I never thought I’d be here, working for John of all people. After our divorce, he buried himself in his work, his heart growing colder with every passing year. And yet, when I needed a job, he was the first one to offer me a position. His company had grown, and he needed someone with my skills. I never expected him to ask me.

“Morning,” I say as I pass his office door. He’s sitting behind his desk, eyes glued to his laptop, barely acknowledging my presence. That’s how it’s been since I started here—polite but distant. The John I once knew is gone, replaced by a work-obsessed machine.

I knock on his doorframe. “John, do you have a minute?”

He glances up, eyes cool and calculating. “What is it?”

“I wanted to go over the figures from last quarter. There’s something I think you should see.”

He nods, gesturing for me to come in. I step inside, feeling the familiar tension that always lingers between us. I hand him the report, and our fingers brush for just a moment—a spark, a flicker of the old warmth. He pulls back quickly, his expression unreadable.

“Thanks,” he says curtly. “I’ll take a look.”

I turn to leave, but something stops me. “John, are we ever going to talk about it?”

“About what?” His voice is flat, but there’s a hint of something underneath—something raw.

“Us. The way things ended.”

He sighs, running a hand through his hair. “I don’t see the point.”

“The point is... I miss the person you used to be,” I admit, my voice barely a whisper.

He looks at me then, really looks at me, and for a moment, I see a glimmer of the man I fell in love with—the one who used to make me laugh, who held me close when I was scared.

“I’m still here,” he says quietly. “But things are different now.”

“They don’t have to be.” I take a step closer, my heart pounding in my chest. “Maybe we can start over.”

He hesitates, his guard slowly lowering. “I don’t know if I can.”

“Maybe we don’t have to know,” I reply softly. “Maybe we just try.”

For the first time in a long time, he smiles—a small, hesitant smile. “Maybe"