CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE
The ride home had been tense, filled with a silence so sharp it could cut. Iris kept her eyes glued to the window, the echo of applause and flashing cameras still ringing in her ears. The taste of Aziel’s kiss lingered bitterly, not out of romance but betrayal—he had used her as a prop, parading her before the world. When they reached the Valen mansion, Iris didn’t wait for him. She walked briskly inside, heels clicking like gunshots against marble, her chest rising and falling with restrained fury. “Why did you do that?” she finally burst, turning on him as he closed the door. Her voice shook, not from fear but from rage. “You humiliated me, Aziel. You dragged me into the spotlight, kissed me like some trophy—when you know I never wanted this circus!” Aziel smirked faintly, loosening h
- Writer
