One Night Stand With My Cocky Boss

~Sienna~

  A flutter of nerves and excitement rushed through me as i stepped into Verità, one of the city's most romantic restaurants. 

 Four years-four years I'd been waiting for this moment.

  "Tonight's special," I'd told myself. Grant had never been one for grand gestures, but this... this was different. 

 He'd chosen the place, made the reservation. "Meet me there," he'd said. 

 And I'd let myself hope that tonight might finally be the night.

  My phone screen blinked back at me. He was late, the minutes dragging as I tried to keep my anxious mind from running wild.

  Finally, I saw him cross the restaurant's entrance, dressed in denim shorts and a sleeveless shirt that flaunted those small arms of his, his tall frame familiar yet distant. 

 I sat up straighter, my pulse racing as he walked toward me, though something in his expression seemed off. 

 There was a heaviness in his gaze, a look that had my heart lurching with a mix of excitement and unease.

  "Grant," I said, feeling the words catch in my throat. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting for tonight."

  He gave a small, tight smile, his hands clasping on the table, his fingers laced together as though holding something back. 

 My own hands fidgeted in my lap, my anticipation turning to dread.

  "Sienna," he began, his voice low and strained. 

 "There's... something I need to tell you."

  The slight tremor in his voice felt like a punch, but I forced myself to stay calm, nodding. "Okay...?"

  He took a deep breath, looking away, his eyes fixed on some invisible point. 

 "I've met someone else."

  For a moment, the words didn't register. "You... met someone?" My voice was shaky as I searched his face, trying to make sense of what he was saying. The words sounded distant, surreal.

  He exhaled, his gaze still averted. "She's... the one I love, Sienna."

  The breath left my lungs. "What? But we've been together for-"

  "I know," he said flatly, his eyes finally meeting mine. "And I never planned to tell you like this, but... I can't keep doing this. You need more than I can give, and-" 

 He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I'm sorry, Sienna, but this has to end."

  The weight of his words settled like stones in my stomach. 

 Four years. Four years of love, sacrifice, and compromise for a future that was never meant to be. 

 I'd thought he was my anchor, my partner, someone I could lean on. But now it felt like he'd let go of my hand, leaving me to drown on my own.

  I never expected he would leave me because of the intense argument we had three nights ago about him not supporting me with my father's medical bills, the way Grant's face tightened every time I asked for help. I should have taken the clue.

  I wanted to ask why he couldn't have told me sooner, wanted to scream at him for abandoning me