I stared at the note in my hands long after the ink blurred with the heat of my skin.
“You looked beautiful tonight. But next time, don’t run. — K”
Run? As if I hadn’t spent a year running from the hollow space he left behind. As if showing up, breaking me open, and then gifting me a dress I once designed and he rejected—wasn’t just another power play wrapped in sentiment.
I dropped the envelope like it burned and backed away from it. But sleep never came. I couldn’t and damn it!
THE city swallowed me whole as I walked aimlessly through its midnight veins. My heels clicked against the sidewalk, muffled by wind and the weight of everything unsaid. I passed closed storefronts and flickering neon signs. The cold sliced through my coat, but I welcomed it. The sting reminded me I was still here. Still me.
Kade’s voice kept echoing in my skull.
"Come back."
Like it was that easy. Like he hadn’t disappeared first. Like he hadn’t left me bleeding on our bathroom floor, clutching nothing but grief and a silent phone.
And then Julian, who watched the wreckage like it was art. Smug, unreadable. All charm and strategy. I wasn’t a trophy. I wasn’t a weapon. And I sure as hell wasn’t a pawn in their war.
BY THE time I stumbled into my loft, it was nearly 1 a.m. I tossed my keys onto the counter with more force than necessary, kicked off my heels, and stood there in silence. The city lights bled through the tall windows. I poured myself a glass of wine, but it tasted like regret.
My phone buzzed.
KADE: You left. We weren’t done.
I didn’t reply. Ten seconds later:
KADE: He’s using you.
I stared at the screen. My pulse roared in my ears.
So were you, I wanted to scream. You used my silence. My love. My grief. You used my stillness as permission to disappear. But I didn’t text that. Instead, I shut my phone off, grabbed my sketchpad, and forced myself to draw. To create. To remember who the hell I was before they tried to reduce me into someone else’s aftermath. But the pencil wouldn’t move.
Every line blurred into memory. Not of Julian. Not of Kade. But Leo.
His laughter. His tiny fingers curled around mine. The way he’d giggle in his sleep. The day he whispered, “Live for you, Lina. Don’t forget yourself.”
God, I missed him. And somehow, in all this chaos, it felt like I was losing him again.
I WALKED into Westmark’s office the next morning before the sun even finished rising. My head pounded. My chest ached.
Julian was already there—of course—lounging on the studio couch like he was born into the furniture.
“Coffee’s still hot,” he said, lifting a second cup.
I ignored it. “You set me up.”
He didn’t flinch. “I made you visible.”
“No,” I snapped. “You ambushed me. You orchestrated that dinner. You knew he’d be there.”
He sipped his coffee, unbothered. “And you looked stunning, by the way. The dress worked.”
I glared at him. “You don’t get to play hero when you’re the one starting the fire.”
Julian stood, slow and deliberate. “Look, Alina. I didn’t hire you because I wanted a pretty face. I hired you because you’re smart. Dangerous, even. But don’t kid yourself—this industry worships chaos. You walked through fire and didn’t burn. That’s power. Headlines follow you now.”
“And you think I’m your scandal mascot?”
“No,” he said, stepping closer. “I think you’re the wildcard. And the only thing Kade Rivers never saw coming.”
I took a step back, suddenly aware of how close he stood. How deliberate everything about him was. His words. His charm. Even his silence.
“I’m not yours,” I whispered.
“But you could be,” he murmured, gaze dropping to my lips.
The air between us pulsed. I hated that part of me couldn’t decide if it was fear I felt—or temptation.
THE press went nuclear the next day.
“Alina Cruz Caught Between Billionaires: Former Wife Sparks Industry War.”
My inbox overflowed. Designers I hadn’t spoken to in years wanted collaborations. My Instagram following tripled overnight. Influencers were already calling me the Fashion Phoenix. But all I wanted was quiet. Then came the package.
It arrived mid-afternoon—black wrapping, silver ribbon. No name. No note. Inside was a dress. Scarlet silk. Hand-stitched. Backless. My design.
One I’d started months ago and abandoned. Too raw. Too bold. Kade had once dismissed it, said it was “too loud to be elegant.” But the fabric in front of me was perfect. Every seam knew my hands. The stitching was intimate. Familiar. Only one person knew the pattern by heart. It's Kade. Was it an apology? A taunt? Or a challenge?
THAT night, I stood in my loft, staring at the dress like it might answer every question. It didn’t. But it reminded me of one truth. I was done letting men define me. Not Kade with his silence. Not Julian with his schemes. If they wanted a war, fine. But this time, I’d be the one drawing the lines.
THE next morning, I scheduled my first solo runway show. My collection. My terms. When the press asked what inspired the line, I didn’t flinch. I smiled, smooth and sharp.
“Redemption,” I said.
But behind the curtain, I was still bleeding. And I wasn’t sure if I wanted to heal—or let them feel every cut I’d ever swallowed.
