Chapter 17

Damian’s eyes stayed glued to the last photograph, the edges cutting into his fingers from how hard he held it. He had seen many unsettling things in his life , boardroom betrayals, financial scandals, men turning on each other for power but nothing had hollowed him out like this.

The image was burned into him: Lydia’s hand resting lightly on Ava’s thigh, her nails painted deep red, the same shade she used on nights she wanted him undone. Ava’s head was tilted toward her, lips parted just enough to look like they were sharing a secret… or about to share a kiss.

Damian swallowed hard.

The Lydia in that photo was a stranger ,intimate, dangerous, and undeniably complicit.

A quiet hum from outside reached his ears, barely audible over the pounding in his head. He moved toward the window, and there she was — Lydia, in her silk blouse and black tailored pants, hair loose and falling over her shoulders, slipping into the driver’s seat of her car.

No pause. No glance back toward the house.

T