Chapter1
I met him on the worst night of my life.
Not in a hotel.
Not in the rain.
But at a bar I wasn't supposed to enter, drinking something I hated, pretending I wasn't already broken.
He was sitting alone, sleeves rolled up, knuckles bruised, staring into his glass like it had personally offended him.
We didn't flirt.
We collided.
"You look like someone who shouldn't be alone tonight," he said.
"So do you," I replied.
That was it. No names. No lies. Just two people making a decision they already knew would ruin something.
He kissed like he had nothing to lose.
I left before dawn.
Didn't look back.
Didn't ask for his name.
Some mistakes are survivable—as long as they stay buried.
Six weeks later, my sister came home glowing.
"I'm engaged."
The word hit the room like a gunshot.
I forced a smile. "That was fast."
"He's amazing," she said. "You'll love him."
Those were the words that ended me.
Because when he walked through the door that evening—tall, composed, devastatingly familiar—I knew exactly how his mouth tasted.
He recognized me instantly.
I saw it in his eyes.
The pause.
The calculation.
The controlled inhale.
But unlike me, he recovered.
"Nice to finally meet you," he said smoothly, shaking my hand.
His palm burned.
My sister laughed. "You two look like you've met before."
"No," he said.
"Yes," I said.
Then we both froze.
I corrected myself too quickly. "I mean—no. Sorry."
His thumb pressed into my wrist, warning and intimate.
Later, when the house went quiet, he found me on the balcony.
"You shouldn't have spoken," he said.
"You shouldn't be here," I shot back.
"I'm marrying her."
"I know."
"Then forget me."
I laughed softly. "You really think I'm the one who remembers?"
His jaw tightened
That was when I knew.
This wasn't over.
It was just beginning.