Chapter thirty

Bella walked out of Marcus’s building like her legs didn’t belong to her. The night air hit her face cold and sharp, but she didn’t feel it. Her whole body felt numb, like someone had switched her off.

Rachel’s voice kept playing in her head.

“Took you long enough to figure it out.”

The drugs. The escort setup. The way Rachel smiled while saying it. Like it was nothing. Like Bella was nothing.

She kept walking. Fast. No direction. Just away.

How could she miss it? All those years. Sleepovers. Late-night talks. Rachel crying on her shoulder when guys broke her heart. Bella holding her up. Telling her she deserved better.

And the whole time… Rachel was fucking Marcus. Planning. Waiting. Smiling in her face while sharpening the knife.

Bella’s chest burned. Not just from crying. From stupid questions that wouldn’t stop.

Was this always supposed to happen?

Did I deserve it?

Was I too blind? Too trusting? Too… something?

She laughed once but it was short and bitter. The sound scared her because it didn’t sound like her.

She ended up at some outdoor event two blocks away. Music thumped from speakers. People laughed and lights strung up like stars. It looked happy. Normal.

She didn’t belong here.

But she went in anyway.

Maybe if she drank enough she could drown the night. Make it fuzzy. Make it disappear.

She grabbed a drink from the first tray she saw. Something sweet and strong. Downed it fast. The burn felt good for two seconds.

Then another and another.

But the alcohol didn’t erase anything. It just made the memories louder.

Rachel’s smug face and Marcus’s groans.

The way he didn’t even notice Bella standing there.

She started shaking.

She pushed through the crowd, found a dark corner near some tall plants, and sank down on the low stone wall. Knees to chest. Arms wrapped tight around herself.

The tears came fast now. Hot. Quiet at first. Then harder.

People walked past. Some glanced. One guy stopped.

“You okay, sweetheart?” he asked. “Want another drink? I can get you something stronger.”

Bella shook her head. Didn’t look up. “No. I’m good.”

He shrugged and walked off.

Another girl tried. “Hey, you need a tissue? Or like… a hug?”

Bella just shook her head again.

She didn’t want pity. She wanted to disappear.

The music kept playing. Laughter kept happening. Life kept moving.

And she sat there breaking.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Three light taps on her shoulder.

Bella flinched. Snapped her head up fast, wiping her face with the back of her hand.

She blinked through blurry eyes.

Darian stood right in front of her.

Tall. Dark suit. No tie now. Sleeves rolled up. Looking down at her with that same unreadable face he always wore in the office.

But his eyes… they weren’t cold tonight. They looked almost… worried?

Bella’s mouth opened. Closed. Opened again.

“Sir?” Her voice cracked.

He didn’t smile. Didn’t say anything stupid like “are you okay?”

He just crouched down so they were eye level. Close enough that she could smell his cologne, clean, woodsy, steady.

“What are you doing here?” she whispered.

“I could ask you the same thing,” he said quietly. His voice was low, calm, cutting through the music like it wasn’t even there.

Bella laughed once—wet, broken. “Trying to forget.”

He nodded slowly. Like he understood more than she said.

She looked away. “I just found out… my best friend… she’s the one who did it. All of it. The drugs. The hotel. Everything. And Marcus… he was already with her. Before.”

Her voice shook harder. “I trusted them. Both of them. And they just…”

She couldn’t finish.

Darian stayed quiet for a second. Then he said softly, “People can be cruel when they’re jealous.”

Bella looked back at him. Tears still falling. “I feel so stupid.”

“You’re not stupid,” he said. “You’re human.”

She wiped her face again. “Why are you even here?”

“Same reason as you, maybe.” He shrugged one shoulder. “Needed air. Needed noise. Needed something that wasn’t my own head.”

Bella stared at him. For once he didn’t look like the cold boss. He looked… tired. Real.

She sniffed. “You don’t have to stay.”

“I know,” he said.

But he didn’t move.

He just stayed crouched there, close, quiet, letting her cry without making it worse.

The music thumped on.

The lights twinkled.

And for the first time that night, Bella didn’t feel completely alone.

The space between them gradually closed up…