the back, a saxophonist was playing a smooth jazz set that blended into the elegant ambiance. Jade stood near the bar, dressed in a tailored black jumpsuit that hugged her body in all the right places, the deep V of the neckline tempered by the sophistication of the outfit's cut. Her heels were high, her makeup bold but balanced.

She looked like power incarnate-commanding, sleek, and unapologetically confident.

It had been three weeks since she last saw Cole. Three maddening, frustrating weeks. She had told herself that it was for the best-that what almost happened shouldn't have. That walking away was a show of strength. But that hadn't stopped her from thinking about him during idle moments, or from remembering the way his voice slid into her skin like silk. The way his eyes saw things most men overlooked. It was maddening, and tonight she came prepared to banish those thoughts with strong drinks and strategic networking.

This wasn't just a party; it was a corporate mixer. Tech startups, financial consultants, PR execs, and venture capitalists floated around with practiced smiles and probing gazes. Jade had been invited by her friend Mya, a marketing exec who was always trying to "plug her in" to better opportunities. Jade appreciated the gesture, but her main goal tonight was to leave with more contacts than she came in with-and hopefully fewer intrusive thoughts about Cole.

She was scanning the room, calculating which circle of conversation looked the most promising, when a voice-low, familiar, and devastatingly calm-slid into her ears like a whisper of smoke.

"Didn't take you for the networking type."

Her stomach dipped. A half-second of paralysis froze her breath before she turned to face him. And there he was. Cole.

He stood a few feet away, dressed in a charcoal suit that looked custom-fit, crisp white shirt open at the collar, no tie-just enough formality to blend in, but effortlessly cool in his own understated way. His eyes-those eyes-were trained on her with the same amused challenge they'd held the last time they spoke, like he was already pulling strings only he could see.

"Didn't take you for the party type either," she shot back, cocking an eyebrow as she turned fully to face him.

Cole smiled. It was that slight, crooked grin that never reached all the way to his eyes, but somehow made her heart beat faster anyway. "Touché."

Jade didn't step back, nor did she lean forward. Her posture was poised, defensive but curious. "Work or pleasure?"

"Both," he said, lifting a glass of something amber and expensive. "These things are like fishing ponds. You never know who you'll run into."

She narrowed her gaze, sipping her drink slowly. "You fish?"

"Only when there's something worth catching."

Jade bit the inside of her cheek, keeping her expression neutral. She wasn't going to fall into that trap again-his flirtation, his charm, the way he always hovered on the edge of something deeper without stepping in.

"So, what are you here for? Closing deals? Charming investors?" she asked, tilting her head slightly, her tone sharp but not unkind.

He chuckled softly. "A bit of both. I'm helping my friend launch a new AI-based finance tool. Tonight's about buzz, mostly. The real deals happen over coffee the next day."

"Hmm. So you're charming people for a living now," she said, letting the jab land.

Cole stepped closer, his smile fading just slightly into something more earnest. "That's not why I came over to you."

Jade's breath hitched before she masked it with another sip of her cocktail. "Then why did you?"

He shrugged, but the movement was casual, not dismissive. "Because you're still in my head. And I hate unfinished things."

Jade looked away, focusing on the room. She saw glittering earrings, tailored suits, red lipstick smiles. She could dive into any of those conversations and escape this moment. But she didn't move.

"There's nothing to finish," she said, eyes still scanning the crowd.

Cole leaned a little closer, enough that his scent-something woody and clean-coiled around her. "That's the thing. You left before anything started."

She turned to him then, sharply. "Because it would've been a mistake."

"Would it?" he asked quietly.

The silence stretched. Around them, the mixer continued-ice swirling in glasses, light chatter, the distant clink of cutlery from the adjoining restaurant. But they stood in their own bubble, suspended in that tension neither of them had fully let go of.

"Why are you really here, Cole?" she asked, arms crossed now, her drink forgotten.

He studied her, his gaze softer now. "You think I planned this?"

"I think people like you don't believe in coincidence."

"I didn't know you'd be here," he said, voice level. "But I'm glad you are."

Jade scoffed lightly, brushing her hair behind her ear. "You really think charm is going to get you anywhere with me?"

"No," he said simply. "But honesty might."

That stopped her.

He saw it-her pause. The flicker in her eyes. The subtle twitch of her jaw as if she was fighting herself.

"Look," he said, shifting his weight slightly. "I'm not here to complicate your life. I know you're not looking for anything serious. And maybe that night at the bar was just tension and heat and nothing else. But if it wasn't-if there's a part of you that wonders too-then maybe we shouldn't ignore it."

Jade felt the room tilt, just a little. That dangerous tilt that comes when someone speaks directly to the part of you you've tried to keep hidden. Her mind flicked back to that night-the way his voice felt in her ear, the weight of his gaze, the tension that built and built and never broke.

"You don't know me," she said, quieter now.

"Maybe not," he replied. "But I'd like to."

She hated how sincere it sounded. How unguarded. Like he wasn't playing a game, at least not right now. And that scared her more than any line he could've thrown.

"I don't do feelings," she said firmly. "Not anymore."

"Then don't," he said, stepping even closer. "Just do whatever this is. We don't have to define it. No pressure. Just... let's not pretend it's not there."

Their eyes locked, and for a second, it felt like the rest of the world was moving around them in fast motion while they stood still-two opposing forces circling the same spark.

A moment passed. Another.

Then Jade stepped back.

"I need to meet someone," she said abruptly, her voice clipped.

"Of course," Cole said, backing off immediately. No protest. No push. Just that same maddening calm.

She turned away, walked into the crowd, pasted on a polite smile, and inserted herself into a conversation about branding strategies. But she couldn't focus. She nodded at the right times, sipped her drink, even laughed once or twice, but the awareness of him lingered like a second skin.

Minutes passed.

Then she felt it-his eyes. She looked up across the room and met his gaze. He hadn't left. He was leaning casually against the bar, talking to someone, but watching her with that same quiet intensity.

She held his stare for a beat too long.

Then she looked away.

But her heart had already started beating faster.

And deep inside, she knew something had shifted. Again.

Maybe not enough to call it fate. But enough to call it dangerous.

And Jade had always had a thing for danger.