They had already started eating when Ava finally arrived.

"You finally came, Boss..." Riley greeted her playfully the moment he noticed her approaching the table.

He immediately gestured toward the empty seat beside him with overly polite manners. "Please, join us. Your loyal friends have been starving emotionally without you."

"Emotionally?" Mia repeated, deadpan. "You finished half the grilled meat before she even got here."

"That," Riley replied smoothly, "was stress management."

Ava let out a tired laugh as she approached the table, shaking her head at the two of them.

"Sorry I’m late," she said, her voice carrying exhaustion, though warmth still lingered beneath it.

The moment Ava stepped closer, Sienna looked up immediately.

She could tell at a glance that Ava was exhausted.

Her shoulders were slightly slumped beneath her coat, and her usually immaculate appearance looked just a little undone tonight. A few loose strands of hair framed her face, and there was a faint tiredness beneath her eyes that makeup could not fully hide.

And yet, she was still smiling. That alone made Sienna’s chest tighten slightly with quiet sympathy.

"You work too hard, Ava..." Sienna said without thinking much about it. She reached for the extra glass nearby, poured cold beer into it, then gently slid it toward Ava. "Here. Drink this first before Riley starts another speech."

"Hey," Riley protested immediately. "My speeches are inspirational."

"They’re long," Mia corrected.

"They’re unnecessary," Sienna added calmly.

"Thank you, Sienna." Ava sighed softly as she accepted the glass. "I had a rough night in the kitchen..."

Then she took a long sip of the cold beer. The moment the drink touched her lips, she closed her eyes briefly, exhaling slowly as if the alcohol alone could wash away the entire disaster of her evening.

"Rough night?" Mia asked.

"That bad?" Riley asked, sounding almost sympathetic for once.

"You have no idea," Ava muttered as she lowered the glass. "You all know, there’s a gala dinner tonight, right? I had to supervise everything personally because apparently no one in the kitchen knows how to panic quietly."

"That sounds terrifying," Mia said.

"It is terrifying," Ava replied flatly. "One chef nearly cried because the garnish wasn’t symmetrical."

Riley can’t help but laugh. "A tragedy."

"Hmm. I almost made him cry for real," Ava added.

That earned a laugh from all three of them.

Then Ava’s attention shifted toward Sienna, and her expression softened almost immediately.

"But enough about me," she said gently. "I heard the news..."

Sienna already knew what was coming.

"Congratulations, Sienna... I’m so proud of you," Ava continued.

A small smile appeared on Sienna’s lips. "Thank you, Ava," she replied warmly.

Outwardly, Sienna sounded calm. But inwardly, her thoughts still hadn’t settled. No matter how many times people congratulated her, no matter how many times she replied with gratitude, the memory of her conversation with Benjamin still lingered unpleasantly in her mind.

"I’ll give you a week to think."

Even now, the words made her uncomfortable.

The promotion should have felt exciting. It should have been one of the proudest moments of her career.

Instead, Benjamin’s voice had attached itself to the achievement so firmly that she could no longer think about it without remembering the way he looked at her. As if she already belonged to him. Sort of his property.

Sienna lowered her gaze briefly, hiding the flicker of disgust crossing her face.

’Come on, Sienna... stop dwelling on it,’ she told herself firmly. ’Just enjoy tonight. Think about next month’s raise like a normal person.’

That thought helped her slightly. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

At least enough for her to take another sip of her drink without thinking of Benjamin again.

But before the conversation could fully recover its earlier warmth, a soft vibration suddenly echoed across the table.

The sound was subtle, nearly drowned out by the low music inside the restaurant and the distant chatter from nearby tables.

Still, Sienna’s attention shifted almost instinctively toward Riley’s phone.

At first, nothing seemed unusual.

Riley casually reached for it while still chewing on a piece of melon, his relaxed expression unchanged. The easygoing smile from moments ago remained on his face as if tonight were still nothing more than a harmless celebration among friends.

However, a second later, something changed.

It happened slowly, yet noticeably enough for Sienna to catch it immediately.

She could see that his brows drew together and his smile faded.

A strange unease slowly settled in Sienna’s heart before she even understood why.

"Why are you suddenly looking gloomy? What’s wrong, Riley?" Sienna asked softly.

Mia and Ava turned toward him almost at the same time, their attention sharpening immediately.

"Everything alright, Riley?" Ava asked, her tone calm but observant.

Mia, meanwhile, leaned back in her chair with a grin that clearly intended to keep the atmosphere light. "Come on. Tell us what it is," she teased. Alright, let me guess... Did some girl just reject your love confession?

Normally, Riley would have responded instantly. Probably with something ridiculous or shameless. But this time, nothing. He didn’t laugh, didn’t smirk. He didn’t even look up. He simply stared at his phone.

The silence that followed felt unnatural enough to erase Mia’s smile almost immediately. "...Riley?" she tried again, this time more cautiously. "What happened?"

Still no response.

Mia frowned slightly before leaning closer to Riley’s cell phone. Curiosity finally won over her patience.

The moment her eyes landed on the screen, her expression froze.

"What the heck..." Mia muttered under her breath. "How could they—"

She stopped herself abruptly.

Sienna’s stomach tightened. "What’s wrong, Mia?"

Mia slowly lifted her head, her gaze moving from Riley to Ava before finally settling on Sienna.

And something in Mia’s expression made the atmosphere shift completely.

"What happened?" Ava asked quietly.

Mia swallowed hard before trying to explain, "They... They..."

But the words refused to come out properly.

Before she could continue, Riley finally lowered the phone slightly. His fingers tightened around it.

"I..." he started, though his voice sounded oddly strained now. "I just got a message."

Ava straightened immediately. "From who?"

For a brief second, Riley said nothing.

Then he looked up.

And the expression on his face no longer matched the warmth of the evening.

"...The HR Director."

Sienna felt something sink heavily inside her chest. Unease spread through her almost instantly.

"He said..." Riley continued quietly, his grip tightening once more around the phone. "...I am no longer employed at the Imperial Hotel."

Silence.