The heavy, sound proofed oak doors of the Lake Como villa clicked shut with a definitive, solid echo that resonated through the grand marble hallway. In a single second, that soft click successfully sealed out the cold, judgmental whispers, the toxic social warfare, and the suffocating arrogance of the high society elite who had tried to ice Chloe out at the Metropolitan Citadel.
The intense corporate tension that had hovered over the Century Ball ballroom like an invisible cloud completely melted away, replaced by the warm, amber lit silence of Julian Sterling’s private sanctuary.Chloe stepped completely out of her tight designer high heels, letting out a soft, long sigh of pure physical and emotional relief.
Her bare feet sank gratefully into the plush, vintage Persian rug covering th
