The bedroom remained wrapped in soft silver moonlight.
Beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows, the Hastings estate slept peacefully beneath the night sky. The gardens shimmered under carefully placed lanterns while distant fountains hummed quietly through the darkness.
Inside the room, however, neither of them seemed aware of any of it.
Maya sat cross-legged on the enormous bed, swallowed by Rege's oversized shirt.
Rege sat opposite her.
Watching her.
Thinking.
Trying to find the right words.
For someone who rarely struggled with decisions, this felt strangely difficult.
Because business decisions were easy.
Numbers were easy.
Strategy was easy.
This wasn't.
Maya noticed the hesitation.
The uncertainty.
The careful way his fingers flexed against his knee.
Then—
"Krasota."
His voice came softly.
Maya immediately looked up.
Their eyes met.
Something inside her chest tightened.
Because there was something different about him.
Something heavier.
More vulnerable.
"I want to tell you something."
Her eyebrows lifted immediately.
Surprise flashed across her face.
Not because Rege never answered questions.
He always did.
Eventually.
But this was different.
She hadn't asked.
He was offering.
Voluntarily.
Which somehow felt important.
Very important.
Maya shifted slightly closer without realizing it.
Giving him her full attention.
The movement didn't escape him.
Nothing about Maya ever escaped him anymore.
"Eleanor and I have history."
The words settled quietly between them.
Maya's expression didn't change.
No jealousy.
No judgment.
Nothing.
Just patience.
Waiting.
Listening.
The way she always did.
Rege lowered his gaze briefly.
Then continued.
"We dated after school."
His voice remained calm.
Controlled.
But Maya noticed something.
He wasn't detached.
He simply wasn't someone who dramatized pain.
"Things were fine for a while."
A pause.
Then quieter—
"Until I started building my company."
Maya listened carefully.
"The company became my focus."
Another pause.
"And eventually she ended things."
Maya immediately reached for his hand.
Instinctively.
Without thinking.
Without hesitation.
Her fingers wrapped around his.
Warm.
Gentle.
Comforting.
Rege looked down.
Something softened inside his expression.
She always did that.
Always.
Whenever he carried something heavy.
She somehow found a way to make it lighter.
"Afterward she got together with my brother."
Maya's fingers tightened.
Just slightly.
Not enough to hurt.
Just enough for him to feel it.
"Ivan."
Rege nodded once.
Then continued.
"At their engagement party my father wanted me to remain at Hastings Group."
His jaw tightened faintly.
"He wanted me to stay close enough to keep Ivan in line."
The wording immediately bothered Maya.
Keep Ivan in line.
Like Rege existed only to fix someone else's mistakes.
Her chest tightened.
But she remained silent.
Allowing him space.
"I had my own path."
His voice lowered.
His eyes lifted to hers.
"And I wasn't willing to sacrifice it."
Something inside Maya swelled with pride.
Because she knew what it had cost him.
She knew what he had built.
She knew the risks he had taken.
So she simply nodded.
Understanding.
"I moved out after the engagement."
The words came simply.
Matter-of-factly.
Yet Maya could hear everything hiding underneath them.
The loneliness.
The loss.
The separation.
Rege continued.
"The night before their wedding Eleanor came to my apartment."
Maya's eyebrows furrowed.
"She said she missed me."
His voice remained steady.
"She wanted us to leave."
A brief pause.
"Together."
Maya's eyes widened slightly.
"I told her no."
His answer came immediately.
Firmly.
Without hesitation.
"I told her to marry Ivan."
"I told her to go home."
Something warm bloomed inside Maya's chest.
Not because she was comparing herself.
But because she recognized the integrity behind those words.
The loyalty.
The decency.
The strength.
Rege continued.
"Then the next day..."
His gaze drifted briefly toward the room around them.
The room itself.
This room.
The room where everything had happened.
A strange look crossed his face.
Something old.
Something tired.
"She came here."
Maya followed his gaze.
Understanding immediately.
"To this room?"
He nodded.
"Still wearing her wedding gown."
Maya's breath caught.
"She wanted to leave again."
A pause.
"She said she was miserable."
His voice remained calm.
Almost too calm.
As though years of distance had polished the sharp edges.
"But I refused again."
Maya squeezed his hand gently.
Encouraging him.
Not pushing.
Just letting him know she was there.
Always there.
Rege swallowed.
Then continued.
"Then she wanted one last time together."
Maya froze.
Rege's expression hardened slightly.
"I said no."
Immediately.
Firmly.
Without ambiguity.
His eyes found hers again.
Steady.
Honest.
"I refused."
Maya believed him instantly.
Without question.
Without hesitation.
Not because she was naïve.
Because she knew him.
Then his jaw tightened.
"She kissed me anyway."
Silence.
Heavy silence.
"At that exact moment my father and Ivan walked in."
Maya closed her eyes briefly.
God.
Of course they did.
Of course.
Rege exhaled slowly.
"A fight followed."
