Urban Plundering: I Corrupted The System!-Chapter 191: Bittersweet and Unspoken 2

Ava stood near the doorway, suitcase in hand, her usual composed expression betraying the slightest hesitation. The reality of leaving was settling in, heavier than she had expected. New York was calling—business needed to be handled, deals had to be secured, and the machine she had been carefully constructing for Parker had to keep running.

But damn if she didn’t want to leave.

Parker stood a few feet away, hands in his pockets, watching her in that unreadable way of his. It was infuriating sometimes—how he could just stand there without a hint of hesitation while she felt the pull of something she wasn’t sure she should even acknowledge.

"You’re sure about this? I could help you here for a few days." Ava finally asked, her voice quieter than usual.

Parker nodded. "Yeah. You’ve got work to do."

Ava let out a small, slow breath. "Right. Work." She glanced toward the window, eyes flickering with something distant. "Feels weird leaving right after coming."

Tessa, still clinging to Parker’s arm, grinned. "Come on, Ava. You act like we’re shipping you off to war. You’ll be back."

Ava’s lips twitched at that, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. She would be back. She knew that. But right now? It didn’t make leaving any easier.

She turned back to Parker, searching his face for something—anything. Some sign that he felt what she was feeling. But Parker was Parker. He wouldn’t say it, wouldn’t admit it, wouldn’t make it easy.

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So, she sighed. "Don’t go making dumb decisions while I’m gone."

Parker smirked. "No promises. I am sure you’re praying I do so that you can have excuses to come back, don’t you Ava? Given how reluctant you’re to go."

Ava rolled her eyes but couldn’t stop the smile from tugging at her lips. Asshole.

With one last glance, she turned toward the door, fingers tightening around the handle of her suitcase. But before she could step forward, Parker moved.

Not with words.

But with action.

He closed the distance between them, his fingers brushing against her wrist before he pulled her in, pressing a firm, deliberate kiss against her lips.

Ava’s breath caught, eyes widening slightly. The moment was brief, quick—but damn if it didn’t hit her like a truck.

By the time he pulled away, her fingers had unconsciously curled against his jacket, reluctant to let go.

But she did.

She had to.

"Two kisess in exchange for going back? Worthy it!" Ava took a slow step back, inhaling deeply as she steadied herself. Then, with one last glance, she turned and walked out the door.

Parker watched until she was gone, the lingering warmth of her lips still ghosting against his. Tessa poked the sides of his ribs, Parker sighed, pinching her cheek just enough to make her yelp. "Stop letting your mind run wild."

Tessa pouted, rubbing her face as she grumbled under her breath. "Abusive handsome and sexy ass." But she didn’t pull away.

And neither did Parker.

The house felt quieter now. Ava was gone.

But there was still plenty left to handle.

****

Ava sat in the plush leather seat of the private jet, her head resting against the cool window as the city lights blurred beneath her, but her mind was way too fucking loud to enjoy the peace.

This was stupid.

So damn stupid.

She was in her thirties. A grown-ass woman. A professional. The best in her field, for fuck’s sake. She closed deals worth millions, negotiated high-stakes contracts, and managed assets like a goddamn shark. Men had tried to charm her before—rich men, powerful men, old-money legacies who thought their last names could buy them her.

She had seen it all, rejected it all, and never once let herself get caught up in feelings.

So how the hell did she end up like this?

Feeling things for a seventeen-year-old.

She let out a quiet, frustrated groan, running a hand through her hair.

This wasn’t even some slow-burn, years-in-the-making kind of thing. No, it had been days after their dealings. A few fucking days. A couple of business meetings, that wild night, and now here she was weeks later—spiraling like a clingy teenager.

Ava Klein. The Ava Klein. Simping over some rich boy with a sharp tongue, sharper mind, and a habit of making her feel things she really shouldn’t be feeling.

And the worst part?

She hadn’t even realized how deep she’d fallen until today.

Not when they met. Not even that night when things got messy between her, him, Claire, and Alina—when business took a backseat, and pleasure completely wrecked the lines between employer and employee. That night had been fun, sure. A little reckless. But she had chalked it up to tension, to celebration, to a one-time thing that wouldn’t mean shit in the long run.

But then today, when Parker told her to leave.

And suddenly, it meant everything.

Ava squeezed her eyes shut. ’Fuck. Fuck.’

She wanted to go back to New York. She needed to go back. That had been the plan all along. Handle the real estate side of things, make the buy-in, keep their deals airtight, and make sure Parker’s empire expanded exactly the way he wanted it to. That was her job, her role.

So why did it feel like she was leaving something behind?

Why did it feel like she was the one being left?

Why did she have this bitter feeling—a jealous feeling as if she was not needed in the house the same way Tessa was needed by his side and only she was useful because of her role—just a mere employee.

Why did she feel like Parker was telling her to away.

She gritted her teeth, gripping the armrest a little too tightly. This is ridiculous. She was being ridiculous. She wasn’t some wide-eyed college girl catching feelings for her boss. She wasn’t some rom-com protagonist about to make a grand speech about love and fate and whatever the hell else people wrote about.

And yet…

She pressed her lips together, the ghost of Parker’s kiss still lingering. The way he had pulled her in. The way her heart had stupidly skipped a beat.

"Ugh," she muttered, slumping back into her seat. This was why mixing business and pleasure was a terrible fucking idea.

She was supposed to be the cool one. The professional. The one who kept things in check while Claire and Alina acted like two love-struck idiots half the time. And now? Now she was the idiot.

Her phone buzzed.

A message from Claire.

Claire: Made it on the jet?

Ava: Yeah.

Claire: You good?

Ava stared at the text for way too long before typing back.

Ava: Define good.

There was a long pause. Then:

Claire: Oh.

Ava exhaled sharply. ’Yeah. Oh.’

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She knew what Claire was thinking. Hell, Claire probably knew before she did. Alina too. The two of them had always been a little too good at reading her. But Ava wasn’t about to sit here and spill her guts over text like some desperate housewife.

She needed to pull her shit together.

This wasn’t some love story.

Parker was her boss. He had hired her, Claire, and Alina to handle his assets, not to fall into bed with him, and definitely not to fall into feelings. And yet here she was, feeling way too much, sitting on this stupid jet, leaving behind something she didn’t even know she wanted until now.

She closed her eyes and let out a slow breath.

Yeah. She was fucked.