When I Noticed Her
At first, she was just Chloe's friend.
Pretty in a way he'd seen a thousand times. Soft-spoken, polite. Smiled at the right moments. Blushed when he said hello. Ethan Cross had met women like her before—girls who watched him too long, waited for too little, and fell for the idea of him before he even said a word.
But Lena Hart…There was something quieter about her interest. Less demanding.She never once asked for more than he gave.
That, somehow, made her harder to ignore.
He noticed her the second time they met.She wore a floral dress that made her look out of place on the rooftop of a luxury hotel, standing with a drink she didn't finish and eyes that flicked to him when she thought he wouldn't see.
She was trying too hard. That was obvious.But she wasn't pretending.
Ethan didn't do relationships. Not seriously. Not for long.He hated expectations and the weight of someone else's happiness tied to his name.So when Lena started texting him—clumsy little things like "Do you like strawberries or blueberries better?"—he told himself to ignore her.
And he did. For a while.
But the truth was…He read every single one.
He didn't respond because he knew what she wanted.And he didn't want to hurt her.
But he also didn't want her to stop.
He thought maybe she'd give up eventually. Most did.
He didn't expect her to stay.
She followed him to events. Always with Chloe.She sat near him at group dinners. Always smiling, never begging.She once brought him coffee without knowing how he liked it—and it turned out she got it right.
That unsettled him.
So he grew colder. Not cruel. Just… harder to reach.
And she kept coming.
The island party was supposed to be a break.Ethan had no idea she would be there until Chloe messaged him the day before.
"Be nice to her," Chloe said.He didn't answer.
When Lena walked toward him that night, quiet and nervous and radiant in the dress she probably borrowed or bought secondhand, he let her stand beside him.
Not because he wanted her there.Because he didn't want her to leave.
He didn't mean for her to hear what he said.
"We'll see how long she can hold."
It was meant to protect her. To keep the others from thinking she mattered.Because if she mattered, they'd ask questions. They'd pull her apart.
He didn't think it would hurt her the way it did.
He didn't realize how easily she'd disappear.
When she vanished, Ethan told himself it was for the best.
But his inbox felt emptier.
His mornings felt quieter.
And the first time he opened his phone and realized her name was gone, he felt something sharp twist in his chest.
It took one photo.
Chloe's feed. Lena in the countryside. Vintage dress. Bare face. Laughing.
She looked freer than she ever did with him.
And Ethan Cross, who had spent a lifetime being the man others followed, suddenly became the man who chased.
Because for the first time…
He didn't want to be left behind.