Page 33 of I See You

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Sevyn sat in her office, staring at the clock, heart pounding against her ribs like a drum. Her palms were sweaty, and no matter how hard she tried to still her leg, it wouldn’t stop bouncing beneath her desk.

Harper’s text had come in ten minutes ago.

Harper: Plan worked. Hassan’s on the way with the package.

And now? Now, she felt like she was about to walk into a lion’s den. She didn’t know how she was going to convince a man like him to consider therapy, but she had told Harper she would try. She just hoped trying wouldn’t get her killed.

Her stomach twisted with nerves, her breaths coming out uneven. She had sat across from clients with severe PTSD, clients who had violent pasts, clients who had seen too much.

But none of them were Hassan Gaines.

None of them had snapped a man’s windpipe with one hit.

She swallowed hard, shifting in her seat. The sudden blare of her desk phone made her jump, her heart nearly lurching out of her chest. She exhaled sharply, picking up the receiver, her voice calm despite theway she felt inside.

"Ms. Love, there’s a man here to deliver a package. Do you need me to take it for you or—"

Micah’s soft voice echoed through the line, but Sevyn cut her off. "No need. You can send him to my office. Thanks, Micah."

She hung up and immediately took a deep breath. This was it. Minutes later, her office door opened.

And there he was. Hassan Gaines. Cold. Commanding. Lethal. But just as undeniably handsome as she had remembered.

Only now? In the light, she could see more.

The sharp cut of his jaw, the way his smooth, dark brown skin gleamed, the intensity in his blue eyes. His presence sucked all the air from the room.

He wore a fitted Gucci collared shirt that stretched over his broad shoulders, black designer jeans, and matching Gucci shoes. The diamonds hanging from his neck and wrapped around his wrist caught the glow of her office lights, gleaming as if they knew who they belonged to.

They stood there for a moment, just staring. Taking each other in. The silence between them thickened, heavy enough to press into her chest.

Finally, Sevyn forced herself to speak. "Hassan, right?"

Her voice was smooth, controlled—nothing like how she felt inside. She stood, walking around her desk, reaching for the box in his hand.

He didn’t respond. Didn’t say a single word. Just nodded. His silence sent a shiver down her spine.

She took the box from him, but not before catching the way his eyes scanned over her, dark and slow, taking in every inch of her body in the black Dior pantsuit she had chosen that morning.

His gaze lingered. Heat spiked through her before she quickly shook it off, offering him a small smile—

One he didn’t return. Of course not.

Hassan Gaines wasn’t the type of man who smiled.

And she was about to ask him to do something that would require him to feel.

God help me.

"Thank you." Sevyn said, placing the small box on her desk before turning back to him.

Hassan stood still, his face unreadable, but she caught it—the flicker of curiosity in his eyes, buried beneath that permanent layer of cold detachment.

She smiled, leaning back against her desk, crossing her arms.

"I could be mistaken, but it looks like you want to ask me something." Her tone was light, teasing—challenging.

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