Memories

But Kimberly didn't have the luxury of thinking about why he was mad at her at that moment. Because she suddenly remembered that night.

The memory crashed over her, dragging her back to that fateful night, a whirlwind of heartbreak and reckless passion she could never forget.

* Flashback (Six Years Ago) *

It had begun innocently enough at a lavish party thrown by one of her father's affluent associates, the very man her father had arranged for her to marry, and she was set to marry him the next day.

It was her birthday, but Kimberly felt like a fragile butterfly trapped in a glass jar, desperate to break free. The walls of luxury suffocated her. She didn't want to be trapped in a loveless marriage for the rest of her life.

Her father was such a manipulative, cold and controlling man. He never cared about what she wanted. He only cared about power, legacy and money.

Kimberly had smiled through it all. The diamond necklace around her throat felt like a leash. The champagne tasted like poison. The whispers about her "lucky future" scraped against her skin like thorns.

She hadn’t felt lucky. She felt trapped. All her life.

She wanted to get out of that place. To escape the horrible life she was about to get into.

She had had enough of her father and couldn't take it anymore.

Without anyone's notice, Kimberly grabbed her purse and slipped out of the mansion, hoping to find solace in the one person who understood her better — Ryan, her ex.

But as if things weren't bad enough for her already that night, what she saw when she arrived at Ryan's house, shattered her heart into tiny pieces.

The sounds she heard coming from his room made her blood run cold. Ryan was with another woman, slamming hard into her, their groans and moans filling the entire house like loud music.

Her hands trembled. Her entire body instantly felt unsteady. Maybe she was wrong. Maybe she was just hearing things. She inched closer, heart pounding.....and then she heard his voice.

"She's getting way too pathetic. Clingy as hell. Too boring, honestly," Ryan said, his voice smooth and unbothered.

Kimberly blinked hard. What?!

"I was never serious about her. Just kept her until I found someone better."

No. No, no, Ryan!

Kimberly's hand flew to her mouth in utter disbelief.

Not tonight, Ryan!

"I think I can keep up with that," Clara laughed.

Kimberly couldn't take it anymore. She felt a surge of anger and pain, her blood boiling hot. How could Ryan say such things about her?

Just how cruel?!

Unable to contain her rage, Kimberly pushed the door open, slamming it against the wall with rage.

The room was dim, thick with the smell of alcohol, sex and betrayal. Their clothes were scattered across the floor. Ryan and Clara instantly froze.

"What the f*ck — Kimberly?" Ryan scrambled.

"Kimberly, wait — I....." He stammered, but Kimberly's palm met his cheek with a brutal slap before he could finish.

Clara immediately scrambled for the covers, trying to hide her face.

Clara was Kimberly's friend. Not a close one, but enough to twist the knife.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Ryan snapped, anger rising. He couldn't hide his frustration and pretense anymore in her presence.

"You bastard!" Kimberly screamed. How could you? After everything I gave up for you? After everything?! You chose to pay me this way? With a friend? Is this the surprise you promised me?!"

Ryan had earlier promised Kimberly a big surprise on her birthday, and Kimberly had thought that he was finally going to propose like she ever wanted.

i far away, escaping the life her father wanted for her.

But this was the reality — cheated on, humiliated, discarded like nothing.

"Screw you, Ryan! Screw you both!" Kimberly felt like bursting out, but she couldn't bring herself to do that — not in their presence.

She turned, storming out of the house into the cold, the night air slapping her face as tears blurred her vision. Her chest ached with every breath, lungs burning, but the pain inside was far worse. Her heart had shattered, and all she wanted was to disappear, just for one night. One night without expectations. One night without pain.

She wandered the city streets, lost in thought, feet aching in her shoes that she had to take them off, her mascara streaking down her face. She didn't know how long she had walked — minutes, hours maybe. All she knew was that her heart was in pieces, her phone was buzzing with calls she ignored, even those from her best friend.

The rest of that night for Kimberly was a blur. She ended up at a bar in a hotel, and ordered the strongest drink they had, and drank it like water. One. Two. Three. And more.

She began to sway to the music, dazed and numb, her body hot and restless. She stumbled away, intending to find a restroom, but only to push open the wrong door.

A suite. It was dimly lit.

And inside was Bryce Harrington, sitting calmly, yet dangerously.

He looked half-drunk. Disheveled. Equally lost.

What happened next blurred into moans and heat, tangled limbs and raw need. Two broken strangers, trying to forget themselves in each other.

The next morning, Kimberly woke up with a headache, a hollow chest, and regret.

She realized she had made the biggest mistake of her life, and needed to amend that, even though the mistake had been made already.

Slipping out before Bryce could notice, Kimberly fled his room — and later, with the help of Cindy, her best friend, she fled the city entirely.

She had no choice. The chaos, the heartbreak, the shame, it was all too much for her to bear. She needed to breathe. She needed to disappear and stay away from the city and the people who gave her heartaches.

Her father's men were already scouring the city for her. She had missed the wedding she never wanted. Her phone was flooded with furious messages. Her accounts had been frozen by her father. And deep down, she knew if her father ever found her, he wouldn't hesitate to destroy her.

She was in too deep. Too lost. And too broken.

And then, just weeks after, came the final blow. The night she tried to forget had left her with something she was not prepared nor ready for. But she swore to protect with her life.

"You think I forgot? Or wouldn't recognize you?" he asked, jolting Kimberly back to the present, his gaze raking over her face — half disbelieving, half burning. "The way you looked at me that night? The way you felt beneath me?"

Kimberly's lips parted as he said those words, but no words came out. She looked away, unable to hold his gaze, afraid that if she didn't, she'd drown in it completely.

"Still pretending you don't remember me? Or should I remind you — how we burned that night? How you moaned my name like it was the only thing keeping you alive?" Bryce continued to say those words that made her insides tingle.....

Her breath hitched. Her hands, limp against his chest, trembling.

She couldn't move. She couldn't speak.

Because she did remember. She remembered it all.

And what terrified her the most.....

Was that a part of her wanted to feel it all over again.

That electrifying touch.

Kimberly held her breath, shutting her eyes tight as his face loomed over hers, his hot breath on her skin making her insides throb with anticipation.