Chapter 2 Chapter 2

For the next forty-eight hours, I became one with my bed.

No calls. No outside world. Just me, a pile of blankets, and the crushing weight of humiliation.

That slap from Rhys wasn't just a blow to the face. In so many ways, it was a slap across my entire life-one steeped in desperation, delusion, and pathetic longing. It forced me awake. It forced me to look back on everything I'd ever done to make him notice me, everything I did for a fantasy called "us" that had never truly existed.

God, where do I even begin?

Like the time he casually mentioned he liked girls with smooth, silky hair. That night, I ordered three bottles of the shampoo he'd once praised. My scalp broke out in hives. I smiled through the pain and said, "It's fine-some allergic reactions are worth it."

Or when he told me he was too busy with work to grab dinner, so I stayed up learning how to bake and brought him a box of pastries in the rain. He didn't even open the door-just had the receptionist tell me, "Don't bother next time. I don't like sweets."

Then there was that night at his friend's dinner party. I forced down oysters-my most hated food-just to seem "graceful and agreeable." I spent the entire night crouched over a toilet, writhing in pain until 3 a.m. He didn't ask if I was okay. He laughed and said, "Can't even handle seafood? That's just dramatic."

But the worst?

That time he quoted a line from The Godfather he liked. I stayed up all night reading film essays just to casually drop the quote at a party. I got it wrong. He corrected me in front of everyone, sneering, "Don't pretend to like things you clearly don't understand."

And I laughed. I laughed and said, "You've got such a good memory."

What a joke. I never realized I was never the person he wanted.

He never really saw me. To him, I was nothing more than a low-rent version of the "perfect and untouchable" Katherine. A cheap stand-in.

I wasn't her, but I could offer him the faint illusion of having her again. That was all I was good for.

I buried my face in the pillow and laughed until I shook. Not because it was funny-but because the pain had gone too deep for tears.

Thankfully, after my parents delivered their final ultimatum two days ago, they hadn't contacted me again.

A small part of me wondered-did Rhys intervene? Did he finally realize what he'd done?

Suddenly, the doorbell rang.

And it didn't stop ringing.

For a full five minutes.

I groaned into my pillow. Oh god. Social interaction.

Dragging my exhausted body to the door, I opened it.

Ivan Carlisle-my best friend and the only person who had the legal right to yell at me-stood on the other side, hands on hips. Then her eyes landed on my face.

Her expression froze. The light in her eyes dimmed. "What the hell happened to you?"

"I'm fine," I said, trying to sound casual. She wasn't buying it.

She reached out, gently tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. Her jaw clenched.

Then-silence.

Not the awkward kind. The dangerous kind. The kind that comes right before something explodes.

"Who hit you?"

"Come inside," I muttered quickly, trying not to draw the neighbors' attention. That would be mortifying.

Ivan didn't move. She gripped my arm and spoke through gritted teeth. "Mira. Who. Hit. You?"

As soon as the door clicked shut, I collapsed into her arms. My face buried in her sweater, and within seconds, the fabric was soaked.

She didn't flinch. She just held me, her hand moving in calm, soothing circles across my back.

I didn't know how long I cried. Long enough for my throat to burn and my nose to turn bright red like Rudolph. Eventually, I managed to force out a single word.

"Rhys."

Ivan didn't move.

Everyone in Sky City knew that name. Rhys Granger wasn't the kind of man who needed to throw punches to destroy someone. One phone call to the right person, and your life would be over. Reputation, money, status-he had it all.

Every move he made was deliberate, timed to perfection-like the ticking of a Rolex. When he chose to go to war, he was a nobleman wielding cruelty like fine art, probably with a glass of aged Scotch in hand.

People called him arrogant. No one ever called him violent.

That's why, when Ivan processed what I'd just said, I could practically hear the gears in her brain screaming in protest.

"No way," she muttered under her breath, as if denying it out loud might somehow make it untrue. "Rhys? Your Rhys? He couldn't have."

I got it. I really did. Rhys was supposed to be the gentleman. The golden boy. The flawless, elegant, untouchable good guy.

"It was him," I said quietly.

She exhaled sharply, then started rubbing my back again, this time slower. "Tell me what happened."

I swallowed. "I was at his place. I, uh. accidentally broke a mug."

Her entire body tensed. "Just a mug?"

