I barely slept that night.
Every time I closed my eyes, memories tangled with reality start showing up.
The highway. The rain.
The message on my cracked phone.
'Stop pretending to be sick'.
Then the present would pull me back.
Dominic's new message.
Tomorrow. 10 AM.
I rolled over in bed and glanced at the clock.
7:12 AM.
It was too early to get up and too late to fall back asleep. A quiet sigh escaped my lips as I sat up.
The room was silent.
Clara had fallen asleep on the couch sometime during the night, still wrapped in one of my blankets. Her hair looked like she had fought a hurricane.
I smiled faintly.
Carefully, I slipped out of bed and walked toward the window.
The morning sun was already rising over the city skyline.
Somewhere out there, Dominic Blackwood was probably already awake. He was the type of man who started his day before most people even opened their eyes.
Always efficient and disciplined.
My chest tightened slightly.
I shook the thought away.
That version of my life was over. Today's meeting was simply closure.
Nothing more.
Behind me, Clara groaned.
"Why is the sun so aggressive this morning..."
"You're alive", I said calmly.
"Unfortunately".
She squinted at me.
"What time is it?"
"Seven".
Clara immediately collapsed back onto the couch.
"Wake me up back in three business days".
I laughed quietly.
Then I walked toward the bathroom. Today would not be a dramatic confrontation.
No arguments. No emotions.
Just a conversation between two adults who had decided not to marry each other.
Simple.
At least.. that was the plan.
By the time I came downstairs an hour later, the house was already buzzing. Servants moved quietly through the hallway.
Everyone avoided my eyes.
Clearly, the wedding scandal had reached every corner of the household.
Clara eventually dragged herself downstairs ten minutes later, still half asleep.
She grabbed a cup of coffee like it was oxygen.
"Okay", she muttered.
"I'm alive again".
We sat across from each other at the breakfast table.
She watched me carefully while sipping her drink.
"You're really going?"
"Yes".
"Alone?"
"Yes".
Clara leaned back in her chair.
"That's brave".
"Why?"
"Because if Dominic Blackwood decided to kidnap you and lock you in a tower somewhere..."
She shrugged.
"...no one could stop him".
I rolled my eyes.
"He's not a cartoon villain".
"You sure?"
Before I could reply, my phone buzzed. Both of us looked down immediately.
A message.
Lucas Grant:
The car will arrive in fifteen minutes.
Clara raised an eyebrow.
"He sent his assistant to pick you up?"
"Yes".
She smirked.
"That's very 'CEO of a billion-dollar empire'".
I stood up.
"Finish your coffee".
"Why?"
"Because I'm leaving".
Clara stood too.
"Oh no".
"What?"
"I'm coming with you".
I stared at her.
"You're not invited".
"I don't care".
"This is between Dominic and me".
"Exactly".
She crossed her arms stubbornly.
"And someone needs to make sure he doesn't murder you".
"That's dramatic".
"I'm dramatic".
Before I could argue further, the sound of a car pulling into the driveway echoed outside.
Clara grinned.
"Perfect timing".
I sighed.
"Fine".
"Really?"
"You can come".
She pumped her fist.
"Yes!"
We walked outside together.
A sleek black luxury car waited near the gate.
Lucas Grant stood beside it, perfectly composed as always.
"Miss Vale".
"Mr. Grant".
His eyes briefly flicked toward Clara.
"Miss Rivera".
She gave him an overly friendly wave.
"Hello again".
Lucas opened the car door.
"Mr. Blackwood is waiting".
Clara leaned toward me and whispered, "That sentence sounds suspicious".
I elbowed her lightly before stepping inside the car, while Clara slid in beside me.
Lucas closed the door and joined the driver in the front.
The car pulled away smoothly.
For several minutes, none of us spoke. The city moved past the windows in a blur of glass buildings and morning traffic.
Clara finally whispered, "Where are we going?"
Lucas answered calmly from the front seat.
"Mr. Blackwood's office".
Clara blinked.
"The Blackwood Tower?"
"Yes".
Her eyes widened.
"Fancy".
I stared out the window quietly.
The Blackwood Tower dominated the city skyline.
A massive structure of glass and steel that represented Dominic's empire.
In my previous life, I had visited it countless times.
Always as the hopeful fiancée. Always trying to win his attention.
But today felt different.
Today I wasn't going there to beg for his affection.
I was going there as someone who had already walked away.
The car eventually slowed.
Clara gasped softly.
"Whoa".
The towering skyscraper rose above us like a monument to power.
Blackwood Tower.
Lucas stepped out first and opened the door.
"We've arrived".
Clara whispered dramatically, "This is where rich people live".
"This is where rich people work", I corrected.
Security guards greeted Lucas the moment we entered the building.
Everyone seemed to know him.
Which meant they also knew exactly who Dominic was meeting this morning.
