Kohen's gaze sharpened subtly as Rachel reached for her phone and stood, once again putting distance between them.
He watched her expression soften at whatever the hell Carson had texted. She typed out a reply, biting her lower lip in that absent-minded way she always had. A second later, she glanced at him, just for a moment, before diving back into her screen. Then the phone rang.
She picked up instantly, stepping even farther away until her voice became just a whisper he couldn't quite catch.
Those five minutes felt like a goddamn eternity.
Kohen sat there stewing, mentally drafting blueprints for shipping Liam Carson off to the farthest corner of the planet.
She ended the call just as a maid came in to summon them for dinner.
"Everything okay?" Kohen asked casually as they walked back inside. "You seemed.. off on the phone."
Rachel gave a tight smile. "It's nothing. Liam just wanted to know what time I'd be home."
Kohen's jaw ticked. Mercury, he thought darkly. Let's send Carson to Mercury instead.
But out loud, he only said, "Okay."
By the time they reached the dining hall, Mr. and Mrs. Anderson were already seated. Kohen took his usual place, and Rachel sat beside him. The staff began serving dinner and pouring drinks before quietly retreating, leaving the four of them alone.
The air around the table was thick with polite smiles and simmering tension.
"So, Rachel," Mr. Anderson began, offering a warm smile. "How have you been?"
"I've been well," she replied, keeping it brief.
"It's been years, dear. Surely you have more to share."
Rachel exhaled softly. "College was rough, but I pulled through. I landed a job at Atlas, and now that Atlas is merging with Kohen's company, I'm here."
Mrs. Anderson gave an approving nod. "I'm glad to hear that. Though I wonder, if not for the merger, would you have returned at all?"
Rachel hesitated. "Honestly? No. I've built a life in Grooves City. A steady job, a family-"
"Family?" Mrs. Anderson's brows lifted.
"Yes, my friends-"
"Oh!" she interrupted with a light laugh. "For a moment there, I thought you meant a husband."
Kohen's grip on his cutlery tightened, but he said nothing.
"Come now, love," Mr. Anderson said lightly. "She's still young. There's no rush."
"At her age, I'd already been married to you for three years," Mrs. Anderson quipped, and nobody challenged her further.
"And what about you, son?" Mr. Anderson asked, turning his attention to Kohen.
"It's clear he's been thriving without us," Mrs. Anderson added, her tone cool.
"You make it sound like you expected me to fail," Kohen replied evenly, lifting a forkful of food.
"I'm your mother, Kohen. Why would I want that?"
He scoffed at the word mother, and silence blanketed the room.
Mrs. Anderson put down her cutlery. "I know we left things on a bad note, but you have to believe I care about you."
"Sorry for cutting your allowance, kid," Mr. Anderson chimed in, brushing past the awkwardness.
"Come back home," Mrs. Anderson said. "We miss you."
Kohen's sigh was long and tired. "I'm not coming back."
A flash of frustration sparked in her eyes and his eyes, mirrored.
"You can't seriously still be holding onto that," she snapped.
"Emily-" Mr. Anderson tried to interject.
"No," she cut him off. "It's been five years, Kohen."
"I meant every word I said that day," he said coldly. "And if this dinner was some sort of trap to change my mind-" his eyes locked onto hers "-you've failed."
He pushed his chair back sharply, the legs scraping against the floor.
"Excuse me," he said and walked out.
Rachel stood a moment later, awkwardly pushing away her plate. "I-I think I've had my fill," she mumbled, hurrying after him.
She had expected to be the focus of Mrs. Anderson's barbed comments tonight. Instead, she'd witnessed something deeper, more personal. Something raw between a mother and son. What had happened to drive Kohen away like that? What did she miss all those years ago? He had never spoken back to his mother before.
When she found him on the balcony, he looked more vulnerable than she'd ever seen him.. eyes dim, jaw tight.
"You okay?" she asked softly.
"No," he answered without hesitation. There was a heaviness in his voice. A sadness she hadn't seen before.
"What happened in there?" she probed gently.
"I don't want to talk about it. Not now."
"Kohen-"
"Thank you for today," he cut in, voice low. "For being here. I mean that."
"Is that your way of dismissing me?" she asked, stepping forward.
"I need you to go, Raye," he said, backing away, cracks showing in the walls he'd built around himself. "Please."
A part of her told her to listen. To leave. This wasn't her fight, and the mess between Kohen and his family wasn't hers to clean up.
But another part, the one that had once loved him, knew that walking away now would be a costly mistake.
So she didn't.
"Kohen," she said again as she closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around him.
"You brought me here because you needed someone. Because you didn't want to face it alone," she whispered. "I won't leave you."
He stood still for a moment.. then his arms slowly circled her, holding her tight. And for the first time in years, Kohen let himself cry.