ARIA’S POVAfter what Adam tells me, I keep reflecting on it. The Mitchells are blaming me for Ethan's loss. Perhaps they’re right. I shouldn’t have gone to Hawaii with him. I should have gone alone, and no one would have gotten hurt. The weight of guilt presses on me, and I can’t shake the feeling that I made the wrong decisions.Suddenly, my phone rings. It’s Adam calling again. This time, I think I should pick it up. However, to my astonishment, it’s not Adam on the line but someone else. A bartender.“Miss… Can you come over as soon as possible?”He claims that Adam is at the bar, completely drunk. Since they had no one else to call and found my number in his favorite contact list, they called me.“He’s muttering ‘Aria’ a lot and can’t even stand on his feet.”The bartender’s voice is filled with concern as he describes Adam's state. He’s in a really dilapidated condition, barely able to stand. The news hits me hard, and I can’t ignore it.“Thanks for calling me. I’ll be there soo
ARIA’S POVAdam pulls me into his arms, his grip tight yet tender, filled with a yearning that mirrors my own. The sudden closeness stirs something deep within me, awakening emotions I’ve been trying so hard to suppress. They rush to the surface, overwhelming me. His breath, warm and slightly unsteady, brushes against my neck, sending shivers down my spine.“I need you, Aria… I love you.”Adam mutters, his voice laced with a raw vulnerability that tugs at my heartstrings. Hearing those words from him, words that I have longed to hear and feared in equal measure, I realize just how much I’ve missed him—missed his touch, his presence, the way he always made me feel safe and cherished.I look into his eyes, those familiar eyes that have seen me through so much, and the walls I’ve built around myself begin to crumble. Despite everything that has happened, despite the chaos and the pain that have surrounded us, here in this moment, it’s just the two of us. Nothing else matters.I lean in,
ARIA’S POVWaking up to the soft light of morning, I feel a rare sense of peace. The tension from the past few days has eased, and for the first time in what feels like forever, I’m happy. As I stretch lazily, something catches my eye—a folded piece of paper on the nightstand. A note, from Adam.Intrigued, I reach for it, my mind racing with thoughts of what it could say. Maybe it’s a sweet message or a casual reminder. But as I unfold the paper and read the words, my heart skips a beat."You need not worry, my love. I’m meeting the Mitchells and telling them that I’m the only culprit in their son’s loss at sea. I want them to leave you alone… I’ll be back soon."A wave of shock floods through me. I reread the note, trying to process what Adam is saying. He’s planning to meet the Mitchells, to confess to something he didn’t do, just to protect me. The enormity of it hits me all at once—he’s willing to risk everything, his own safety, his reputation, our future, all to shield me from t
ARIA’S POVAs soon as I reach the parking lot, I spot Adam stepping out of his car, his eyes fixed on the imposing entrance of the Mitchells’ house. He looks determined, but there’s a storm brewing behind his expression. Before he can make his way inside, I shout his name, desperate to stop him before he makes a move he’ll regret. I call out, my voice echoing through the otherwise quiet lot.“Adam, stop!”He halts in his tracks and turns, clearly taken aback to see me. His brow furrows, his lips pressed into a thin line, as if trying to figure out why I’m here. There is tension between us, but I know this isn’t about us—this is about something much bigger.He asks me what I am doing here, his tone laced with frustration.“I need to deal with them, Aria. This has gone too far.”I step closer, my heart pounding in my chest.“Adam, this is a mistake. You can’t just storm in there like this.”I explain to him that he is letting his emotions driving him, and it’s only going to make things
ARIA’S POVAfter hearing what Adam has told me about the Mitchells’ plans, I find myself reflecting on the weight of it all. They are determined to ruin my reputation, twisting every aspect of my past and manipulating it into something ugly.Allegations of using men to climb the corporate ladder, false accusations about my relationship with Ethan—all of it designed to tarnish my name. The thought of them going so far as to link me to the crash that perhaps took Ethan’s life is both disturbing and absurd. They are pushing for a police investigation, questioning how I survived while others didn’t, and insinuating that there is something more sinister at play.Despite the gravity of the situation, I remain oddly calm. I’ve seen this before. Throughout my career, people have always tried to tear me down, scrutinizing my every move, twisting the truth to suit their narratives. This attack from the Mitchells, while vicious and calculated, feels familiar in a way. I’ve dealt with similar blo
ADAM’S POVThe aftermath of last night still lingers heavily in my mind, a blur of emotions and poor decisions. I lost control, and before I knew it, I was at the bar, drowning myself in drinks I knew I’d regret. It's embarrassing, no doubt, but even in my most reckless moment, there was one glimmer of something real—when they called Aria, she came for me. That alone speaks volumes, more than I can even begin to process. Despite everything we've been through, the distance, the unresolved tension, she still showed up.I don’t remember much of what happened after she arrived, the alcohol warping my memory and leaving gaps where key moments should be. But somehow, in the haze of it all, we ended up back in bed together. It felt surreal, like something that shouldn’t have happened but also like something that was inevitable. The details escape me, blurred by the fog of intoxication, but I know we reconnected, even if just for a fleeting moment.Waking up beside her this morning felt stran
ARIA’S POV“Aria, what I’m worried about is the news they plan to publish against you.”As we are in the study room, Adam informs me about the publication against my character, I take a deep breath and remind him that our legal team is more than capable of protecting us. This isn’t the first time we’ve had to deal with attacks like this, and it won’t be the last.But this one feels different, more personal, because it isn’t just about the business. It’s about my reputation, about the Mitchells trying to ruin me, dragging my name through the mud by twisting the narrative, portraying me as someone who climbed her way up by using men. They’ve gathered so-called “evidence,” building a story of me as a gold digger, someone who manipulated others to get to where I am today.The accusations don’t stop there. They want to pin the blame for Ethan’s death on me, suggesting that I somehow orchestrated the entire tragedy. They question how I survived the crash when Ethan and others didn’t. It’s a
EVAN’S POVThe more I think about Aria and Adam, the angrier I become. It’s like everything we throw at them, no matter how carefully planned or strategically executed, just bounces back, deflecting effortlessly. We’ve tried to dismantle their business, smear their reputations, stir public suspicion, but nothing seems to stick. The frustration boils inside me, intensifying with each passing day. I want to see them pay. I want them to feel the same gut-wrenching pain that has gripped my heart since Ethan’s death.“Donna, they are the reason Ethan is gone. I can’t spare them!”“Do what you have to do to get them punished!”Every moment without him feels like a dagger to the chest, twisting deeper with each breath. I remember when we first realized he wasn’t coming back, how we launched every resource available to us to search for him, desperately scouring the ocean for some sign of life.But days turned into weeks, and the cold reality began to settle in—there would be no miraculous res