Hidden Truth

Ava's Pov

Mia didn’t say anything at first. She just stared at me from across the kitchen, her fingers wrapped tightly around a mug of coffee that had long gone cold, like she’d forgotten it existed. Her eyes were locked on me—searching, calculating, waiting for me to say something that would make sense of what clearly didn’t.

The room was silent for a long time.

Chloe, on the other hand, had no patience for silence. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other, biting down hard on her lower lip. Her fingers tapped restlessly against her arm, her entire body vibrating with restrained urgency. She wanted answers. No—she needed them.

“I walked in on him,” I repeated. My voice was quiet and level. “In our bed.”

Mia blinked slowly. “Ava…”

“With a man.” I let out a short, dry laugh. “He didn't even have the decency to go to a hotel.”

“Okay. Wait,” Chloe said, rubbing her face with her palm. “Start from the beginning.”

“There is no beginning,” I said. “That was the end. Everything ended in that moment.”

My fingers curled against the edge of the granite counter, pressing hard enough to ground me. The cool surface bit into my skin, but it wasn’t enough to distract from the image burned into my mind.

The room. The sheets. The way the afternoon light had spilled across them like it didn’t care what it was illuminating.

Chloe was pacing now, her fist in tight knots, I almost laughed as I pictured her hitting his smug face.

“I keep replaying it,” I admitted. “I keep looking for an explanation that makes it less humiliating.”

Mia’s expression became firm. “Ava, no. There is no version of that situation that is acceptable.”

I shook my head and looked at the floor. “I was going to marry him. The fact is, I chose him.”

“Listen to me,” Chloe said, leaning forward. “You didn’t lose anything here. He is the one who lost a future with you.”

I didn’t respond. It sounded like something people say to be kind, but it didn't change my reality.

What I didn’t say was worse.

I didn't tell them about the night at the club. Admitting that I had tried to pay a stranger for his company felt like another layer of humiliation I wasn't ready to share. I kept that memory locked away, just like I had done with Ethan’s constant, ignored calls before I finally blocked his number.

Three days. That’s all it had been.

Three days since I walked out of that house with nothing but my car and a handbag. Three days since Mia opened her home to me without asking questions I wasn’t ready to answer.

Emails kept coming in, one after another, piling up in my inbox like nothing had changed. The city outside Mia’s apartment buzzed with its usual chaos—honking cars, distant voices, life moving forward at an unforgiving pace.

I stood in front of the full-length mirror and adjusted the lapel of my blazer.

“You’ve changed your outfit twice,” Mia said from the bed. 

Chloe had already left to get ready at her place, promising to meet us later.

“I am making sure I look composed,” I replied.

“You are staring at yourself like you’re preparing for a physical fight.”

I didn’t answer because she was correct. Today was the final acquisition of the Aurelius Group. It was the result of months of negotiations and intense pressure. I refused to lose my professional standing along with my relationship. I needed to be in control.

I grabbed my bag and straightened my posture. “Let’s go.”

The conference room was cold. I took my seat and placed my leather folder neatly on the table. Across the room, the legal teams spoke in low voices and shuffled through stacks of paper.

The lead counsel cleared his throat to get our attention. “As we finalize the transfer of ownership, all remaining documents will be signed under the authority of the incoming executive party.”

The room went quiet. No one had met the buyer yet. He had been nothing more than a name attached to contracts, a faceless entity with enough power to take control of everything in this building.

The door opened. A man walked in. He did not rush, and he did not look at the people at the table immediately. He moved with a level of confidence that changed the atmosphere of the room. He acted as if the building and everyone in it already belonged to him.

Power had a presence—and his was impossible to ignore.

I looked up. And the moment I saw his face—My heart slammed hard against my ribs.

The man from the club.

The one I hadn’t been able to forget, no matter how hard I tried.