MasukTHIRD PERSON'S POV Lora is sitting in the salon of her and Jamie's penthouse alone as it has been for the past couple of months. Jamie rarely comes home anymore. A half-filled champagne flute dangles from her fingers as she scrolls through her phone, lips curling higher with every vicious comment. Slut. Whore. Illegitimate child. Every word aimed at Aria feels her heart with so much joy. So much unadulterated ecstasy. “I trust the internet to be completely vicious”, she murmurs as she bursts into laughter, the liquid in her glass almost pouring away at a comment. The internet had done exactly what she wanted—torn Aria’s image into pieces. As she scrolls downward, her smile suddenly vanishes. Her fingers tightens around the glass until the stem threatens to snap. Coltrane Cruz’s defense of Aria minimizes the scandal into a joke about tight wardrobe trousers. Lora’s jaw clenches, a low, ugly hiss escaping her teeth. Vixen. Promiscuous little leech. How does Aria always
ARIA’S POV The tension in our living room is so thick, it almost feels impossible for me to draw breath fully. Noah came in like five minutes ago and since then the room has been completely silent. He looks unbothered by it. His hands shoved carelessly into his pockets, but his dark eyes are focused on my uncle who is facing him from the other side of the room. The air between them feels thick enough to choke on. “You’ve got some nerve walking into this house after everything floating around.” Uncle Mike finally broke the silence, his voice cold. Noah doesn’t flinch. “I came for Aria.” “Of course you did.” Mike’s jaw tightens. He takes one step closer. “Tell me something, King. Have you already find out the fucker behind this, or are you just here to play hero after the damage is done?” Noah tilts his head, smirk on his lips. "I do know. And I’m handling it.” “Who?” My heart leaps into my throat. I lean forward instinctively, my fingers digging into the cushion of the sofa
THIRD PERSON'S POV Lora is sitting in the salon of her and Jamie's penthouse alone as it has been for the past couple of months. Jamie rarely comes home anymore. A half-filled champagne flute dangles from her fingers as she scrolls through her phone, lips curling higher with every vicious comment. Slut. Whore. Illegitimate child. Every word aimed at Aria feels her heart with so much joy. So much unadulterated ecstasy. “I trust the internet to be completely vicious”, she murmurs as she bursts into laughter, the liquid in her glass almost pouring away at a comment. The internet had done exactly what she wanted—torn Aria’s image into pieces. As she scrolls downward, her smile suddenly vanishes. Her fingers tightens around the glass until the stem threatens to snap. Coltrane Cruz’s defense of Aria minimizes the scandal into a joke about tight wardrobe trousers. Lora’s jaw clenches, a low, ugly hiss escaping her teeth. Vixen. Promiscuous little leech. How does
“When exactly,” Mike asks, his voice deceptively calm, his face giving away nothing, “was I supposed to find out about this?” Silence settles over the room. Daisy and Aria exchange a quick glance. They didn't need words to know they were thinking the same thing. We're screwed. Aria swallows hard. “I—” “When did this start?” Mike cut in, the calm in his voice somehow making it worse. “Out of every man that had shown interesting you, it had to be Noah fucking King?” His jaw clenches. “Tell me honestly, Aria.” His eyes softened for only a fraction of a second before hardening again. “Did he pressure you? Did he manipulate you? Because if that bastard cornered you into this—” “He didn't,” Aria replies quickly. “So you walked into this with your eyes open, a friend to that slimy bastard—” “They’re not friends anymore,” Aria says, voice small. She keeps her eyes on the floor. Uncle Mike has scolded Antoine and Aline countless times over the years. But he has never raised
My phone buzzes somewhere under the pillow, dragging me out of sleep. My room is still dim, curtains only half-open. I had gone to the hospital with Uncle Mike last night to see Remy and celebrate my win together. We stayed until the nurses reminded us visiting hours were over, and came home exhausted. The buzzing turns into Daisy’s ringtone. I fumble for the phone with my half opened eyes. “Daisy—” “I’m outside. Open the door. Now.” Her voice is usually serious. No greeting. No joke. That alone makes me sit up. I stumble out of bed in the oversized T-shirt and shorts I slept in, hair a mess, and pad down the hallway. When I unlock the front door, Daisy is standing there, phone clutched in one hand, eyes too wide. Something is definitely wrong. If Daisy's tone on the short call we had wasn't a sign enough, her not looking prim as she would usually do is a glittering bright sign. “Is your uncle home? Has he seen it yet?” She asks as she steps inside, looking overly a
ARIA'S POV The key turns smoothly in the lock. I push the door open, already reaching for the light switch— And freeze. Noah sits on the living-room sofa like he owns the place, one arm stretched along the backrest, long legs crossed, dark eyes already locked on me. The late-afternoon light from the windows catches the sharp line of his jaw. He looks completely at ease. My heart jumps into my throat as my hands tighten around my portfolio bag until my knuckles turn white. “What are you doing here?” The words come out in a whispered shout. I spin toward the hallway, half-expecting Uncle Mike to appear at any second. Noah rises, fluidly. “Relax. He’s gone to visit Jeremiah.” I stay where I am, curling slightly away when he reaches for me. “So that somehow gives you the right to walk into our house?” He doesn’t answer the how. Instead, a lazy smile tugs at the corner of his lips. “I missed you— your kitten glare and that feisty little tongue of yours." My heart thumps against
FOUR YEARS LATER PRESENT ARIA'S POV The crisp air outside John F. Kennedy International Airport hits me the moment I step out. Suddenly, a familiar loud screech cuts through the noise. "Aria! Oh my god, look at you!" Daisy throws her arms around me. She squeezes the breath right out of my
JAMIE'S POV A blinding rage consumed me. I lunged forward, ready to throw my entire weight against Noah's door and break it wide open, but two heavy hands violently held me back. “Sir, step away. You can’t go in there.” My eyes flared with dangerous rage as I glared at the suit. “Get the hell out
NOAH'S POV My phone buzzed at noon. I was in the middle of a call with the Milan team when Matteo set a note face-down on my desk. That only ever meant one thing: it was very urgent, and very important. I wrapped up the call in under two minutes and flipped the paper over.Subject: Sighting co
ARIA'S POV Some people get to see their world fall apart slowly. They have time to get ready for the crash. I didn't get that chance. My life didn’t fall apart slowly. It collapsed in one night. The night my boyfriend announced his engagement to my stepsister. And somehow… I was the only







