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“I’ll review them in the morning,” I interrupted with more sharpness than intended.
“Understood,” she replied before hanging up.
I trained them well.
I stood up and walked to the window, gazing down at those twinkling lights once more—a galaxy at my fingertips yet so very far away from touch. This ball would go ahead; it would be a success because it had to be—not for me but for those whose lives it would ultimately benefit.
The night grew deeper as I returned to work—just another figure behind glass high above a city that never truly sleeps.
Stuart slipped into the room, his presence a familiar weight in the quiet space. The door clicked shut behind him, and I turned from the window, a stark contrast to the vast cityscape beyond the glass.
“Cassius, we need to go over the final arrangements for the charity event,” Stuart said, setting a folder down on my desk. His eyes scanned my face, always reading between the lines.
I nodded and leaned against the edge of the desk, flicking through the documents without much interest. “It’s all pomp and circumstance,” I muttered more to myself than to him. “We put on these masks and pretend we’re changing the world with our grand gestures.”
Stuart tilted his head slightly, his expression softening. “You don’t believe in what we’re doing?”
“It’s not that,” I sighed, running a hand through my hair. “It’s just… there’s a superficial veneer to it all. I wish there was a way to connect more genuinely with those we’re trying to help.”
He nodded, understanding my sentiment. “The work we do has an impact, Cassius. You know that.”
I met his gaze, acknowledging his words with a faint smile. “I know. But sometimes I wonder if we’re doing enough.”
The conversation lapsed into silence as Stuart considered my words. After a moment, he shifted gears. “Speaking of masks and grand gestures,” he ventured with a hint of mischief in his tone, “are you bringing a date to this illustrious affair?”
The question caught me off guard. A date hadn’t even crossed my mind until now—until her image flashed through my thoughts unbidden.
“There… may be someone,” I said slowly, almost surprised at my own words.
“Oh?” Stuart perked up, leaning forward.
“It’s nothing,” I waved off the thought as quickly as it had appeared. “Just a maid from the hotel.” The words felt strange on my tongue, like a secret I hadn’t realized I was keeping.
“A maid?” Stuart raised an eyebrow but didn’t press further. He knew me well enough to sense when to tread lightly.
“Yes,” I confirmed, feeling an odd mix of defensiveness and yearning swirl within me. “There was something about her—a spark.”
Stuart regarded me quietly for a moment before breaking into a warm smile. “Then perhaps this ball could use a bit of that spark.”
I chuckled dryly at his suggestion. “It’s not as simple as all that.” My mind toyed with the image of the maid in an elegant gown, unmasked and radiant among the sea of pretenders.
“Nothing ever is,” Stuart agreed with a knowing look.
We moved on from the topic of dates and delved into logistical discussions about auction items and seating arrangements—but somewhere in the back of my mind lingered the lovely maid and the possibility of what might be.
Stuart’s footsteps faded into the quiet of the corridor, leaving me alone with my thoughts. The office seemed to shrink around me, the walls lined with accolades and degrees that suddenly felt like little more than paper—tokens of a life meticulously built on strategies and bottom lines.
I leaned back in my chair, staring at the ceiling as if it held answers to questions I hadn’t dared to ask. The yearning for something authentic gnawed at me—a craving for a connection that wasn’t carefully curated or steeped in agenda. My life was a series of calculated moves, from business deals to charity functions, each step measured against risks and rewards.
And yet…
I stood up abruptly, pacing before the window that offered a panoramic view of the city. I watched the cars below weave through the streets—a dizzying array of lives in motion—and felt an unexpected kinship with those unseen drivers. We were all searching for something in the chaos, weren’t we?
The idea of bringing her to the ball as my date was absurd; I dismissed it almost as quickly as it had formed. But the curiosity—the need to know more about this woman who had inadvertently captured my attention—refused to be quelled.
I pulled out my phone, hesitating only for a moment before I dialed Samuel’s number. “It’s Cassius,” I said when he answered. Of course he knew it was me, but I couldn’t think straight. “I need you to find someone for me.”
The line crackled with intrigue on the other end. “Who are we looking for?”
