The night pressed on, a blur of champagne toasts, staged laughter, and cameras flashing in quick bursts. The Solaya Gala was a roaring success. Celebrities posed in clusters, politicians raised glasses, and Manila's power brokers drifted through the ballroom as if it were their personal kingdom.
Carrie moved through it all with poise, every word measured, every smile exact. She didn't glance toward Andrew, not once. She knew he was somewhere in the room, magnetic as always, pulling people into his orbit. She didn't need to see him to picture it.
The actress he had arrived with sat abandoned at their table, scrolling through her phone with a pout. Andrew, of course, was already mingling with senators, CEOs, and heirs. His laugh carried easily across the room, confident and practiced. He b
