<h4>Chapter 47: Chapter 47 Elevator Encounters?</h4>


    Sebastian’s pov?


    Just now, Liam drove out and saw Cici guarding the entrance and exit.He sensed something was off when he saw Cici loitering at the entrance, looking manic, so he stopped the car.


    I acquiesced to his behavior.?


    "Alpha Sebastian, shouldn’t we help Cecilia?" Liam asked urgently as the privacy partition rose between us.?


    Beta Sawyer nodded in agreement, though more cautiously. ?


    I lifted my gaze, giving them both a t look. "Help her if you want. No need to make me sound like the viin here."?


    Permission granted. Liam immediately turned the car around.?


    Before we could reach Cecilia, a white BMW beat us to it. A woman in a striking red Ang business suit paired with ck shirt stepped out, her entire ensemble radiating confident professionalism.?


    She strode purposefully toward Cecilia.?


    Soren stirred within me. [Clever. She’s using her enemy’s obsession against them both.]?


    I watched as the women helped Cecilia into the car, stowed the wheelchair, and drove away.?


    We followed at a distance.?


    "Do you think Cecilia knew Alpha Xavier would abandon her and arranged for her friend to pick her up in advance?" Liam wondered aloud, clearly confused by the turn of events.?


    Beta Sawyer shook his head. "Must be coincidence." He paused, reconsidering. "Or perhaps... she never intended to go home with Alpha Xavier at all and called her friend earlier."?


    Liam nodded. "That seems likely."?


    Both men nced at me in the rearview mirror, clearly hoping for my input but fearing they’d annoyed me with their chatter.?


    I closed my eyes, pretending disinterest. ?


    Soren wasn’t fooled.


    [You’re not angry because Alpha Xavier left her. You’re angry because she didn’t let you be the one who stayed.]


    I said nothing.


    But the words hit harder than I wanted to admit.


    [You wanted her to ask for your help. Not his. Not hers. Yours.]


    My jaw clenched.


    "That’s not what this is," I muttered, more to myself than to him.


    [You wanted to be the one she trusted. The one she turned to.]


    My throat tightened.


    [I admit I expected it]


    Cecilia’s pov?


    I must have dozed off in Harper’s car, exhausted from my performance at the airport. When I finally stirred, we were approaching my apartmentplex.?


    "Cecilia, wake up..." Harper’s urgent voice pulled me fully awake.?


    "Hmm? Are we here?" I mumbled, noting we were at the security gate. I rolled down the window to scan my face for entry.?


    As the barrier rose, Harper drove through while nervously checking the rearview mirror. "That car has been following us the whole time... wait, how are they getting in too? Do they live in thisplex?"?


    "What?" I turned, suddenly more alert. Looking back, I spotted the familiar Bentley.?


    Strange. Why would Alpha Sebastian be following us? I’d assumed he’d gone home long ago.?


    Harper panicked. "Should we turn around and leave?"?


    "No need," I assured her. "That’s my new boss’s car."?


    "...New? Boss?" Harper’s voice pitched higher with each word.?


    "It’s a long story. I’ll exinter." ?


    When we parked and saw Alpha Sebastian step out of his ck Bentley, Harper’s confusion quickly turned into a loud gasp.


    "That’s Alpha Sebastian—the one who saved you at the charity g!" she whispered, almost breathless. "The video of him shutting everyone up is still going around high society!"


    I rolled my eyes at the suspicious look on her face.


    "Calm down. He’s just my new boss."


    Harper nced at Sebastian again, clearly impressed. He looked even better in person than he had in the video.


    "Just your boss?" she said, raising an eyebrow.


    I gave her an exasperated look.


    [When is Harper ever going to stop being so nosy?]


    As Harper moved between helping me and grabbing the wheelchair from the trunk, Alpha Sebastian and Beta Sawyer were already walking toward the building. Liam held the door open for us with a polite smile.


    Alpha Sebastian stepped into one of the elevators. There were three others we could’ve taken—but ignoring my boss felt... rude?


    Harper and I stood there for a second, unsure what to do. Liam solved the problem for us.


    He rolled my wheelchair straight into Sebastian’s elevator.


    And by "rolled," I mean he practically pulled me in—right in front of a pair of long, perfectly tailored legs in light gray suit pants.


    [Oh goddess.]


    My mind went nk.


    I was eye-level with Alpha Sebastian’s thighs.


    Perfectly still. Perfectly shaped.


    And terrifyingly close.


    Words? Gone.


    Thoughts? Scrambled.


    Dignity? Not invited.


    Why, of all ces, did my wheelchair have to stop right there?Behind me, Harper made a small choking sound—halfugh, half gasp.


    I would strangle herter.


    Alpha Sebastian remained silent, his expressionpletely unreadable.?


    After an excruciating silence, I finally managed, "You drive quite slowly, Alpha Sebastian." I reached back to squeeze Harper’s hand, silently urging her to turn my wheelchair around.?


    Harper, however, seemed entranced by the close-up view of the notorious Alpha’s godlike features.?


    Alpha Sebastian looked down at me, his pale eyes holding mine. "Instead of idle chatter in elevators, perhaps select your floor first."?


    His tone held a mix of sarcasm and resignation, but underneath it all was something that almost felt like... leniency??


    Embarrassed, I twisted around to press the button for my floor.?


    "Harper—" I pinched her hand discreetly after pressing the button.?


    "Oh! Right." Harper finally snapped out of her daze.?


    The elevator was spacious by typical apartment standards, but with five people plus a wheelchair, gracefully turning around was challenging.?


    Harper stepped back, identally bumping into Beta Sawyer’s arm. As she apologized, she pushed my wheelchair forward—directly toward Alpha Sebastian.?


    Horror flooded through me as I realized I was about to face-nt into his thighs.


    "Whoa, whoa!" I cried out, instinctively throwing my hands up to stop myself and then...?


    My hands made firm contact with his muscr thighs.?


    I froze, eyes wide with mortification, hands lingering for a full five seconds before I yanked them back as if burned.?


    When I dared to look up, I caught something I never expected to see—a faint pink flush spreading across Alpha Sebastian’s normally impassive, pale face.?