INICIAR SESIÓNAline is at the front of the door, arms crossed, eyes bright with open curiosity. She looks Noah up and down once, slow and deliberate, then turns to me with a knowing little smile. “I was wondering what was keeping you. Now I see.” Her gaze flicks back to him. “Understandable.” She steps forward and extends her hand. “Nice to finally meet you in person, Noah. I’ve heard and seen quite a lot about you. I’m Aline—Aria’s favourite cousin, in case she hasn’t mentioned that already.” Noah takes her hand as a charming smile replaces his usual cold mask. “I hope at least some of it was good.” Hmm." Aline tilts her head, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “A healthy mix. Still deciding whether you’re more devil or angel.” Before he can answer, Antoine barrels in from the dining room with Remy perched on his hip. My son’s hair is slightly messy, cheeks flushed from whatever game they were playing. “Mamie says bring him to the table already,” Antoine announces. “I love you Aria, but I
ARIA'S POV “Calm the fuck down and tell me what's actually going on.” His voice rises, cold and sharp. “I should be the one furious. You lied to my face and met that bastard behind my back. How long has it been going on?”I stare at him, incredulous.“Lying to your face? So I'm supposed to give your girlfriend a full report of my life? Should I have started by telling her how I finally visited my mother’s grave after four years, or how it felt being there? Or—”The words caught in my throat, choking off into a ragged breath. Tears burn the backs of my eyes. I blink them back hard.“Princess—”“Pardon me for not giving her every detail, Your Majesty. Next time I’ll just stab her with a fork. Respectfully.”Noah stares at me for a beat, the tension in his jaw slackening. Then, the familiar infuriating smirk creeps back onto his face. He raises his hands up in mock surrender, though he doesn't back away. “Easy, tigress.”“I’m not joking, Noah. Go back to her and leave me alone. You two
NOAH'S POVI will be back in a few days. I had to leave for the work in Paris I told you about before. Do not worry — I will return to finish my part of the deal, though the terms will need to be adjusted. You couldn't bother to come home or inform the living beings in the house about your absence for whatever reason that is. And I also I can't bother to call you especially by interrupting your private time with whoever you were with. I sewed the clothes I promised you. Check your wardrobe. One promise kept. One left.I hope you had a lot of fun.P.S. I'm a bigger person for dropping this message, Jsyk.Aria“The fuck…”The paper crumples slightly in my fist as I slam my unoccupied fist— the one still bleeding onto the desk.The impact hurt and stings but I really don't care about that as what I'm feeling—the inexplicable emotions twirling inside me.The anger among them I can identify is burning away the remaining threads of my restraint and it much better to lean into that than
NOAH'S POV FEW DAYS AGOI peel Stephanie's hands off me, my eyes fixed on the door Aria left through. She walked out.Of course she did. She never cared enough to stay. Not when she still has that soft look reserved for someone else. The same look I saw in those photographs—eyes gentle, posture open, standing close enough to that fucker that anyone with half a brain could read the history between them. That look that should be mine exclusively. entirely mine. Only mine.She lied straight to my face. Said she hadn’t gone anywhere else. Why lie unless there was something to hide? There is. And she better have a damn good explanation for why he was within the same breathing radius as her today.I should have dealt with him years ago. Clean. Permanent. If any part of her still wants him, it would have turned into nothing but useless longing. Yearning for a dead end.Fucking hell.My jaw aches from how hard I’m clenching it.I stand so abruptly the chair scrapes. Charlie freezes midway
ARIA'S POV I'M BACK HOME“Tell him to check his desk drawer if he asks for me.”I lift my bag strap to my shoulders. Mira stands beside me, hands clasped tightly in front of her apron, eyes already glassy.“Miss Aria… when will you be back? The house will feel so empty. The matriarch left yesterday, and now you are packing up your things too. The mansion is going to feel so lonely. I’ll miss seeing your face. And little Remy—”“I’ll miss you too, especially the way you all look after my baby.” I glance toward the car where Remy is already settled, kicking his legs against the seat. “It’s only business. I’ll be back soon.”The leather pulls against my shoulder, reminding me that my flight leaves in less than two hours.She nods, but the way she presses her lips together says she doesn’t fully believe the lightness I’m forcing into my voice. I give her a quick hug anyway, then climb in beside my son.Matteo drives to the
ARIA'S POV The flashing neon lights of the Onyx Lounge do nothing to cool the frantic rhythm of my heart as I follow Alexis past the curtains of the VVIP section.Somehow, I’m already regretting my decision.I should have stayed back. I shouldn't have…Calm down, Aria.The moment we step into the booth, almost every head at the table turns toward us, but I barely register their faces. My eyes are pulled toward the center.Noah is sitting there, his frame casting a dark shadow over the leather seat. His white shirt is undone at the collar, his dark curls slightly ruffled, and his jaw is clenched so tightly a muscle jumps in his cheek. And beside him, looking like the cat that just swallowed the canary whole, sits Stephanie fucking Langford.“Aria. I didn’t expect to see you tonight.” She tilts her head. “How has your day been? We were just talking about you. You remember Lora, right? Your stepsister.”I follow the direction of her gaze to the corner of the table. Lora is angled tow
JAMIE'S POV From the center of the stage, even with the flashing cameras going off like gunfire, I still found her. Aria. And damn, she looked unreal. Aria had always been beautiful. Not just pretty but dangerously beautiful. People stare too long when they see her, I have to glare at them to sh
ARIA'S POV “Then go,” my father growled, standing up from the table. “I disown you as my daughter.” “Don’t say that, dear…” Carolina fake-interjected. “No, Lina. Let her go.” He yelled at her. “You idiot!" He says addressing me. "Was I the one that asked him to dump you, Aria? If you had be
ARIA'S POV The heavy front door clicked shut behind me. I stood on the smooth white marble floor of the foyer for a few seconds, to prepare myself before meetingtheir disgusting faces. Then I heard the laughter again. Louder this time. It was coming right from the dining room down the hall. L
ARIA'S POV This wasn't an accident. Mario didn't have the brains or the motive to pull off something this huge alone. There was only one person ruthless enough to orchestrate this kind of public humiliation. Stepsister charming, Lora. Everything started adding up in my head. The two strange me







