Every corner of the ballroom whispered wealth, status, and power. This was a world I had never wanted, a world I never wished to belong to.
But tonight, I was here. Again.
My breath hitched in my throat as his gaze locked with mine across the room, his expression unreadable. His dark eyes were intense, piercing through the crowd as if nothing else existed but the space between us.
For a moment, everything else faded. The music, the chatter, the clinking of glasses, they all disappeared, and it was just him and me, locked in this unexpected confrontation.
I could feel the blood drain from my face. My fingers tightened around the glass of champagne in my hand, my knuckles white. I wasn’t ready for this. I wasn’t ready to face him, not like this, not in front of all these people.
I trie
