CHAPTER 5: The Shift in Power

Ethan had never been the one chasing.

Women pursued him; competitors feared him. His life had always revolved around being in control, standing at the centre while everyone else revolved around him.

But not Aria.

Not anymore.

The phone call where she coldly dismissed his outrage over the Trent contract played on repeat in his mind.

“It’s just business. Isn’t that what you always told me?”

His jaw clenched as he walked into the penthouse, determination burning in his chest.

He found her sitting calmly on the balcony, sipping tea as the city lights twinkled beneath them. She looked completely unbothered, as if she hadn’t just blindsided him in front of his entire board.

“Aria,” he murmured, moving toward her.

She remained steady. “Ethan.”

“You deliberately went after that contract.”

She set her cup down slowly and carefully. “And?”

“And you knew it would cost my company millions.”

She crossed her legs, tilting her head. “You’re upset about losing to your wife?”

“You’re supposed to be on my side.”

She gave him a cool, mysterious smile. “We signed a contract, Ethan. A marriage of convenience. Remember? No emotional ties. No obligations beyond public appearances.”

“That’s not what I…”

“That’s exactly what you wanted.” Her voice cut clean and sharp. “You made the rules. I’m simply following them.”

His chest tightened. “You’re not the same woman I married.”

Her gaze held steady. “That’s the point.”

Ethan ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “Why are you doing this?”

“Doing what?”

“Pushing me, competing with me, acting like I don’t matter.”

She stood, her heels clicking against the stone floor as she approached him. “Because you don’t matter.”

His breath caught, a flare of something unfamiliar tightening his throat.

“In this arrangement,” she continued, her voice calm and firm, “I’m not here to please you, Ethan. I’m here to build my own name, my own legacy. You can either respect that or get used to losing.”

Her words landed like blows, but she walked past him without waiting for a response.

For the first time in his life, Ethan felt powerless.

She’s supposed to chase me. She’s supposed to want me. So why does it bother me that she doesn’t?

Later that week, Aria sat across from her father in a quiet café, reviewing documents for an upcoming merger. The warmth in her father’s eyes made her ache. In her past life, she had buried him too soon, buried him with the weight of the company’s failure.

This time, she wouldn’t lose him.

“You’ve grown strong, Aria,” her father said, smiling behind his glasses. “I’m proud of you.”

She sipped her coffee. “I’ve learnt to protect myself. I won’t make the same mistakes.”

Her father studied her for a moment, then lowered his voice. “Be careful with Ethan. Men like him… they don’t handle losing well. And when they start chasing what they can’t have, it usually means trouble.”

She just waved her hand aside. “Ethan doesn’t chase anyone. He’s just angry I’ve stopped playing by his rules.”

Her father frowned. “Are you sure about that? Because from what I’ve seen, the man’s starting to look at you differently.”

“He can look all he wants. I’m not interested in history repeating itself.”

“Even if he’s starting to develop real feelings?”

Aria’s lips curved in a faint, almost amused smile. “Then that’s his problem. Not mine.”

Her father shook his head, but he didn’t press the point. He knew better than anyone when Aria set her mind to something, she never quit.

That evening, Ethan sat across from Selena at their usual private restaurant. But something was off.

He barely touched his drink and barely heard Selena’s carefully chosen words as she draped her hand across his.

“You’ve been distracted lately,” she said gently, moving her fingers over his wrist. “Too much work?”

Ethan’s eyes moved toward the window, his mind miles away.

Selena’s smile faded. “Or is it Aria?”

His jaw tightened.

Selena leaned closer. “She’s doing this on purpose, you know. Trying to prove she doesn’t need you.”

“She’s free to do as she likes,” Ethan said quietly, signalling the waiter.

Selena’s brows lifted in surprise. “You’re really going to let her play this game?”

Ethan stood, pulling out his wallet to settle the bill. “Dinner’s over. I have something to take care of.”

“What? Now?” Selena’s voice sharpened, with surprise in her voice. “You’re leaving?”

He’d never once cut a meeting with her short.

Until now.

Ethan’s stare was distant. “Cancel the rest of the evening.”

Selena’s lips parted in shock as he walked away without offering her a ride, without a backward glance.

For the first time, Selena realised she was no longer the centre of his world. And that terrified her.

When Ethan arrived at the penthouse, he loosened his tie and scanned the quiet apartment. He thought of Aria’s cold dismissal, of her effortless success, of how she no longer looked at him with expectation or longing.

Why does it bother me so much? Why does it hurt now that she’s not chasing me?

He poured himself a drink, pacing the living room as the weight of the shift sank in.

This wasn’t just a contract anymore.

This was a game he wasn’t sure he knew how to win.

He checked the time and realised something else. Aria was supposed to be home for dinner. He had arranged a quiet evening and even had her favourite chef come in. It wasn’t in the contract, but he had wanted to see her, wanted to talk without the walls they both carefully maintained.

But the hours slipped by.

Aria never came.

And she didn’t bother to call.

Ethan sat down on the edge of the couch, his elbow resting on his knee, fingers pressed against his lips.

It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

She’s supposed to want me. She’s supposed to fight for me.

The realisation settled over him like a heavy fog.

Why does it hurt now that she’s not chasing me?

He whispered the words aloud, as if saying them might make them less true.

But they weren’t less true.

They were the beginning of something Ethan Blackwood had never experienced.

Loss.

And for the first time, he wasn’t sure how to fix it.