The morning sunlight filtered through the sheer curtains of the apartment, casting a soft, golden glow over the living room. It was the first morning of their new shared reality, and the domesticity felt both alien and wonderful. Eva emerged from the bedroom, the scent of expensive coffee beans already drifting through the air. She found Gabriel sitting on the sofa, his posture rigid. He was staring at a point on the wall with such intensity that he hadn't noticed the steam stopped rising from the mug in his hand.

"Good morning, Gabriel," Eva said softly, sitting close enough that her shoulder brushed his.

Gabriel blinked, the fog of deep thought clearing from his eyes. He turned to her, a small, genuine smile breaking through his serious expression. He leaned in and pressed a lingering kiss to her forehead. "Good morning. Did you have a good sleep?"

Eva leaned her head back against the cushion, a playful glint in her eyes. "Yes. Last night was... very good."

Gabriel laughed, the sound low and rich in the quiet room. "Well, consider that a preview. We can have a good night every night from now on." He glanced down at his cold coffee and grimaced. "I completely lost track of time. Wait here—let me bring us some fresh coffee."

Five minutes later, he returned with two steaming mugs. They sat in comfortable silence for a moment, the warmth of the ceramic soaking into their palms.

"So," Eva prodded gently. "What was weighing on your mind so heavily that you forgot to drink?"

Gabriel sighed, his expression sobering. "Theo called me earlier this morning. His father passed away last night. He’s heading to his hometown immediately and won’t be back in the office for at least two weeks."

Eva’s face fell into a look of deep concern. "Oh, that’s terrible. Poor boy. He’s been such a support to us lately."

"Exactly," Gabriel nodded. "I had planned on taking him with us to meet with HR this morning regarding the incident at the restaurant. His testimony about Delilah intentionally passing you that nut sauce was our strongest card. But now, I think we have to wait."

Eva reached out and squeezed his hand. "It’s okay, Gabriel. We can wait. Family comes first. Let’s just be extra careful whenever Delilah is around."

Gabriel looked at her, his eyes dark with a protective instinct that bordered on fierce. "That’s the problem. I feel like if she sees us getting closer—if she realizes we’re living together or that our relationship has moved to this level—she might try to hurt you again. She’s proven she doesn't care about 'accidental' collateral damage as long as she hits her target."

Eva tilted her head. "What are you suggesting?"

"I think, for now, we should keep our relationship a secret in the office," Gabriel said, pausing to gauge her reaction.

Eva frowned, her confusion evident. "But why? What good will that do? The only thing that will make me feel safe is if she’s finally fired."

"And she will be," Gabriel promised, his voice dropping into a cold, professional tone. "But Delilah is a master of manipulation. We’ve both been burned by her lies before. If we go to HR now without Theo, she could easily flip the narrative and claim we’re teaming up against her because of a personal grudge. It could backfire on us."

He took a slow sip of his coffee. "I’m going to take a different approach. I’m going to be 'nice' to her—professionally speaking. I’ll assign her an individual project, something high-stakes but manageable for a competent employee. I’m betting everything that she won’t be able to deliver. I can put her on a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) and fire her for poor performance. It’s clean, it’s documented, and it’s effective."

Eva chewed her lip. "But a PIP takes time. That could take at least two months. Wouldn't it be faster to wait the two weeks for Theo?"

"The performance route is bulletproof," Gabriel countered. "If we fire her for a 'misunderstanding' at a Lunch, she might sue or cause a scene. If we fire her because she can't do the job she was hired for, she has no leg to stand on. Do you trust me on this?"

Eva looked at him for a long moment before nodding. "Okay. I’ll go with your idea. We play it cool."

Later that morning at the office, the atmosphere in the migration room was uncharacteristically focused. Phoebe, Samuel, Isaac, Caleb, and Grace were all hunched over their monitors, appearing to be in the depths of a complex data reconciliation.

Eva walked toward her desk, passing by Phoebe and Samuel. They were whispering urgently to one another. Eva leaned in, expecting to hear a discussion about server latency or SQL queries.

"...did you actually register?" Phoebe was asking, her voice intense.

"Yes, I did," Samuel replied, a proud smile on his face. "I registered us as a couple. We should get our registration details and the goodies in a couple of days."

"Good," Phoebe breathed, looking relieved.

Eva leaned over the partition with a teasing smile. "I don't remember our migration project including a marathon in the outskirts."

Both Phoebe and Samuel jumped, their faces instantly turning a brilliant shade of crimson.

"Eva!" Phoebe squeaked.

"That’s a very healthy start, Phoebe," Eva said with a wink before heading to her station.

A few minutes later, the heavy glass doors of the suite swung open. Delilah walked in, looking slightly worse for wear. Despite the layers of heavy makeup and her perfectly styled hair, there was a visible tiredness in her eyes—a lingering shadow from her hospital visit the night before.

Philip, who was sitting near the entrance, looked up from his work. "Hey, Delilah. How are you feeling after... you know?"

Delilah sighed dramatically, leaning against the edge of a desk. "Oh, you know. A little tired. The medications they gave me are quite strong." She glanced around the room, her eyes searching. "Where is Theo?"

"His father passed away," Philip explained. "He’s gone to his hometown and won't be back for two weeks."

A visible wave of relief washed over Delilah’s face, though she tried to mask it with a half-hearted "Oh, how sad". She leaned closer to Philip. "Did he... did he say anything to Gabriel or the others after I left for the hospital yesterday? About the dinner?"

Philip thought for a second. "No, we all left right after the ambulance took you. Everyone was pretty shaken up."

Delilah’s eyes sparkled. If Theo hadn't spoken up, then her secret about the "accidental" nut sauce was safe. "And Gabriel? Was he... was he upset?"

"He looked a bit shaken," Philip said, trying to remember. "I saw him shouting at the waiter, but I couldn't hear what it was about."

Delilah’s heart practically sang. In her mind, Gabriel wasn't shouting at the waiter about a potential murder attempt; he was shouting because he was worried about her. She was convinced her "vulnerable victim" act had worked perfectly.

Her reverie was interrupted by the sharp buzz of her intercom.

"Delilah? Could you please come to my cabin?" Gabriel’s voice was crisp and professional.

Delilah beamed. "Hi, Gabriel," she said into the receiver, her voice suddenly sounding fragile and breathless. "Am I allowed in there? Your teammates might bite me."

"I'll make sure they don't," Gabriel replied. "Come in."

Delilah stood up, smoothing her skirt with an air of unearned triumph. She walked through the migration room with her head held high, casting a smug look at the rest of the team as she headed toward the glass-walled office at the back.

The moment Gabriel’s door clicked shut, five heads popped up simultaneously. Phoebe, Isaac, Caleb, Grace, and Samuel all turned to look at Eva with wide, questioning eyes.

Eva held up a hand, a small, knowing smile on her lips. "I'll tell you everything later," she whispered. "For now, just watch the show."