Chapter 2

I blinked slowly, my vision struggling to focus as I looked up.

“Are you ok?” a deep voice said above me. The voice was calm and steady.

His dark hair falling slightly over his forehead, eyes that seemed to glow under long black lashes and black brows.

He was… breathtaking….

“Th-thank you,” I stammered, my voice barely above a whisper.

He didn’t reply. He just looked at me.

Like he could see straight through the mess I had become.

I tried to stand properly, but my body betrayed me again. My stomach twisted violently, and I barely made it outside the bar before I threw up in the alley.

Humiliation burned through me.

Perfect—As if tonight wasn’t already bad enough.

He followed me out.

A moment later, a hand appeared in my blurred vision.

Clipped between the slender fingers was a pack of tissue.

“I’m fine,” I murmured weakly. My voice cracked.

“You’re not,” he said calmly, guiding me to lean against the wall. His scent was clean, faintly musky—it calmed the chaos in my chest the moment.

Something about that broke me that I Immediately burst into tears.

Everything spilled out before I could stop them. I confessed without meaning to. The betrayal, the wedding, Raphael, Vivian, my stepmother—everything spilled from my lips as if speaking it aloud could somehow exorcise the pain.

I didn’t even know why I was telling him—this stranger whose name I didn’t even know—but I couldn’t stop and he didn’t interrupt me either. He just listened.

When my voice finally faded into silence, my tears slowed, leaving behind a hollow emptiness.

We suddenly stared at each— his eyes searching, mine unguarded. And then, without warning, a strange, urgent desire took hold of me.

Before I could stop myself, I closed the distance and pressed my lips against his.

He froze instantly, shock flashing across his face, his eyes wide open as if he couldn’t believe what was happening.

For a heartbeat, the world stood still.

Then the weight of everything crashed over me.

My strength gave out, and my body slumped, exhaustion pulling me under as the moment shattered into silence.

I blinked slowly and opened my eyes. My head was aching—throbbing painfully. Confusion hit me instantly when I woke up somewhere I had never been before.

Oh my God!

What have I done!

My heart slammed against my ribs as I sat up abruptly, Panic surged as I hurriedly pulled back the blanket, checking if my clothes were still on.

I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding.

A wave of relief washed over me when I realized I was still fully dressed and untouched.

But the relief didn’t last long.

Like a flash… the memories of last night came crashing down on me— going to Raphael’s place, the betrayal and drinking to stupor alone at a bar.

But my memory of how I got to a hotel remained blank.

not just any hotel room—it was luxurious, far more expensive than anywhere I had ever stayed

Outside, the morning sun blinded me,I forced myself out of the bed and rushed out of the room, not daring to stay any longer. Shame and confusion was twisting inside me.

By the time I got home, the house was exactly as I left it. No one noticed if I had slept out or came home the previous night. because nobody cares.

I walked straight to my room and shut the door behind me, my body finally giving in as I collapsed onto the bed.

Still broken and shocked from what I had witnessed.

My phone buzzed. Interrupting my thoughts.

I reached for it slowly.

another reminder of the life I was supposed to lead.