The silence in Nicholas’s office was unbearable. A sanctuary turned crypt.
Alina stood in front of the open drawer, the photos still trembling in her hands. Her heart pounded so violently she thought the framed images on the wall might shatter.
Nicholas and Arielle.
Laughing. Together.
The smiles weren’t faked. Their fingers had been linked. Her sister had leaned into his chest like she belonged there.
Like she’d been first.
She didn’t hear Nicholas enter. But she felt it—his presence filled the room like a thunderstorm.
“Alina—”
She held the photo up without turning. “You knew.”
His silence was admission.
She turned slowly, cold rage pulsing in her bloodstream like venom.
“How long?”
He ran a hand down his face. “It was a mistake.”
“Lying or f*****g her?”
His jaw flexed. “I
