MasukI had it in mind to see Nicholas, mostly to wrap things up cleanly before diving fully into wedding preparations. Mason had already spoken to his mother, and once the wedding was behind us, school would take over most of my time. I also wanted to invite Nicholas before everything got too hectic and I somehow forgot.He was happy for me when I told him, congratulated me warmly, admitted he would miss working with me, and wished me nothing but the best.As I turned to leave, something got into me. Curiosity, maybe, or Daphne's words still sitting in the back of my mind. I turned back around.“Nicholas, are you in love with me?”The question caught him off guard. “Where is that coming from?”“Daphne. She seemed pretty certain you were.” I hesitated. “I didn't think much of it before, but now that I've invited you to the wedding... if she's right and being there is going to be difficult for you, I don't think I'd want to put you through that.”He was quiet for a moment before releasing a
Chase, who was lying facing the door, saw me first.“Fuck.”The shock on his face made Hannah turn around, and she screamed when she saw me.I didn't even bother saying anything. I pulled the door shut and walked back downstairs laughing.I went into the kitchen, grabbed a bottle of wine and a glass, then made myself comfortable while I waited for the walk of shame.They clearly weren't in a hurry to come down. Hannah's muffled scream a few minutes later told me exactly why.My mouth fell open before I started laughing again.I already knew whose idea that was. Chase probably looked at her and said something along the lines of, Well, Mia already saw us. We might as well finish.Shameless.Chase was the first to come downstairs. The moment I saw him, I started grinning.He sat next to me. “What are you even doing here? Shouldn't you be busy preparing for your wedding or something?”“I am doing exactly that. I came to update my bridesmaid, only to walk in on you getting it.” I mimicked
The rest of the celebration passed in a blur of laughter, teasing and conversations coming from every direction. At some point, there was so much going on that I gave up trying to keep track of who was saying what and simply enjoyed the moment, watching Lior happily move from lap to lap.I was sitting beside Mason, still occasionally looking down at my ring like it might disappear if I didn't keep checking, when he brought up an engagement party.My father jumped in with his own plan. He wanted to formally introduce me as his daughter.Somehow, those two things became one huge engagement-slash-reveal party, and I was perfectly fine with that.My father had missed years of being my father. If standing in front of a room full of people and proudly announcing that I was his daughter made him happy, I wasn't going to take that away from him.The problem started when they moved on to the wedding.It started with possible dates and quickly spiraled into planners, designers and venues.I sat
Laughing, I pointed at the sign. "Yes or yes? Mason, it's supposed to be yes or no."He rolled his eyes. "The only reason I'm even on my knees right now is because I want to give you a nice story to tell our kids. We're already married.""Oh, really?" I folded my arms. "Okay then. Since you're not serious…"I turned like I was about to leave.He caught my wrist and pulled me back, laughing. "Fine. I will be serious."He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black box, opening it to reveal the same cheap ring I had given him the summer we first met.I started laughing all over again. "Mason, be serious. For real this time.""That laugh," he smiled up at me, "is exactly how I intend to keep you for the rest of our life."My laughter died instantly."I had something else planned," he continued. "I wanted to fly you out of LA, somewhere beautiful, do something elaborate, ask you to be my wife in grand style. But when I really thought about it, no place could mean more than this o
When we arrived in France, I was surprised by the house.It was tucked into a quiet, middle-class neighborhood and wasn't particularly huge. Compared to Dad's house in Chicago, it was almost modest, definitely not the kind of place I imagined a man like him buying.He caught the question on my face before I even asked it, laughed, and explained."Your mother made us buy it. She was tired of the big houses and all the…" He paused, chuckling. "What did she call it? The bling-bling.""She said she couldn't change who I was, but France was supposed to be where she could escape from my world." His smile softened. "She loved it here."Walking through the front door, I understood why he had kept the house.It felt like she still lived there.There were traces of my mother everywhere. Her clothes were still in the closet. Her jewelry, shoes, and other belongings remained exactly where she had left them. Even the walls looked like they hadn't been repainted since she was here.It was almost as
Before we left, my father told Gina that once he was finished with her, being homeless would be the least of her worries. She would beg for death, and death would stay far out of reach.Inside the car, I held the letter tightly against my chest. My mother had done everything within her power to make sure I had a good life.I had been loved before I even took my first breath.If I ever had a daughter, I already knew what I would name her.Aurora.Staring down at the letter, an unpleasant thought crept in. Nina had given me this letter, and Gina, knowing her the way I did, would figure out exactly who had done it.And Nina must have known that before she gave it to me.Why had she risked it?"Can you please take me back," I told my father. "There is one more thing I need to do."He asked the driver to turn around.When we pulled up, exactly as I feared, Nina was on the floor while her mother and father struck her without mercy.She was not even fighting back. It looked almost as if she
“Mason… how did you even find—”The words barely left my mouth before he took my hand and led me straight to his car parked outside.“Mason…”“Get in.”The way he said it shut everything down. Whatever I wanted to ask stayed stuck in my throat.I got into the back seat. He slid in beside me, the do
MiaFrom the hotel, I drove straight home with only two things on my mind.First, I needed a shower. After that, I would go through everything I owned to see if there was anything worth selling. I couldn’t risk putting all my hope on Mason.The house lights were on when I walked in, and the sound o
I stood in front of my parents’ door, my hand hovering in the air.This was the last place I ever wanted to come back to. The last time I stood here, my father had made it very clear I was no longer his daughter.I drew in a slow breath and knocked, hoping it would be Nina who answered. If my fathe
MiaMy phone vibrated in my pocket while I was wiping down the last table in the ballroom.I froze, the cloth still in my hand, my heart pounding hard against my ribs. Mrs. Betty never called me this late unless something was wrong with Lior.I glanced around. The ballroom was nearly empty now, jus







