Chapter 4

In the quiet of the car, Liam finally spoke more personally.

"Ava," he began, his voice low and earnest. "I know this is terrible timing, but I need to be honest. My belief in NovaSpark was real, but a large part of why I invested was because of you. I admire you, Ava. More than you know."

Ava looked at him, surprised by his directness. "Liam..."

"I don't expect anything," he said quickly. "I just wanted you to know. You're incredible, and what Ethan did... it's his loss. A massive one."

His sincerity was disarming. A small, fragile warmth spread through Ava.

Meanwhile, Ethan was fuming. Back at his new, ostentatious Hamilton-funded apartment, he ranted to Chloe.

"She'll come crawling back! She can't do better than me, especially now that she's broke."

Chloe, perched on a velvet chaise, examined her nails, her expression skeptical. She knew men. And she'd seen the way that other man, Liam, looked at Ava. She'd also done a quick search on him. Liam Vance.

His family wasn't just "doing business" with the Hamiltons; they were in a different league entirely. Ethan' s Hamilton branch was new money, a minor offshoot. Liam' s family was old, established power.

"Don't be so sure, Ethan," Chloe said coolly. "That guy she was with... he looked serious."

Ethan scoffed. "Serious about what? Her debt?"

A week later, the business world buzzed. "Arthur Sterling, founder of Innovate Corp, names granddaughter Ava Sterling as new CEO."

The announcement was swift, decisive. Ava, dressed in a power suit that felt like armor, stood beside her doting but formidable grandfather at the press conference.

She was home.

The irony wasn't lost on her when the first rumors started: that Liam Vance, the successful VC, was Ava Sterling' s "kept man," latching onto the new heiress.

Arthur found it amusing. "That Vance boy," he chuckled to Ava over dinner. "Good family. Solid. But he'll have to prove he's not just after the Sterling name now that you're in the spotlight."

Ava knew Liam wasn't like that. His own ventures were thriving. He didn't need her money or her name. Their relationship, still new and tentative, was deepening, built on mutual respect and a surprising, easy intimacy.