Chapter 4

The silence that followed my announcement was deafening. Ethan' s face had gone from shocked to thunderous in a matter of seconds. He stared at my hand, at the simple ring that now felt like a shield.

"Married?" he repeated, the word a low growl. "Don' t be ridiculous, Ava. Who would you marry?"

He said it with such condescending certainty, as if the very idea of me finding someone else was an impossibility. It was humiliating. He was treating me like a child throwing a tantrum, making up stories for attention.

Brittany recovered first, letting out a tinkling, artificial laugh. "Oh, Ava, that' s just sad. Making up a husband? You really are desperate. Ethan, baby, let' s go. She' s clearly not well."

She tried to pull him away, but Ethan didn' t move. His eyes were locked on mine, burning with an intensity that unnerved me.

"Show me," he demanded.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"Your husband. Where is he? If you' re married, bring him here. Introduce us."

"He' s... out of the country on business," I said, the excuse sounding weak even to my own ears.

Ethan let out a short, harsh laugh. "Convenient. This is a game, Ava, and I' m not playing. You' re coming with me. We' re going to talk about this."

Before I could react, he grabbed my arm. His grip was like iron, bruising. It was the first time he had ever touched me with anything other than affection, and the shock of it was like a physical blow.

"Let go of me, Ethan!" I hissed, trying to pull away. The small crowd around us was now openly staring, whispering.

"You are making a fool of yourself," he said through gritted teeth, his face close to mine. "And you' re embarrassing me. We' re leaving."

"No!" I yanked my arm back with all my strength, stumbling a step. "You don' t control me anymore."

His face darkened with a possessive fury I had never seen before. "I will always be your guardian, Ava. It' s my job to protect you, even from your own foolish decisions."

"This isn' t protection, it' s control!" I shot back, my voice rising with a mix of fear and anger. "You threw me out for her! You took my room, my home! You have no right to tell me what to do."

The mention of the room, of Brittany, seemed to shatter his composure completely. The careful mask of the tech mogul, the benevolent guardian, fell away, revealing something raw and ugly underneath.

"I did that to protect you!" he roared, his voice echoing slightly in the now-silent ballroom. "To protect you from yourself! From these... these inappropriate feelings you have! I gave you everything, Ava! A home, an education, a future! And this is how you repay me? By throwing a public tantrum and lying about some imaginary husband?"

The cruelty of his words, of him airing my private confession in front of all these people, was devastating. The strength I had found just moments before crumbled, leaving me feeling exposed and raw. The room was spinning.

I just stood there, numb, as he stared at me, his chest heaving. The anger in his eyes was mixed with something else, something confused and pained. It was as if he was lashing out blindly, not even understanding why.

Brittany, seeing her opportunity, stepped forward and placed a calming hand on his arm. "Ethan, darling, that' s enough. She' s not worth it. Let' s just go."

He finally broke eye contact with me, allowing Brittany to lead him away. As they walked off, he looked back over his shoulder one last time. His expression wasn' t triumphant or angry anymore, just... lost. He looked like a man who had just set his own house on fire and couldn't understand why he was choking on the smoke. But the damage was done. I was left alone in the center of the room, the whispers of the crowd closing in on me like a suffocating fog.