๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ฝ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ: ๐๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ป ๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐.
601 Words
Morning arrived with a gray sky hanging over Moscow.
Aria stood in front of the mirror fastening the buttons of a cream blouse. A silk scarf concealed the fading marks on her neck, while careful makeup disguised the bruises that remained.
She looked flawless.
She felt anything but.
Downstairs, breakfast had already been prepared.
Nikolai sat at the head of the table, reading a report. He didn't look up until she took her seat.
"I've arranged security for you."
Aria frowned slightly.
"I already have security."
"You have more now."
He folded the report and met her eyes.
"They'll accompany you everywhere."
Her stomach tightened.
"I don't need that."
"It wasn't a suggestion."
She lowered her gaze.
"Yes."
"And if Lior Voss requests a private meeting, you will refuse."
"I understand."
Only when Nikolai was satisfied did he return to his coffee.
Aria finished breakfast in silence before leaving for Sunset Beauty.
---
The headquarters buzzed with activity.
Designers hurried through the halls carrying fabric samples and cosmetic prototypes. Marketing executives discussed the upcoming European campaign while photographers prepared a studio for the company's newest advertisement featuring Isabella MorettiโAria's mother and the timeless face of Sunset Beauty.
To everyone she passed, Aria smiled.
No one questioned it.
No one knew the woman behind that smile.
As Deputy CEO, she immersed herself in work. Meetings. Budgets. Product launches. Contracts.
Work was the only place where she still felt capable.
Near lunchtime, her assistant appeared at the office door.
"Ms. Moretti?"
"Yes?"
"Mr. Voss is here."
Aria's heart skipped.
She hesitated before nodding.
"Send him in."
Lior entered carrying a small paper bag.
"I hope I'm not interrupting."
"You usually are," she teased softly.
A genuine smile crossed his face.
"I brought you something."
She looked inside the bag.
A small lemon tart.
Her favorite.
"You remembered."
"You used to eat one every Friday after school."
She laughed, surprised he could remember something so small after all these years.
"You really do remember everything."
"I told you."
For a few minutes they spoke about ordinary thingsโthe business conference, Italy, Sunset Beauty's expansion.
It felt...normal.
A feeling Aria had almost forgotten.
Then Lior became serious.
"Can I ask you something?"
She nodded cautiously.
"Are you happy?"
The question stole the air from the room.
She forced a smile.
"Of course."
"That's not what I asked."
Silence stretched between them.
Before she could answer, there was another knock.
Sophia entered, looking nervous.
"Ms. Moretti..."
"Yes?"
"There are two gentlemen asking for you."
Aria's face drained of color before she even looked.
Nikolai's bodyguards.
Dmitri and Sergei.
Both dressed in black.
Both expressionless.
Dmitri spoke first.
"Mr. Volkov wishes to remind you that your next appointment begins in fifteen minutes."
It wasn't a reminder.
It was a warning.
Lior understood immediately.
His jaw tightened.
"You've got someone keeping track of your schedule?"
Aria answered before the guards could.
"My husband worries."
The words sounded rehearsed.
Because they were.
The guards remained until Lior stood.
"I'll see you at tonight's charity gala."
Aria nodded.
"See you tonight."
As he walked toward the door, Lior glanced back one last time.
Aria was smiling again.
But the smile looked like a mask.
And standing behind her were two armed men who never took their eyes off her.
For the first time, Lior realized this wasn't simply an unhappy marriage.
It looked frighteningly close to a prison.
He walked out of Sunset Beauty with one thought echoing in his mind.
If Aria couldn't ask for help...
He would have to find another way to reach her.
- Writer