"My mother intervened."
His gaze lowered.
"And after that..."
A hollow smile appeared.
"Everyone decided what happened without asking me."
The words hit Maya harder than anything else he'd said.
Because she knew that feeling.
Being judged before being heard.
Being condemned before being understood.
Being blamed for something you never did.
And suddenly her eyes burned.
Rege noticed immediately.
Of course he did.
He always noticed.
"So it became an unspoken rule."
His voice softened.
"I don't speak to Eleanor."
"I don't speak to Ivan."
"They don't speak to me."
Silence followed.
Long.
Heavy.
Painful.
Then Maya sniffled.
The sound instantly pulled his attention toward her.
Her eyes glistened.
And somehow that bothered him more than the entire memory.
"Is that why you don't speak to your father?"
Her voice was barely above a whisper.
Careful.
Gentle.
Like she was afraid of hurting him.
Rege looked away briefly.
Then nodded.
"Partly."
The answer surprised her.
He hesitated.
Then continued.
"My father told me he regretted having me as a son."
The room went completely still.
Maya's heart shattered.
Completely.
Because no parent should ever say that.
Ever.
And judging by how casually he said it—
The wound had never healed.
He had simply learned to carry it.
Maya bit her lower lip hard.
Trying not to cry.
Immediately Rege reached up.
His thumb gently pulling her lip free.
"Don't hurt yourself."
The tenderness nearly broke her.
Her eyes filled instantly.
"Rege..."
Her voice cracked.
"I'm so sorry."
Something flickered inside his eyes.
Pain.
Affection.
Helplessness.
"Krasota..."
But Maya had already moved.
Wrapping her arms around his neck.
Holding him tightly.
As though she could somehow undo years of hurt through sheer determination.
Rege froze briefly.
Then slowly wrapped his arms around her.
Holding her.
Breathing her in.
Her warmth.
Her softness.
Her kindness.
"It's not your fault."
His voice rumbled quietly against her shoulder.
Maya pulled back just enough to glare at him.
Actually glare.
Which somehow looked adorable.
"Stop."
Rege blinked.
"You are not allowed to comfort me right now."
Despite everything, amusement flickered inside him.
"Krasota—"
"No."
She pointed at him.
"No."
The sight almost made him smile.
"I am supposed to comfort you."
Something inside him softened completely.
"You don't have to."
"Yes I do."
Her answer came immediately.
Without hesitation.
Without thought.
Because to Maya it wasn't even a question.
Of course she would.
Of course she cared.
Of course she wanted to protect him.
The realization hit him harder than he expected.
He tightened his arms around her instinctively.
"You don't have to."
His voice lowered.
"I'm okay."
"No you're not."
The certainty stunned him.
Maya shook her head.
"No one just gets over things like that."
For a moment neither spoke.
Then Rege smiled faintly.
A real smile.
Small.
Warm.
"I'm glad it happened."
Maya stared.
"What?"
His gaze softened completely.
"It led me to you."
The room fell silent.
The words settled everywhere.
Inside her chest.
Inside his.
Everywhere.
Rege buried his face briefly against her neck.
Inhaling her familiar scent.
Clean soap.
Warm skin.
Something uniquely Maya.
And suddenly nowhere else felt quite as safe.
Maya's heart felt dangerously full.
She slowly pulled back.
Her fingers lifting to his face.
Brushing strands of dark hair away from his forehead.
Tucking them gently behind his ear.
The gesture felt strangely intimate.
Tender.
Unforced.
Natural.
"You have me now."
Her voice barely rose above a whisper.
The words struck him directly in the chest.
Then she leaned forward.
And kissed his cheek.
Softly.
Gently.
Like a promise.
Rege almost froze.
Almost.
His gaze locked onto hers immediately afterward.
The light inside her eyes stole the breath from his lungs.
Because it wasn't pity.
It wasn't sympathy.
It was affection.
Pure.
Warm.
Uncomplicated affection.
And God help him.
He'd never wanted anything more.
Maya's smile turned shy.
Nervous.
Her pulse hammered.
Because suddenly she realized what she wanted.
What she'd wanted for days.
Maybe weeks.
Maybe longer.
Slowly—
Very slowly—
She leaned forward.
Never breaking eye contact.
Her gaze fixed entirely on those impossible aquamarine eyes.
Rege didn't move.
Couldn't move.
Couldn't breathe.
Maya closed her eyes.
And kissed him.
Softly.
Briefly.
Just a brush of lips.
A single heartbeat.
Then she pulled away.
Before he could react.
Before he could think.
Before he could stop her.
Silence exploded through the room.
Rege froze.
Completely.
His breath stopped.
His heartbeat stopped.
His thoughts stopped.
Everything stopped.
The only thing he could still feel—
Was the lingering warmth of her lips.
Maya opened her eyes slowly.
A shy smile appeared.
Hopeful.
Nervous.
Terrified.
Expectant.
Waiting.
Waiting for him.
Waiting to see what happened next.