The CEO Above My Desk Chapter 185

*Violet*

By the time Agent Bennett finally finished questioning me and Rowan together, it was nearly eight at night and I felt physically disconnected from my own body.

Completely drained.

I was ninety percent sure the FBI should reimburse me financially for the amount of stress-induced psychological damage I’d experienced today.

The executive floor looked even worse now somehow. Empty coffee cups everywhere. Takeout containers spread across desks. Legal paperwork stacked in messy piles.

The rain outside still hadn’t stopped once.

Agent Bennett had questioned Rowan immediately after me which honestly turned into a disaster within the first ten minutes.

Not because Rowan was hiding anything. Because apparently the two of them shared the exact same personality flaw.

Control issues.

They’d started calmly enough.

Then Bennett asked why Rowan hired a private investigator instead of going directly to federal authorities.

And somehow thirty seconds later they were both arguing about jurisdiction, corruption protocols, witness endangerment, and whether or not Rowan Ashcroft had a “reckless tendency to independently solve problems.”

She wasn’t wrong.

But also?

Watching Rowan get professionally scolded by a federal agent while trying to emotionally hover over me at the same time was weirdly entertaining.

Especially because every single time Bennett asked me a question, Rowan would answer first.

And every single time she’d stare directly at him and say, “I asked your wife.”

At one point she actually threatened to physically separate us if he interrupted again.

Thankfully though, we were finally done.

For now at least.

Theo had just gotten called into the conference room instead which honestly felt a little unfair considering the man looked one inconvenience away from collapsing dramatically onto the floor.

As for me?

The second I sat back down at my desk, I kicked off my heels under it so aggressively they nearly hit the filing cabinet behind me.

Rowan immediately noticed.

Of course he did. “You okay?” he asked instantly.

“I’m divorcing shoes.”

Camille snorted from across the desk before sliding a massive takeout bag toward me.

“Eat.”

I opened the container slowly before staring down at the pasta inside.

Cream sauce.

Garlic.

Chicken.

Expensive looking parmesan.

Oh my God.

The smell alone nearly made me emotional.

I grabbed the fork immediately before taking a bite.

And the second it hit my tongue—

I moaned.

Actually moaned.

Not even a little bit either.

Full emotional support food noise.

“Oh my God,” I whispered.

Rowan chuckled quietly beside me while grabbing his own dish from the takeout bag.

Some fancy layered lasagna thing that probably cost more than my first car payment.

Camille looked smug immediately. “See? This is why pregnant women deserve rights.”

Rowan smiled slightly while pulling another chair beside my desk before sitting down next to me. Close enough our knees brushed underneath the desk automatically.

I took another bite of pasta while Rowan quietly cut into his lasagna beside me.

Then without even asking, he slid one piece of garlic bread onto my plate.

I blinked once.

Slowly looked toward him.

“…Are you nesting?”

“No.”

“You absolutely are.”

“I’m feeding my wife.”

“You’re emotionally feeding your wife.”

Camille pointed dramatically toward him. “That’s exactly what I said earlier!”

Rowan sighed heavily like we were all exhausting him personally.

Camille finally settled into the chair across from us while pulling her own takeout container closer.

Then her expression shifted slightly.

Less joking now.

More nervous.

“So…” She glanced toward the conference room doors carefully. “What exactly should I expect when I get called in there?”

The humor faded slightly from the executive floor.

I swallowed slowly before looking toward her.

“Agent Bennett’s thorough,” I admitted carefully.

“That’s a terrifying answer.”

“It’s not bad,” I said quickly. “She’s just…” I searched for the word. “Very direct.”

Rowan nodded beside me. “And observant.”

Camille immediately looked alarmed. “Oh no.”

“She already knows when people are lying before they answer,” I added helpfully.

Camille stabbed dramatically at her noodles now. “What if I accidentally say something incriminating?”

“You probably will,” Rowan admitted calmly.

“ROWAN.”

“What? You threaten violence every seven minutes.”

“I’m pregnant and emotionally gifted.”

About 15 minutes later, Theo suddenly stumbled out of the conference room looking physically exhausted.

Agent Bennett followed behind him holding her tablet while looking deeply unimpressed.

Theo pointed dramatically toward us. “She called me emotionally manipulative.”

“You are emotionally manipulative,” Bennett replied immediately.

“That’s hurtful.”

“That’s factual.”

Camille whispered toward me quietly, “I kinda love her.”

Agent Bennett’s eyes shifted briefly toward my desk. Toward the kicked-off heels. Toward the pasta. Toward Rowan sitting way too close beside me.

Then finally toward my face. And for just half a second… Her expression softened slightly again. Not federal. Not investigative Just reassuring.

Like she was silently checking to make sure I was still holding together.

Agent Bennett then gestured towards Camille to follow her into the conference room.

Camille immediately froze mid-sip with her coffee. “Oh no.”

Bennett raised one eyebrow slightly. “It’s your turn.”

Camille slowly looked between all of us dramatically like she was preparing for war.

“If I don’t survive,” she whispered solemnly, “delete my browser history.”

Theo snorted loudly.

“I’m serious.”

“You use Pinterest.”

“And that’s my business.”

Camille stood slowly from her chair before smoothing down the front of her outfit while taking one steadying breath.

She looked confident.

Beautiful too.

Strong.

Like she could absolutely handle herself.

But I’d spent enough time with Camille now to know the difference between real confidence and “I’m pretending not to panic.”

This was definitely the second one.

Theo noticed too immediately. He stood beside her without hesitation before catching her hand gently.

The teasing disappeared from his face almost instantly. “You’ll be okay.”

Camille looked up at him quietly for a second.

Then Theo leaned down and kissed her softly on the cheek. Not dramatic. Not performative. Just gentle. Grounding her.

And suddenly my chest tightened painfully again because God.

They really loved each other.

Camille’s entire expression softened immediately afterward. “You better still be out here when I come back.”

Theo squeezed her hand once. “Unfortunately for you, yes.”