22: Avery’s Pov

The ballroom of the Grand Metropole is a sea of shifting silk and suffocating wealth.

A week ago, I would have been a shadow here.

Tonight, in a dress of shimmering liquid gold, I might as well have been the sun.

I see him immediately which isn’t shocking seeing as he was the first person I walked in looking for.

Dominic is standing near the center of the room, in his perfect, designer suit, he looks like the undisputed king of this world.

The moment our eyes meet, his conversation with the people he’s talking to vanishes.

A slow, genuine smile spreads across his handsome face, and he begins to excuse himself, his intent clear.

He is coming for me and I can’t wait to be in his arms.

My face beaming, I start to take a step toward him when the blue screen flickers, cold and unforgiving out of nowhere.

[ NEW TASK: THE GHOST ]

[OBJECTIVE: IGNORE DOMINIC GREYHOUND FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE EVENT.]

[CRITERIA: NO EYE CONTACT. NO CONVERSATION. ACT AS IF HE DOES NOT EXIST.]

[REWARD: $500,000 & INTRODUCTION TO A NEW PROSPECTIVE LOVE INTEREST.]

I freeze.

“No. Not tonight,” I plead silently. “Anything but this.”

The screen pulses a deep, warning red.

[FAILURE TO COMPLY WILL RESULT IN A PARTIAL RESET OF BEAUTY ATTRIBUTES.]

Partial reset?

Beauty attributes?

I would start getting ugly? In real time?

I knew that was something that I could not afford to let happen.

But then, that meant that to protect myself, I had to hurt the man that I care for.

I feel a pang of genuine sadness, but the fear of losing what I’ve built, of going back to the girl with the scars is stronger.

A whole lot stronger.

I take a sharp breath, fix my gaze on a point over his shoulder, and steel my gaze.

I hope he can forgive me for this but I have no choice.

Dominic reaches out as he nears, his voice a warm, low rumble.

"Avery, my goodness, you look stun…..”

I don't look at him. I don't give him the chance to keep talking either.

I simply walk right past him like he’s a stranger, leaving him standing in the middle of the floor with his hand outstretched.

I can feel the confusion and the sudden chill radiating from him, but I keep moving until I reach the terrace.

I can also feel my heart physically ache.

How was I going to repair this? What was I going to tell him?

The system came back into focus.

[ TASK COMPLETE ]

[REWARD: $500,000 DEPOSITED]

[PROSPECTIVE LOVE INTEREST ACQUIRED.]

I lean against the stone railing, my chest aching.

I could care less about the monetary reward or some random love interest.

I don’t understand why the system would give me such a task.

I’m also still trying to process what "New Love Interest" means when Dominic is clearly the only man I want when a voice breaks the silence.

"That was the most brutal thing I’ve seen in years."

I jump, turning toward the shadows.

A man is leaning against the stone pillar. He looks like he just stepped out of a male model magazine.

I could smell his perfume from where I stood and it was amazing.

He’s strikingly handsome with dark, somewhat messy hair, piercing eyes, and a rugged jawline that feels dangerous.

He looks like the polished men in the ballroom but there was still something different about him.

Something alluring and I find that my heart is beating faster.

He looks at me with a smirk that says he knows exactly what I think of him.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I say, trying to regain my composure.

"You just walked past one of the most powerful man in the city like he was invisible," he says, stepping into the light.

He is tall, with a presence that rivals even that of Dominic.

Something I never knew was possible.

"I’ve never seen anyone do that to him. You’re either very brave, or very dangerous."

“Or very stupid” i murmur.

“Or very beautiful”

My words are caught in my throat.

He steps closer, extending a hand.

"My name is Vincent Roland and I think you and I should get to know each other."