Chapter 279

The traffic light turned red. The car stopped. For a long moment, there was only silence and the low hum of the engine. Jabco leaned back in his seat, eyes closed, head tilted slightly to the side. Riyana thought he had fallen asleep. Then he spoke. “How was your date?” His voice was calm, too calm. Almost careless. Riyana’s hands stiffened on the steering wheel. Her chest tightened. For a second, she forgot to breathe. So he saw her. He saw her with John. She turned her head just a little, enough to look at him, then quickly looked back at the road as if the traffic light was the most important thing in the world. “It was good,” she said slowly. That was all. There was no reason to explain. No reason to tell him it was not really a date, that she went only because she was tired, because she wanted to forget things for a few hours. He was her boss. Nothing more. Jabco’s jaw tightened. The muscles in his face hardened, as if something inside him had snapped. His breathing became heavier