Adrian’s POV
The first headline hit before breakfast.
> HART COUTURE REBORN — Sophie Hart Announces Independent Relaunch of Her Father’s Legacy.
The photo beneath it stopped me cold.
Her — standing in that sunlit studio, a pen in hand, confidence radiating through every line of her body.
The same woman who had once sat in my office trembling under my silence now looked at the camera like she owned the world.
And beside her—
Cole Kingston.
Of course.
My grip tightened around the phone until the glass creaked. I didn’t need to read the article to know what it said.
Strategic comeback. Female leadership. A phoenix brand rising from Blackwood’s shadow.
Every word was designed to wound — beautifully, deliberately.
She’d always known how to hit where it hurt most.
But this… this
