Rose had thought she could endure this.
The cold silence.
The heavy distance.
The unspoken words that hung in every corner of the penthouse like smoke that refused to clear.
She told herself it was temporary that Christian just needed space. That maybe he was sorting through emotions he didn’t know how to voice.
But each day chipped away at her.
He no longer met her gaze unless absolutely necessary. And when he did, it was with that cold, unreadable mask he wore so well. As if she were nothing more than the help.
Nothing more than the nanny.
Every time he brushed past her without a word, her heart ached just a little more.
She spent sleepless nights replaying every conversation, dissecting every expression, wondering what she’d done wrong.
She had tried to ignore it, to push thro
