Dominic watched her puffed-up cheeks for a moment, then picked up the figurine and turned it over in his hands.
"You like it that much?"
Cynthia nodded so hard it was almost comical.
"I can't even describe what I felt when I saw her again," she blurted out. "It was this wild mix of awe and nostalgia."
It was as if she'd collided headlong with her own youth.
Her eyes sparkled with uncontainable joy.
Dominic, holding her gaze, simply set the figurine back inside the display cabinet.
"Funny, isn't it? Sometimes something has to disappear before we realize how precious it is."
A lump formed in Cynthia's throat.
"But I designed her—how could she ever disappear?"
Dominic closed the glass door with a quiet click. "If you hadn't stumbled across her today, Miss Tremaine, would you have even remembered? All these years you've forgotten her—hasn't that been a kind of disappearance in itself?"
He stood a little distance away, watching her, a cold, ironic smile tugging at his lips.
"She could have been remembered by so many more people."
Cynthia's breath hitched. A flicker of sadness crossed her face.
She looked utterly crushed, as if Dominic's words had struck the final blow.
Dominic turned away, his tone cool and detached as he walked past her.
"So, Miss Tremaine, are you still in the mood to see the project?"
Snapping out of her daze, Cynthia noticed Dominic had settled himself comfortably on the sofa, looking perfectly at ease. She couldn't help but grumble, "Of course I am!"
But Dominic didn't budge.
Cynthia noticed how uninterested he seemed in Valmont Holdings' project, and her irritation flared.
"Mr. Holloway, don't tell me you're planning to back out of investing in Valmont Holdings?"
Dominic arched an eyebrow. "What gives you that idea?"
"You were just waiting for me to throw a tantrum—then if I refused to show you the project, you'd have the perfect excuse to pull out. Don't even try to deny it."
His eyes flashed with amusement, lips quirking in a half-smile.
"Not bad. You're sharper than I thought."
She'd nailed his intention.
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