Chapter 2

# Chapter 2: The Night Everything Changed

The moment the car door closed behind us, the noise of the airport disappeared.

For the first time in what felt like forever, there was silence.

I leaned back against the leather seat and let out a slow breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding.

"You've been quiet."

Lucian's voice was calm, but there was a trace of concern beneath it.

I turned to find him watching me instead of the road ahead.

"I'm fine."

"You've said three words since we left the terminal."

I let out a quiet laugh.

"So you're counting now?"

"I always count."

That earned him a smile.

His lips curved ever so slightly, as though he'd accomplished exactly what he'd set out to do.

"I'm serious, Aurora."

"I know."

I looked out the window as the city slipped past in a blur of lights.

"I just wasn't expecting to see them."

Lucian didn't interrupt.

He never did.

He simply let me speak when I was ready.

"I thought I'd moved on," I admitted. "And I have... mostly."

I rested my forehead against the cool glass.

"But seeing Damian again brought back memories I'd rather forget."

Lucian reached over and intertwined his fingers with mine.

His hand was warm.

Steady.

Grounding.

"You know what I noticed?" he asked.

I glanced at him.

"What?"

"You didn't cry."

I blinked.

"I thought about it."

"No."

His thumb brushed across my knuckles.

"You thought about punching him."

A laugh escaped before I could stop it.

"I did."

"I know."

His expression remained perfectly straight.

"I was mildly disappointed you didn't."

I stared at him for a second before laughing even harder.

"You're a terrible influence."

"So I've been told."

The laughter faded, leaving behind something quieter.

Something lighter.

"I used to think my life ended the day Damian asked for a divorce," I murmured.

Lucian turned his attention back to the road.

"And now?"

I looked down at our joined hands.

"Now I think it was the best thing that ever happened to me."

He didn't say anything.

He simply tightened his grip around my hand.

For Lucian, that was enough.

For me...

It meant everything.

I closed my eyes.

One month ago, I wasn't the woman sitting in this car.

One month ago, I was hiding inside my apartment, convinced my life was over because the man I loved had chosen someone else.

If Elena hadn't refused to let me wallow in my misery...

If she hadn't shown up at my door carrying enough takeout to feed an army...

If she hadn't practically dragged me out of my apartment...

I never would've met Lucian.

And everything that happened afterward...

Started with a knock on my front door.

### A Month Earlier

Three days.

That was how long I'd shut myself away.

Three days since Damian had walked out of our marriage without a shred of guilt.

Three days since he'd chosen Seraphina—my sister, his first love, and the woman my parents had always loved more than me.

The apartment was silent except for the faint hum of the air conditioner. The curtains remained closed, shutting out the afternoon sun, and dirty dishes had piled up in the sink. I'd lost count of how many cups of coffee I'd made or how many hours I'd spent staring blankly at the wall.

I wasn't sleeping.

I wasn't eating.

I was simply existing.

Then came the knocking.

Not gentle.

Not polite.

Relentless.

At first, I ignored it, convinced whoever it was would eventually give up.

They didn't.

The knocking grew louder, followed by the unmistakable voice of my best friend.

Elena.

She had been calling me every day since the divorce, leaving messages I hadn't listened to and texts I hadn't answered. When I refused to pick up, she'd done what only Elena Hart would dare to do.

She let herself in with the spare key I'd forgotten she still had.

The moment she stepped inside, her usual confident expression disappeared.

Her gaze swept across the apartment—the untouched food, the empty coffee mugs, the closed curtains—before finally settling on me.

For the first time since we'd met in university, she looked genuinely worried.

Without saying a word, she set the takeout bags on the table, rolled up her sleeves, and started cleaning.

She threw away the stale food, washed the dishes, and pulled open every curtain until sunlight flooded the apartment.

I hated how bright everything suddenly looked.

I hated even more that she was right.

The place had become a reflection of me.

A mess.

"You look terrible," she said eventually.

I gave a humorless laugh.

"I was hoping for something a little more comforting."

"You don't need comforting."

She turned to face me, arms folded across her chest.

"You need someone who's willing to tell you the truth."

I didn't argue.

I didn't have the energy.

Elena sat beside me and gently took my hand.

"You loved him," she said quietly. "But he didn't deserve that love."

The words hurt because they were true.

For five years, I'd convinced myself Damian was simply bad at expressing affection. I excused every forgotten anniversary, every cold shoulder, every moment he made me feel like I wasn't enough.

Now I knew why.

His heart had never belonged to me.

It had always belonged to Seraphina.

A tear slipped down my cheek before I could stop it.

Elena sighed and wrapped an arm around my shoulders.

"You get today," she murmured. "Cry as much as you need."

I leaned against her, exhausted.

"But tomorrow..." Her tone shifted, becoming unmistakably firm. "Tomorrow, we're getting your life back."

I frowned.

She smiled.

"And it starts with a blind date."

I stared at her, certain I'd misheard.

A date?

After everything that had happened?

The very idea sounded ridiculous.

I told her as much.

Elena only laughed, completely unfazed by my protests.

She'd already made up her mind.

Apparently, she'd also already made the reservation.

Looking back now...

I should have stayed home.

It would have been easier.

Safer.

Instead, I said yes to one dinner with a man I'd never met.

I had no idea that a single decision would change the course of my life forever.