Mag-log inZOEâS POV Almost twenty minutes later we sat side by side on one of the salon couches. I had cried so much my head hurt. Lani handed me another tissue. âYou good now?â I blew my nose.âThis is humiliating.â âIt really isnât.â âNo.âI turned my phone toward her.âRead the comments.â She took it and her expression darkened immediately. The longer she scrolled, the angrier she looked. âOh, absolutely not.â âWhat?â She kept reading then finally locked the screen. âTheyâre miserable.â I laughed weakly.âThey seem pretty convinced.â âThey donât know you.â âIt still hurts.âI stared at the floor. Lani sighed. Then gently took my hand. âTalk to me. Tell me everything.â So I did. I told her about the dinner with my parents, the marriage pressure, and my father's betrayal, and now this article. By the time I finished talking, my throat hurt. Lani sat quietly for several seconds. Then she picked up my phone. âWhat are you doing?â âFixing something.â She opened
ZOEâS POV The office felt unusually quiet. Or maybe it only felt that way because my mind wouldnât stop spinning. Across the hall, Julian had been locked in meetings with his PR and legal teams for most of the morning. People had been moving in and out of the executive floor for hours. Normally I wouldâve been involved in some capacity, but after everything that had happened this week, I was grateful for the distance. At least it gave me time to think. Or overthink. I stared blankly at the spreadsheet open on my monitor, reading the same line for what had to be the fifth time without actually processing a single word. My phone sat beside my keyboard. For the third time in ten minutes, I picked it up. Still nothing. I opened my messages and stared at the conversation with Talia. Me:⨠This isnât fair, Talia. Dad canât just decide who we marry because itâs convenient for him. I know we donât always get along but surely you see how messed up this is. The typi
JULIANâS POV The loud crack of Aaronâs golf club echoed across the quiet course as the ball soared cleanly through the morning air. âDamn,â he muttered, lowering the club. âThat one felt good.â I barely looked up from where I stood near the golf cart, adjusting my glove. âYou say that every time.â âBecause Iâm talented.â I snortedâYouâre mediocre at best.â Aaron scoffed. âAnd yet somehow Iâm still beating you.â âYouâve been keeping score?â I asked dryly. âObviously.â A faint smirk tugged at my mouth as I stepped forward and positioned myself for my shot. The cool Thursday morning air helped clear my head slightly, but not enough. Not with everything currently happening. I swung smoothly. The ball flew across the green with precision before landing farther than Aaronâs had. His face twisted immediately. âI hate you.â âThat is talent,â I replied calmly. Aaron rolled his eyes before grabbing another ball. âYouâve been in a weird mood all morning.â I di
JULIANâS POV I stared at the reports spread across my desk, irritation simmering beneath my skin. Aaron and the rest of the campaign team had left hours ago. Maureen had also left for home a few minutes ago, after informing me that another venue had been canceled in Connecticut. Another âanonymous sourceâ was feeding information to the press before my campaign even officially launched. And whoever was behind it knew exactly how to apply pressure without leaving obvious fingerprints. I let out an exasperated sigh as I skimmed through another email from one of the campaign coordinators. This was no longer a political competition. Someone was actively trying to destabilize me before I could even gain momentum. A frantic knock interrupted my thoughts. I barely looked up before calling out. âNot now.â The door opened anyway. Normally
JULIANâS POV âSo the campaign kicks off in NYC then we move over to New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, and lastly Oregon.â I listened quietly as one of Elijah Burkeâs campaign strategists spoke, her manicured fingers tapping against the digital board displaying maps, schedules, projections, and polling data. The conference room was abuzz with energy. Half the people seated around the long black table had built political careers out of destroying opponents before they even realized they were in danger. There were Media consultants, campaign managers, financial strategists, and public image experts. Only the best in the game and now they work for me. âThe NYC launch has to be flawless,â Elijah said smoothly from across the table. âFirst impressions matter more than anything else in politics.â Aaron, who sat two seats away from me, leaned back lazily in his chair. âEverything in politics sounds exhausting.â âIt is,â one of the women mutte
MADISONâS POV I watched in disgust as Liam emptied yet another bottle of whiskey. My eyes drifted to the clock, it was barely past 9am. âLet me guess, youâre going to spend the entire day drinking again.â He gave me a deathly glare. âWhat is it to you?â âBecause Iâm the one who has to deal with your mood swings when the drinking starts and Iâd rather not spend my day doing that.â He scoffed as he took another swig straight from a fresh bottle whilst scrolling through his phone. âMind your own business.â âSpeaking of business, shouldnât you be at work by now?â âI called in sick.â I mentally face-palmed myself. Oh for the love of God. âKeep that up and youâll be thrown out of this house when you can't afford the bills anymore.â He ignored me and continued scrolling on his phone, stopping when he got to a video whose audio I had heard countless times in the last week. It was the Video of Zoe giving a speech after being called on stage by her boss Julian. âGo
ZOEâS POV Much later that night, everything had blurred into laughter, music, and too much drinks I probably shouldnât have taken. By the time Lani and I found ourselves again for the third time after being separated, my head was pleasantly fuzzy. She took one look at me. âOh you
Julianâs Pov I didnât expect her to move that fast. One second I was tucking the blanket around her, ready to force myself to walk away, and the next she was grabbing my shirt, pulling me down onto the mattress with surprising strength for someone who could barely stand ten minutes ago.
ZOEâS POVI woke up with my head pounding like a tiny demon had set up a construction site behind my temples. I had this strange sense that something important had happened.Something I couldnât quite place.My mouth was dry. My body felt warm in unfamiliar places. When I shifted beneath the covers
Zoeâs POV I couldnât stop shaking. The keys felt heavy in my hand, signifying the weight of everything Iâd lost⌠and everything I never expected to get back. My heart pounded so hard I could barely hear myself think. I lifted my eyes to him, my breath unsteady. âI donât know what to say.â







