Philip “How the hell did you even find me?” Olivia’s voice was sharp enough to cut glass. She stood in the doorway, arms braced against the frame, irritation practically radiating off her. “Olivia… please,” I softened my tone, lowering my eyes like I was some broken man crawling back to the only woman who ever mattered. “We need to talk.” Her brows arched. “Talk? Or stalk? Which is it, Philip?” She folded her arms across her chest, shoulders squared. I forced a deep breath, slipping into the role Julian demanded I play. “I came because I heard about your parents. I… I wanted to be there for the funeral. I’m so sorry, Olivia.” I let my voice tremble, as if sorrow was squeezing it from my throat. But before I could even finish my performance, her laugh, cold, hollow, and utterly humorless—echoed through the small apartment. “Save it. What are you really doing here?” For a second, heat licked at the back of my neck. Damn her. She wasn’t falling for the act. She never made it easy,
– Sebastian I stood in front of the mirror, adjusting the knot of my tie like it mattered. My hair was slicked back perfectly, my suit pressed to perfection. If someone walked in right now, they would probably say I looked like the very definition of elegance. But the truth stared right back at me through hollow eyes. I looked like a corpse wrapped in silk. My skin was pale, the kind of pale that came from too many sleepless nights and too much whiskey burning its way down my throat. My reflection was a stranger. And tonight, that stranger was expected to smile, shake hands, and sell his soul. The door creaked open. I half expected Natasha, dripping in perfume and pretense, but instead Julian strolled in, already smug like he owned the air I was breathing. “The party has started downstairs,” he said, his tone annoyingly casual. “Or do you plan on sulking in here all night? After all, it is your engagement day.” I didn’t even bother turning to look at him. My voice came out cold
Olivia I don’t even remember when night bled into morning. One second, I was curled on the cold floor, drowning in tears, and the next, pale daylight was leaking through the curtains like a cruel reminder that the world keeps turning, even when yours has stopped. My face was tight from dried tears, my body stiff, and my heart felt like it had been stomped on over and over again. I pushed myself up, legs heavy, and caught sight of myself in the mirror. God. What a disaster. My hair was tangled, my eyes red and swollen, my skin ghostly pale. I looked like a stranger—or worse, a ghost of who I used to be. For a terrifying second, I swore I saw another reflection behind me. My pulse shot through the roof. Great. Perfect. Now I’m officially losing my mind. My hands shook as I grabbed the remote and turned on the TV, desperate for some kind of distraction. Big mistake. Every channel screamed my name. “Socialite Olivia Davenport—former wife of business mogul Sebastian Lancaster—has bee
I let my eyes close, exhaustion dragging me under. When I opened them again, the car was parked before tall wrought-iron gates, their black bars tangled with creeping vines. “Lois,” I called softly. “I’m here, Miss. You slept for about four hours.” I straightened slowly, my neck stiff and aching. The sky was overcast, heavy with gray clouds that matched the hollowness inside me. Lois opened the door, and a cool breeze brushed my face, carrying the faint scent of rain-soaked earth. “You sure about this place?” he asked, scanning the gates, the wild vines, the quiet desolation that hung in the air. I nodded. “It belonged to my mother. No one’s lived here in years, but… I need silence.” He didn’t argue. Just retrieved my suitcase from the trunk and followed me. The gates creaked open, protesting from disuse, and a shiver crawled down my spine. Whether it was the cold or the weight of what I was leaving behind—I didn’t know. At the front steps, I took the suitcase from him. “I’l
Olivia I folded one shirt after another, placing them carefully into the open suitcase on my bed, though my hands were trembling too much to fold them neatly. My tears kept dripping onto the fabric, leaving wet spots behind. God, I didn’t even know what I was doing—whether I was running away or breaking apart piece by piece. Maybe both. Sometimes, I wished that fire had taken me that night in the warehouse. At least then, my suffering would have ended there. Fate had been cruel enough to hand me a second chance, but this second chance felt more like punishment than mercy. I came back only to fix the mess of my first life, only to love him better this time. Instead, I was here now—divorced. Alone. Both my parents buried six feet under. And the only man I ever wanted to hold on to… gone. I zipped the suitcase with a sharp tug, the sound slicing through the silence of the room I once loved. My eyes lingered on the space—the walls, the bed, the memories burned into every corner. Memor
Sebastian The rain came down in sheets, soaking me until my clothes clung like a second skin. But no amount of water could rinse away the heaviness inside me. If anything, the storm mirrored what I felt—loud, merciless, endless. I stood there in the middle of it, letting it beat down on me like I deserved every drop. The cold didn’t bother me. Misery had a way of numbing you, and I welcomed it. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw her. Olivia—her smile, her warmth, her stubbornness that used to both drive me insane and keep me alive. And then I remembered the last time I saw her face, broken by me. By my choices. By my silence. The rain blurred the streetlights into halos, and for a second, I imagined her walking toward me through the haze, reaching for me like she always did. My chest ached because I knew it was a cruel trick of my mind. She wasn’t here. She might never be again. I moved forward aimlessly, my footsteps splashing through puddles, my body dragging itself through the