The rooftop crowd grew louder as the night went on.
Investors loosened by alcohol.
Founders performing confidence.
Music rising gradually beneath conversations about valuations and acquisitions.
Gloria stayed longer than she originally intended.
Partly because Jay was enjoying himself across the lounge with old business contacts.
Mostly because leaving felt harder than it should have.
That realization alone unsettled her.
At one point Gael disappeared briefly into another conversation near the presentation area while Gloria stood near the balcony rail holding champagne she'd barely touched.
And for the first ti that evening, she watched him the way strangers did.
Not personally.
Objectively.
People gravitated toward him naturally:
founders,
investors,
won,
older executives.
Not because he was loud.
Because he carried himself like soone already comfortable with power.
The realization affected her more than expected.
Because suddenly she understood sothing uncomfortable:
Haley saw ambition in him.
Claire saw stability.
But Gloria—
Gloria saw temptation.
And maybe that was the most dangerous perspective of all.
Then Jay approached beside her adjusting his jacket.
"You alright?"
The question startled her slightly.
"Yes. Why?"
"You've been staring into space for ten minutes."
Gloria smiled quickly.
"I was listening."
"That's new."
She laughed softly and slipped her arm through his automatically.
For a second guilt hit harder than attraction had all night.
Because Jay looked happy.
Relaxed.
Trusting.
That mattered.
A lot.
An hour later the event finally started thinning out.
Jay decided to head ho early with one of his friends after too much whiskey and an extended argunt about golf course mberships.
"I'll take an Uber," Gloria told him. "Gael's still upstairs sowhere."
Jay barely questioned it.
Another thing that made the guilt worse.
After he left, Gloria stood alone near the lobby elevators debating whether to go upstairs to find Gael—
When the elevator doors opened again.
Gael stepped out, adjusting the sleeve of his jacket.
Their eyes t imdiately.
And the atmosphere shifted all over again.
No crowd now.
No music.
No social noise protecting them.
Just polished marble floors and late-night quiet.
"You're still here," he said.
"So are you."
For a second neither moved.
Then Gloria glanced toward the elevator behind him.
"Your penthouse nearby?"
He nodded once.
"Few blocks."
That knowledge changed sothing instantly.
Because suddenly the penthouse stopped being abstract.
It beca close.
Real.
Accessible.
Dangerous thought.
Gloria realized imdiately where her mind went and looked away first.
"I should probably go ho."
"You probably should."
Neither sounded convincing.
The silence afterward stretched longer than it should have.
Then the elevator dinged softly again behind him.
Waiting.
Gloria's heartbeat felt irritatingly loud all of a sudden.
Because this—
this was the first actual choice.
Not flirtation.
Not emotional conversation.
Opportunity.
She looked toward the open elevator.
Then back at him.
"You know what the smart decision is here, right?"
Her voice ca quieter now.
More fragile than usual.
Gael held her gaze steadily.
"Yes."
Another silence.
Heavy this ti.
Gloria smiled faintly.
Not happy.
Not sad.
Almost resigned.
"Good." She stepped back slowly toward the hotel exit. "At least one of us is thinking clearly."
Then she turned and walked away into the Los Angeles night without looking back again.
But the fact she needed several seconds before taking the first step—
said enough already.
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