LOGINElena's POVA few days later, I stood in front of my full-length mirror, fingers smoothing the sleek emerald gown over my hips, watching how the fabric hugged my curves just right, making me feel powerful, untouchable. I'd moved on from Alex honest to God, I had. Dated Adrian, let him drown out every last echo of my ex with those endless, intense nights where he'd whisper promises against my skin until I forgot my own damn name. But that betrayal? The way he'd cheated me without blinking? It lingered like a bruise that never quite healed. Deep down, under all the "I'm over it" bullshit I fed myself, I wanted him to taste it too the sharp sting of watching someone you once had slip through your fingers forever. And my stupid heart? It still carved Adrian's presence like a junkie needing a fix, aching for him to be close even when my head screamed to keep him at arm's length. He was telling the truth this time, I knew it somewhere in my bones. Probably always had been. But why make
"Miss me today?" His tone was light, teasing, but his eyes held that possessive heat. She didn't look up, her pencil flying across the paper in sharp, decisive strokes. "Like a hole in the head, ." Adrian chuckled, low and warm, the sound rumbling through his chest as he picked up one of her fabric swatches a heavy wool blend and rubbed it thoughtfully between his fingers. "This one's too stiff for the cocktail dress you're sketching. It'll hang wrong on the curves. Try the silk-cashmere from the back rack instead; it'll drape like liquid." There was a playful glint in his eye, like he was sharing an inside secret, fully at ease in her world. Elena's brush paused mid-stroke, and she finally looked up, her cheeks flushing not with flattery but with rising anger. "And what exactly makes you think you know my designs better than I do?" "Two years watching every move," he replied smoothly, voice dropping to that husky timbre that always sent a shiver down spines. "I know
Third person pov Adrian's sleek black Bentley glided through the rain-slicked streets of the city, the wipers cutting steady arcs across the windshield like a metronome counting down to an inevitable confrontation. Elena sat rigid in the passenger seat, her arms crossed tightly over her chest, staring out at the blurred neon lights streaking past. The silence between them hung heavy, thicker than the downpour hammering the roof, suffocating every breath. He stole glances at her the sharp, defiant line of her jaw clenched in anger, the way her fingers dug into her own biceps as if she were physically holding herself together to keep from shattering right there. The air smelled of wet leather and tension, and Adrian felt it coiling in his gut like a spring ready to snap.He couldn't stand it any longer. His hands tightened on the leather-wrapped steering wheel until his knuckles whitened. "Elena," he said finally, his voice low and rough, almost lost under the engine's steady hum.
Elena's POV "You don't get to stand there acting like some protector after terrorizing my life," I said, my voice shaking hard now as I stepped back from him, putting distance between us across the sitting room. Anger boiled up fresh and raw, washing over the shock of seeing him here, in this house, behind every single threat that had me looking over my shoulder for weeks. "Ivan's family is destroyed because of you. My studio violated. Police lying for you. This isn't love, Adrian. This is obsession. Sick obsession." Adrian's face tightened just a fraction, but he didn't back off, just stood there watching me with those dark eyes that used to make me feel safe but now only made my skin crawl. "Elena, you think I wanted it this way? Two years watching you build everything without me every dinner, every laugh with Lila, every new client I took it because I had no choice. But I couldn't stay away anymore." "No choice?" I laughed sharp and bitter, shaking my head as I paced to
Elena's POV That final text had been eating away at me all day: **"Date night's over. Now we talk. Via Convento 47. Midnight. Come alone."** Lila begged me not to go, kept saying we should call someone police, security, anybody but something about that message pulled at me hard. The absolute confidence that I'd show up alone. I needed to see this creep's face. Needed it over before Ivan woke up from his coma or God knows who came next. My Alfa's headlights barely cut through the coastal fog as I turned onto Via Convento, GPS signal dying completely halfway down. Number 47 appeared suddenly not a normal house but this massive compound with tall iron gates, stone walls that looked serious, floodlights sweeping slow across the gravel driveway. I slowed down, honestly shocked at the size of it. *Who the hell lives here?* Two guys in dark suits stood at the gate, hands near their belts like they carried. Not some random stalker. This was real money. Real control. One nodded at me as
Third Person POV Liam was waiting for Elena when she pulled up to the studio that morning, looking shaken in a way she'd never seen before. He met her at the door, clutching his phone so tight his knuckles looked white, his usual easygoing expression completely gone. "Elena, you need to sit down for this," he said, his voice low and unsteady. "It's Ivan. He's in the hospital serious car accident last night." The sketchbook slipped right out of Elena's hands and hit the concrete with this dull thud that echoed in the quiet parking lot. "What do you mean accident? How bad is it?" she asked, her throat suddenly dry as she stared at him, trying to process. Liam glanced down at his phone again, scrolling through a flood of messages from their shared contacts around town. "Happened around midnight on the coastal road. His car went off the edge, totaled completely. Doctors are saying internal injuries, broken ribs, and they're worried about coma risks. His family's at the hospital
Adrian's POVSharp doorbell cut through Lila's apartment like a blade pulling me from the shadows outside where I'd waited ten minutes already Marco's text confirming Elena was safe inside but time dragging heavier than usual tonight. Lila swung the door wide her curly hair wild bunny onesie half-
Elena's POV I stumbled out of Alex's hospital room still shaking from Victoria's shrieking meltdown my hands trembling as I gripped the cold metal doorframe trying to steady my racing pulse while nurses hurried past whispering about the commotion. Marco waited outside leaning against the sterile
Elena's POVThree days dragged heavy and slow through the penthouse silence with Victoria's venomous words echoing endlessly in my head like a curse I couldn't shake loose no matter how hard I tried. I'd barely slept more than an hour straight reliving that horrific street moment over and over aga
Elena's POV Victoria's venomous words sliced through me like acid as Adrian gripped my hand tight pulling me away from her furious glare and those hateful eyes burning holes in my back. "You shameless girl you'll pay dearly" kept echoing in my head over and over while we stumbled through ER door







