Aria's POV
The champagne bubbles tickle my nose as I take another sip, the effervescence dancing across my tongue like tiny celebrations. For the first time in six years, I let myself smile without measuring the cost, without wondering who's watching, without calculating how much of myself I'm giving away. This smile is mine. Unguarded. Real. And it feels like breathing after being underwater for too long.
"To the most badass CEO in New York!" Maya raises her glass high, the crystal catching the afternoon light and scattering rainbows across our small table. Her voice carries across the outdoor terrace of Celeste, one of those hidden gems tucked away in the West Village that tourists never find and locals guard like precious secrets. Ivy climbs the brick walls behind us, and the scent of
