Tangled in Desire

Zara's eyes fluttered open slowly, her mind heavy with the fog of sleep and disorientation. The sterile white ceiling above her was unfamiliar, the soft beep of medical machines a constant reminder that she wasn't where she should have been. For a moment, she couldn't remember how she got there. But then, the icy cold, the locked balcony door, and the sharp, painful memories of the previous night flooded her mind like a torrent.

"Tori?" Her voice was hoarse, barely a whisper as she tried to sit up. Her head spun as she realized the drip in her arm and the cold touch of the hospital sheets beneath her.

Before she could react, Tori's familiar face appeared, a mix of relief and concern etched across her features. She was sitting by her side, a hand gently resting on Zara's arm.

"Zara! You're awake!" Tori's voice cracked slightly, and Zara saw her try to mask the relief with a calm demeanor. "You've been out for hours. I was so worried."

Zara rubbed her temples, trying to shake off the remnants of sleep. She glanced around, still not quite processing what had happened. "What happened? How long was I out?"

Tori took a deep breath and slowly explained. "You got locked outside last night. When they found you this morning, you were unconscious. Your blood pressure was dangerously low, and you were freezing. We had no choice but to bring you in. I didn't know what else to do."

Zara grimaced as the weight of the events settled in her mind. She remembered trying to get back inside, the balcony door locked tight, her freezing hands, her desperate frustration. But she didn't remember the rest—how long she'd been out there, who had helped her, or how she'd ended up in the hospital.

"Who found me? Who brought me here?" Zara asked, her voice sharp with the need for answers.

Tori hesitated for a moment, her gaze flickering downward before she met Zara's eyes again. "It was... Xavier Steele's assistant. He was the one who made sure you were taken care of."

Zara's heart skipped a beat. Xavier Steele. The name struck her like a thunderclap, making her chest tighten. The same man who'd been the source of her irritation, the man she couldn't get out of her head—the man whose name she was supposed to sign a contract with in just a few hours. The same man who'd made her life miserable in the past twenty-four hours.

Her fingers tightened on the edge of the bed, fighting the urge to lash out. She couldn't believe it. Xavier Steele.

"What is he, some kind of saint now? He could've helped me last night, but no, he locked me outside!" Zara's anger was raw, but there was something else too—an unsettling sense of curiosity mixed with disbelief. Why did he care now? Why hadn't he just left her out there? What was he doing in the first place?

Tori gave her a look, a slight frown playing on her lips. "Zara, I don't know. But his assistant was the one who arranged everything. They brought you to the hospital. Paid for the bills." Tori's eyes widened a little as she delivered the next bit of news. "It was under his name, by the way."

Zara's mind whirled, her frustration boiling over as she processed everything. Xavier Steele. The cold, indifferent man who seemed to enjoy tormenting her at every turn. And now, she was supposed to meet him, face-to-face, in less than two hours, to finalize the deal that could make or break everything she had worked for.

She felt a sinking sensation in her stomach, a mixture of dread and anticipation. The man she'd been silently seething over was now the very one she had to impress, to convince, to seal this deal with. This meeting was everything, and she couldn't afford to mess it up.

"Two hours…" Zara whispered to herself, the words tasting foreign in her mouth. "I can't miss this meeting."

Despite her weariness, a sense of urgency rose within her. She needed to be at that meeting. It had taken months of planning, sleepless nights, and hard work to get to this point. This wasn't something she could just throw away.

She turned to Tori, her mind already set. "I'm leaving. I'm going to make it to that meeting. I don't care if I have to drag myself there."

Tori's expression shifted into something between concern and admiration. "Zara, are you sure? You should stay and rest. We can always reschedule—"

Zara cut her off, shaking her head firmly. "I've worked too hard for this. I'm not backing out now."

The conversation was over. Zara had made up her mind.

With a few pleasantries exchanged with the hospital staff, Zara managed to convince the doctors to let her leave, albeit with some reluctance. She couldn't afford to miss a single moment. Every second counted, and she needed to be at her best.

As she stood in front of the mirror in her hospital room, she saw the reflection of a woman who had been through hell and back. Her face was pale, dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep, but when she stared at herself, something clicked.

She wasn't going to let this define her.

She pulled herself together. A quick wash, a few minutes to brush her teeth, and then she was getting dressed.

Zara picked out her attire carefully—a structured blazer over a plain white turtleneck tee, paired with perfectly tailored trousers that showcased both elegance and her signature tomboy style. It was professional, yet comfortable, and it gave her that confident, in-control feeling she so desperately needed right now.

Her hair was tied back in a sleek ponytail, and her makeup—light yet expertly applied—covered the signs of exhaustion, giving her that polished look that could fool anyone into thinking she had gotten a full night's rest. Her skin glowed as if nothing had happened, and for a moment, she didn't feel like the woman who had spent hours freezing on a balcony. She was Zara Winters, the woman who had built empires and broken barriers. And today, she would walk into that meeting and show Xavier Steele just how badly he had underestimated her.

"Alright, Tori," Zara said, grabbing her purse. "Let's go. We've got a deal to close." She gave herself one last look in the mirror, the steely determination in her eyes as she strode toward the door.

It was time to face him.