Chapter Two: A Stranger's Offer
1142 Words
Ava stared at the open car door without moving.
The tears on her cheeks had barely dried, and now a complete stranger was asking her to get into his car as though it was the most normal thing in the world.
She looked from the car to the man standing beside it.
"I think you've mistaken me for someone else."
His expression didn't change.
"I haven't."
The confidence in his voice sent a chill through her.
He wasn't guessing.
He knew exactly who she was.
Ava took a cautious step backward.
"I'm not getting into a stranger's car."
"I wouldn't expect you to."
His answer caught her off guard.
Most men would have insisted.
He simply waited.
The city buzzed around them as cars moved past the hotel entrance, but somehow the noise felt distant.
For a long moment, neither of them spoke.
Finally, Ava folded her arms across her chest.
"Who are you?"
The man stepped out of the car.
The chauffeur immediately straightened his posture and quietly closed the door behind him.
He adjusted the sleeve of his charcoal suit before meeting her eyes.
"Damian Blackwood."
Ava froze.
The Damian Blackwood?
The billionaire who appeared on the cover of almost every major business magazine.
The man reporters described as impossible to impress.
The youngest CEO to build a billion-dollar investment empire before turning thirty-two.
She looked at him again.
He looked nothing like the smiling faces she had seen in interviews.
He was calmer.
More controlled.
The kind of man who didn't need to prove he was important because everyone around him already knew.
"I don't understand."
"You will."
His answer was short and effortless.
Ava frowned.
"You know my name."
"Yes."
"You've been looking for me."
"Yes."
The simple answers only made her more suspicious.
"Why?"
For the first time since they met, something shifted in his expression.
Not enough for her to understand.
Just enough for her to notice.
He looked at her for a long moment before speaking.
"This isn't the place for that conversation."
A bitter laugh escaped her.
"You expect me to believe that?"
"No."
His honesty caught her off guard.
Damian glanced toward the brightly lit hotel entrance before looking back at her.
"But not while your past is about to walk through those doors."
Ava's brows pulled together.
Before she could question him, the revolving doors behind her opened.
She didn't need to turn around.
She already knew.
"Ava."
Ethan.
His voice stopped her completely.
She closed her eyes for a brief moment before slowly turning around.
Ethan had changed out of his tuxedo jacket, leaving only the white dress shirt underneath. His tie hung loosely around his neck, and for the first time that night, he looked less like the confident businessman who had stood proudly beside his fiancée and more like the man Ava had spent three years loving.
Almost.
He stopped a few feet away, his eyes moving from her to Damian.
The change in his expression was immediate.
"Mr. Blackwood."
Damian gave a slight nod.
"Mr. Kingsley."
There was no warmth in his voice.
No hostility either.
Just distance.
Ethan looked back at Ava.
"Ava, can we talk?"
A quiet laugh escaped her.
"I think you've said enough for one night."
"I know you're upset."
"You think?"
He stepped closer.
"I didn't want you to find out like this."
"Really?"
Her eyes met his.
"Then how exactly did you want me to find out? Through the engagement photos tomorrow morning?"
His lips parted.
No words came out.
For once, Ethan Kingsley had nothing to say.
His gaze shifted back to Damian.
"I wasn't aware you knew each other."
"We've only just met," Ava answered before Damian could.
That wasn't entirely true.
They had technically met less than five minutes ago.
Ethan frowned.
"Then why are you standing here with him?"
Before Ava could respond, Damian spoke.
"Does it matter?"
His voice wasn't loud.
It didn't need to be.
Ethan held his gaze.
"She's someone important to me."
Ava almost laughed.
The words came too late.
Damian looked at him without the slightest change in expression.
"Is she?"
The question was calm, but it carried a challenge.
Ethan's jaw tightened.
"You don't know the situation."
"I know enough."
The silence between them became heavy.
Two men measuring each other without either one needing to raise their voice.
Finally, Ethan looked back at Ava.
"Please. Just give me five minutes."
She shook her head.
"What for?"
"So I can explain."
"You already did."
"Ava—"
"You said people change."
His expression fell.
"You said love wasn't enough."
"Ava..."
"You chose someone else."
She swallowed the pain rising in her throat.
"There isn't anything left to explain."
For the first time that night, Ava saw genuine regret in his eyes.
It didn't make things better.
If anything, it made everything sadder.
Ethan took another step toward her.
Without hesitation, Damian moved forward.
It was a quiet step.
Just enough to place himself between them.
He didn't touch Ethan.
He didn't raise his voice.
He simply looked at him.
"I think Miss Carter has made herself clear."
Something about Damian's calm tone made Ethan stop.
"This doesn't concern you."
Damian slipped one hand into his pocket.
"It concerns me now."
The words were quiet.
But they carried weight.
After a long moment, Ethan exhaled.
"I don't know what this is."
His eyes moved between them.
"But be careful."
Damian didn't respond.
Ethan looked at Ava one last time.
"I never wanted to hurt you."
A faint, painful smile crossed her lips.
"You just decided it was worth it."
He flinched.
Without another word, Ethan turned and walked back toward the hotel.
Ava watched him disappear through the revolving doors.
Only after he was gone did she realize she had been holding her breath.
The night suddenly felt quiet again.
Damian walked back to the car and opened the rear door.
"I won't ask you to trust me."
His gray eyes met hers.
"Not tonight."
Ava searched his face.
"But if you get into this car, I promise you won't regret it."
She studied him carefully.
He wasn't smiling.
He wasn't trying to charm her.
He simply stood there, waiting for her decision.
For reasons she couldn't explain, she believed him.
Ava took one slow step forward.
Then another.
As she slid into the back seat, Damian closed the door gently behind her before walking around to the other side.
A few seconds later, he settled into the seat beside her.
The chauffeur started the engine.
The car pulled away from the hotel, leaving the only life Ava had known behind.
She looked out the window as the building disappeared into the distance.
Some endings came without warning.
She just hadn't expected hers to begin with a stranger who already knew her name.
- Writer
- chap_listContents
- likeADD