Chapter 17 When His Lips Met Mine

• I tell myself I am only checking one inconsistency.
• That lie lasts less than five minutes.
• The erased calendar entry stays with me after the rest of the floor begins to empty in the evening. The office has changed shape around the hour. Assistants have gone home. Junior staff move more quietly now, tired and purposeful, their footsteps softened by carpet and distance. Beyond the glass, the city is washed in metallic dusk. Inside, the air still feels precise, controlled, almost untouched.