Clara leaned closer to me.
"I feel like everyone is staring".
"They probably are".
Lucas led us toward the private elevators.
A receptionist greeted him immediately.
"Good morning, Mr. Grant".
"Good morning".
She glanced at me curiously but said nothing. The elevator doors opened with a soft chime.
Lucas gestured inside.
"Top floor".
Clara whispered, "Of course it's the top floor".
The elevator ride felt strangely long.
My reflection stared back at me in the polished metal walls. Calm. Composed.
But my heartbeat had started to pick up.
Not because I was afraid.
But because something about this meeting felt important.
The elevator doors opened.
Lucas stepped out first.
"Right this way".
The top floor was quiet.
Elegant. Minimalistic.
Dominic's style.
Lucas stopped in front of a large office door.
He turned toward me.
"Mr. Blackwood is inside".
Clara immediately grabbed my arm.
"I'll wait out here".
I blinked.
"You're not coming?"
She shook her head quickly.
"Nope".
"Why?"
"Because I enjoy living".
I almost laughed.
Lucas opened the door.
"Miss Vale".
I took a slow breath.
Then I stepped inside.
Dominic Blackwood stood near the massive window behind his desk. The morning sunlight framed his tall figure perfectly.
For a moment, he didn't turn around. His gaze remained on the city below.
"You're on time".
His voice was calm.
"I always am".
He finally turned.
Our eyes met.
For a brief second, something strange flickered in his expression.
Surprise.
Maybe even curiosity.
Because the woman standing in front of him today was not the same Seraphina he had known yesterday.
I walked toward the chair across from his desk.
"You wanted to talk".
"Yes".
"Then talk".
Dominic studied me carefully.
His dark eyes were sharper than usual.
"You've changed".
The comment caught me slightly off guard.
"People change".
"Not overnight".
I almost smiled.
"You'd be surprised".
He gestured toward the chair.
"Sit".
I sat.
He remained standing for a moment longer before finally taking his seat across from me. The silence between us stretched.
Dominic leaned back slightly.
"Why did you cancel the wedding?"
Straight to the point.
"That question seems unnecessary".
"Why?"
"Because you already agreed".
"That doesn't mean I understand".
I held his gaze.
"We both know the marriage wouldn't have worked".
"That wasn't the agreement".
"No, but it was the reality".
Dominic's fingers tapped lightly against the desk.
"Yesterday morning you were still planning to marry me".
"Yes".
"And by afternoon you canceled the entire ceremony".
"Yes".
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"What changed?"
Everything.
But instead I said the simplest truth.
"I realized something".
"What?"
"That loving someone who doesn't love you back is a waste of time".
Dominic's fingers stopped tapping.
For the first time since I entered the room....
He looked genuinely surprised.
"You think I don't love you?"
I held his gaze calmly.
"I know you don't".
Silence filled the office.
Dominic studied my face carefully. Like he was searching for something.
Then he said something unexpected.
"Interesting".
"What is?"
"You're not angry".
"Should I be?"
"Most women would be".
"I'm not most women".
"No".
He nodded slowly.
"You're definitely not".
The tension between us shifted slightly.
Dominic leaned forward.
"Tell me something honestly".
"What?"
"If I had asked you yesterday morning whether you loved me...", he paused.
"What would you have said?"
The answer was obvious.
"I would have said yes".
"And today?"
I didn't hesitate.
"Today I'd say no".
The room fell silent again.
Dominic stared at me like he had just discovered a completely new person.
Then he said quietly—
"That's a very big change in twenty-four hours".
"Yes".
His gaze sharpened.
"Which means one of two things".
"Oh?"
"Either you're lying now..."
He leaned slightly closer.
"...or you were lying yesterday".
I didn't respond immediately.
Because the truth was complicated. Yesterday's Seraphina had been honest.
She had loved him with everything she had.
But that version of me was gone.
Finally, I spoke.
"Does it matter?"
Dominic's eyes didn't leave mine.
"Yes".
"Why?"
"Because I don't like mysteries".
His voice dropped slightly.
"And right now..."
"...you're the biggest mystery I've seen in a long time".
My heartbeat skipped once.
Something about the way he said that felt dangerous.
Like the beginning of a game neither of us had planned to play. Dominic leaned back in his chair again.
His expression returned to calm.
"Fine, if you no longer want the marriage...", he paused.
"...then we'll consider the engagement dissolved".
Simple. Clean. Logical.
Exactly what I expected.
But as I stood up to leave, Dominic spoke again.
"Seraphina".
I turned back.
"Yes?"
His dark eyes watched me carefully.
"You said yesterday that you won't love me again".
My chest tightened slightly.
"Yes".
Dominic rested his chin lightly on his hand.
Then he said the one sentence that made my heartbeat stumble.
"That sounds like a challenge".