LOGINArya's POVI knew something was wrong before Leon closed the door. He usually carried bad news with an irritating calm, as if every crisis could be solved after lunch. Today he stood rigid in my office, and my stomach dropped before he spoke."Julian suspended you until further notice."I lowered the folder in my hands. My phone had lit up through the night with Julian's messages and missed calls, but I had assumed he was angry, not that he had made a formal decision. "Where is he?""Gone, and not your business right now. He does not want you around him today."The room seemed to tilt. "That is dramatic.""No. What you did was dramatic." Leon never raised his voice; he did not need to. His flat precision cut through every excuse I had rehearsed."I was drunk," I said. It was true. I had been drinking, careless and tired of pretending I did not notice Julian: the authority in his voice, the way a room shifted around him, the way he looked at Savannah. None of that excused kissing him,
Julian's POVI woke before Savannah and, for once, stayed perfectly still.The room was dim, with only the soft glow of the city slipping through the curtains, and she lay curled beside me, breathing evenly. After the night before, I should have been exhausted, yet my mind felt painfully clear.The photograph had changed what I was willing to tolerate around us. When I reached for my phone on the nightstand, it buzzed three times in my hand.Leon, of course.I stepped into the hallway before I answered so I would not wake her. "What," I said, keeping my voice low."Good morning to you too," Leon replied, not bothering with pleasantries.I pinched the bridge
Savannah's POVBy the time Julian came home, the dinner I had made for him was cold, the candles had burned themselves out, and whatever excitement I had felt had turned into something heavy and humiliating.The chicken pasta sat untouched beneath its cover on the dining table. Dessert was still in the refrigerator, and the kitchen still smelled of garlic and cream. I had cooked because Julian had asked me to, and I had been happy when he asked. That was what hurt most.I sat on the couch, staring at the photograph looping on television: Julian and Arya, their mouths almost touching. The reporter asked where Julian's wife had been while he checked his lawyer into a hotel after midnight. I knew where I had been, here, waiting for him, and every question felt like an accusation.The elevator chimed and my body stiffened. I heard him before I saw him, the sound of his footsteps changing as he crossed the threshold. "Savannah?" he called softly.I didn't turn. The reporter's voice continu
Julian's POVBy ten thirty I knew dinner was gone, and by eleven fifteen I was sitting at that long conference table with a tightness in my chest that felt dangerously close to anger. The meeting had dragged on far past anything reasonable. What should have been a simple final discussion after the function had turned into a slow, grinding loop of investor concerns, legal questions, development timelines, and the same arguments repeated until they lost their meaning. Every time I thought we were finally finished, someone found a new excuse to keep us here.I checked my phone beneath the table. Savannah had replied forty minutes earlier. Okay. Food will still be there. That small sentence gnawed at me more than anything said in that room. I had asked her to cook for me, and she had sounded happy when I asked. I could picture her in the kitchen, preparing dinner because she believed I
Savannah's POVI hadn't meant to watch the function.The television was background noise while I tried to decide what to do with my afternoon. Then Julian's face filled the screen and everything else dropped away.The reporter stood at the entrance of some business event, rattling off names and companies like a script. Then the camera shifted and there he was, my husband, perfectly put together, the man the city expected: controlled, confident, important. For a second I smiled. Then I saw Arya beside him and the smile vanished.She looked flawless. Of course she did. Her dress, posture, and practiced ease told the cameras exactly when to look and when to turn away. She moved beside him as though she belonged there, as though she knew the choreography of this world. Julian looked comfortable beside her too. It did not suggest anything romantic, or at least that was what I told myself. Still, something sharp twisted in my chest when the photographers started snapping.Jealousy. Stupid,
Julian's POVI left before Savannah woke up.It wasn't planned. At least, that's what I told myself. I had so much to do today. I didn't even know where to begin.I'd woken early, watched her sleep for a few minutes, and decided not to disturb her. She'd been through enough.Then my phone lit up: three messages from Arya, two from Claire, one from Leon, and a calendar reminder for an event I'd shoved to the back of my mind. I stared at the screen longer than I should have.The function had been on the schedule for weeks: investors, city officials, charity reps, and enough press to make slipping out early impossible. And it was enough to snap me out of the moment knowing well that I was going to end regretting this if I didn't go.
Savannah’s POV“Move!” I yelled, having little time to react as I quickly dived out of their way. I had barely taken a breath of relief when I turned to see Julian, who was still frozen on the spot and he stood directly in their path.He was completely still with a frightened expression on his face
Savannah's povI had always imagined my wedding to be like a fairytale wedding, filled with love and happiness.The wedding I had was the complete opposite. There were no joyful tears, no happy toasts, and certainly no romance. All through the brief wedding, I tried not to snap at a super cold Julia
Savannah's povI smoothed down the skirt of my black dress for the hundredth time while keeping my posture perfectly rigid. I felt entirely out of my element in a gown and I would choose my pants and t-shirt over this any day, but for the sake of my parents, I had to attend this gala.We were in the
Julian’s POVI adjusted my collar and stepped into the commercial real estate office, heading straight for the broker's desk. I didn't care about the extra fees or the location costs because I really needed the space. I was a Montgomery by blood, but I wanted to make a name for myself. My startup wa