I nodded.

Silence. Then she clenched her jaw and said, "I swear to God, if you tell me it was some priceless, hand-crafted, one-of-a-kind family heirloom-"

"It was Katherine's mug."

Ivan's hand froze mid-pat.

Everything shifted. One second, she was my concerned best friend. The next, she was a woman plotting murder.

I grabbed her wrist before she could get ahold of something worse. "It's over between Rhys and me."

"Really?"

"Really. Even if the earth split in two and Sky City sank into the ocean, I wouldn't marry him."

That stopped her from storming out to commit homicide.

"Katherine. That venomous snake-" Ivan spat the name like it physically hurt her. "She's not even here anymore and she's still managing to wreck your life! And your parents? They just stand there watching! I swear, they could watch her light your house on fire and they'd hand her the matches. It's unbelievable!"

I felt like a balloon someone had just popped-deflated, exhausted. That all-too-familiar ache settled deep in my chest. I knew some parents would always love their firstborn more. And there was nothing I could do about it.

"I'm sorry, Mira."

Ivan sat down beside me and gave my head a firm push toward her shoulder. I pulled away and managed a weak smile. "Actually, I think it's a good thing. At least I found out what kind of man he is before we got married. Better now than after the vows, right?"

She let out a long sigh, her eyes softening. "Mira, you know no matter what happens, I've got your back."

Right then, my stomach growled loud enough to interrupt the moment. Loudly.

Like a magician, Ivan reached behind her and pulled out a takeout bag, giving me a look that practically screamed: I knew you'd be like this.

I wanted to hug her, but I was too busy eating like a ravenous little goblin.

After dinner, she pushed me into the bedroom and went off to clean up. I lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling, drained and overwhelmed. What now?

Through the half-open door, I heard her on the phone. I didn't catch every word, but the ones I did hear. were iconic.

"A pile of shit."

"Total fucking psycho."

"Oh, you think that's bad? Wait till I tell you what this violent bastard actually did-"

She was probably talking to Zane Hasterton. And unlike Rhys, Zane would never raise a hand to her.

The way Ivan so instantly, so fiercely chose me-without hesitation, without question-made my throat tighten. She believed me. No one else did. But she did.

This wasn't something she did lightly. Rhys's family sat at the very top of the food chain-untouchable. And I had no doubt her parents wouldn't be thrilled to see her go up against them.

I curled deeper under the blanket and let out a slow breath.

Why couldn't my parents love me like that?

Ever since their favorite daughter Houdini'd her way out of their master plan, I became Plan B. But that didn't mean they forgave my existence.

Let's be honest: the only reason they'd stopped actively berating me was because I got engaged to Rhys. That little arrangement somehow elevated me from "irreparable family disgrace" to "potential saving grace."

Part of the reason I agreed to the engagement-and I know how pathetic this sounds-was because I thought maybe I could finally get something Katherine had: a sliver of parental affection. A crumb of approval.

But now that the engagement was off?

I was disposable again.

Last I heard, they were boxing up my things, ready to ship me off to some remote jungle where I'd spend the rest of my life befriending anacondas and repenting for my sins.

They were absolutely capable of that.

I groaned into my pillow. What the hell do I do now?

Unless. I married someone more powerful than Rhys.

The idea was so ridiculous I snorted. Right. Because billionaires are just wandering around Sky City hoping to marry a 23-year-old orphan with no patience for their bullshit.

And yet-

A face flashed in my mind.

Three days ago. My new neighbor.

I remembered, quite inappropriately, thinking I wouldn't mind being alone with him in his apartment where he could do all sorts of rated-R things to me.

I shook my head, quickly banishing the thought. I didn't even know his name. Just that he had the kind of aura that could slice a person in half.

No. Way too dangerous.

I groaned again.

If I hadn't broken that stupid mug, everything might've been okay.

But it wasn't. And it's not. And there's no going back.

Fuck! Why am I the one trying to fix this when I wasn't even the one who messed it up?! I sat up-and bam, the door burst open.

Ivan marched in. "Sleep is just going to make you feel worse. We're getting up, and we're going to find a dick worth loving-one that's better than Rhys's."

WHAT?!

While I gaped, she had already changed me into a new outfit.

Just like that, we were off to Sky City's most exclusive club-members only.