Chapter 37
The Fire Beneath
Stella’s POV
Jealousy is a quiet fire.
It doesn’t scream when it burns you. It whispers. It coils around your ribs, seeps into your lungs, and makes it impossible to breathe without aching. That was how I felt every time I saw Mary.
Mary Blackwood. The woman who had it all, the title, the man, the f*****g fairytale, even if it was written in blood.
I used to be her friend, her best friend, even more like a sister to her.. God, I even rooted for her once. But now? I could barely stand being in the same building, or even breath the same breathe with her.
Today, I faked another headache.
I sat in my office, blinds drawn, the half-empty bottle of gin glinting from the corner of my desk. I told myself it was just stress. Just the workload. But deep down, I
