The restaurant was bathed in the golden glow of the setting sun, casting long shadows across the polished marble floors. The sound of clinking glasses and murmured conversations filled the air, but for Valerie, the world had narrowed down to just one person: Raymond. She hadn’t seen him in years, but his face was as familiar as ever, the same smooth features, the same sharp jawline that had once been the source of so much pain.
Valerie sat across from him, her back straight, her posture perfect,just as she always was, nothing changed, only her face changed. But tonight, there was something different about her. There was a glint in her eyes that had never been there before, a quiet confidence that wasn’t born from business meetings or red-carpet appearances. It was a power far darker, more
