Ethan’s POV
The restaurant was too polished for what I needed it to be.
Soft lighting. Expensive silence. The kind of place people chose when they wanted to believe they were still in control of their lives. I didn’t feel like I was.
I sat at the back corner table, where the mirror-like glass wall reflected everything but revealed nothing useful. My fingers tapped lightly against the table even though I wasn’t paying attention to the rhythm. I haven’t been paying attention to much lately.
Especially not work, not anything that didn’t somehow circle back to Ava.
I exhaled slowly through my nose and forced my eyes away from the entrance.
The chair across from me finally pulled back.
Serena Hayes sat down like she owned the space around her before she even touched the table.
She didn’
