Maddy's POV
I woke up with the faint taste of tequila still on my tongue and the dull ache of last night's dancing in my legs. Sunlight slanted through Sarah's blinds, cutting soft stripes across the sofa where I'd passed out. The apartment was quiet except for her soft snoring from the bedroom. For a moment, I felt… free. No office. No whispers. No scheming Eliza or pitying looks. Just me, sprawled on the sofa in yesterday's clothes, laughter still echoing faintly in the room's corners.
It was like the old me had resurfaced for a brief second — the one before Max, before Alissa's pregnancy, before I became a walking headline. Just Maddy. Slightly hungover, hair a disaster, mascara smudged, but blissfully normal.
Then my phone buzzed.
A single message from Nate:
I'll pick
