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By morning, Aria had convinced herself she'd imagined half of it.
The tension. The glint in Killian's eye. The way his voice wrapped around her name like it could undo her.
She hadn't slept much, maybe an hour or two near dawn. When she opened her eyes, the mountains outside the window were already glowing with early light, pale mist floating through the trees like it was trying to escape.
She got dressed slowly, pulling on dark jeans and a soft gray sweater. No makeup. She didn't want to look like she was trying.
Let Blair be the one who walked in flawless. Aria just needed to survive.
Downstairs, she followed the sound of voices and clinking dishes toward the kitchen. Jace was already there, leaning against the marble island, drinking coffee like he hadn't almost begged her to sabotage someone's engagement last night.
He looked up and smiled. "There she is."
Aria gave a half-smile back. "Morning."
"You sleep?"
"A little."
"Liar," he said, tossing her an apple from a crystal bowl like this was normal, like they weren't standing in his mother's pristine designer kitchen preparing for emotional warfare.
She caught it and leaned against the opposite counter. "You?"
He shrugged. "Didn't need to."
She took a bite of the apple just to avoid answering. It was too sweet. Probably imported.
Before either of them could speak again, a voice floated through the archway like a knife wrapped in lace.
"Still eating like a college kid, I see."
Aria didn't have to turn.
She knew that voice.
It still lived somewhere deep in her chest, echoing with the ghosts of too many nights spent pretending it didn't matter.
Blair Donovan stepped into the room like she owned it. Not just the kitchen-the moment. The air tilted around her. She wore ivory slacks and a cream blouse that looked like it cost more than Aria's entire camera setup. Her hair was sleek, parted down the center, her mouth painted the color of cherries and secrets.
Jace's jaw tensed. "Blair."
"Jace." She didn't smile. Just nodded. Then her eyes slid to Aria. "And... still bringing the sidekick, I see."
Aria's stomach dropped, but her face didn't flinch.
"Still pretending I'm invisible," she said lightly. "It's been a while."
Blair's smile curled. "It really has."
She walked to the espresso machine like she didn't feel the tension vibrating off the walls. Like she didn't just detonate a live grenade and expect everyone to sip coffee around the wreckage.
Jace looked torn between storming out and falling into her arms.
"You look good," he said, voice quieter.
Blair didn't look at him. "I know."
The silence that followed was almost theatrical.
Aria wanted to scream.
Instead, she bit into her apple again and stared at the counter.
"Where's Carter?" Jace asked, too quickly.
Blair stirred sugar into her espresso. "Golfing with your mother."
"And she approves?"
"Of course. Carter's practically perfect. Polished, pedigreed, properly dull."
Jace stepped forward. "Then why are you here with me?"
Blair finally looked at him. Her expression softened-almost. "Because I wanted to see if you still flinch."
Aria couldn't take it. She dropped the apple into the sink and turned to leave.
"Aw," Blair called after her, "don't go on my account."
Aria didn't answer.
She walked out of the kitchen, heart hammering, footsteps too loud.
She made it halfway down the hall before someone caught up with her.
"Aria, wait," Jace said, grabbing her wrist gently.
She stopped. But she didn't look at him.
"She's exactly the same," Aria said.
"I know."
"Then why are you still chasing her?"
Jace let go of her wrist. "Because I don't know how to stop."
That wasn't an excuse. It was a confession.
She turned to face him. "You're playing a game with someone who's better at it than you."
"I know," he said again.
"And I'm the bait."
He looked at her like he wanted to deny it.
But he didn't.
"I'm sorry," he whispered.
For the first time in ten years, she didn't say it was okay.
Because it wasn't.
"Are you even sure she wants you back?" Aria asked.
"She showed up."
"That doesn't mean anything."
"It means she's not indifferent."
Aria closed her eyes. "And what if she is?"
Jace swallowed hard. "Then I'll finally let her go."
"Promise?"
He hesitated.
Long enough for her to know the answer.
Aria stepped back. "Then I need to stop pretending this doesn't hurt."
Jace didn't reach for her again.
She left him standing there.
She made her way out onto the back terrace, into open air and sharper light. The cold didn't bite quite as hard today, but it still pricked at her skin, like it wanted her to stay alert.
She wrapped her arms around herself and closed her eyes.
"You lasted longer than I thought."
The voice sent a chill down her spine.
Killian.
She didn't turn. "And you never disappoint, do you?"
He stepped beside her, leaving just enough space to be polite. Barely.
"I expected her to hit harder."
"She doesn't have to," Aria said. "Her name was enough."
Killian looked at her sideways. "It always is."
She took a breath. "He's going to fall apart. Again."
"And you're going to help him rebuild," Killian said. "Again."
She didn't answer.
He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a cigarette, but didn't light it. Just held it between his fingers, like it gave him something to do with his hands.
"I never understood what you saw in him," Killian said after a minute.
Aria turned. "He's not the villain you think he is."
"No," Killian said. "But he's not the hero you've convinced yourself he might become."
She stared at him. "And you are?"
He met her gaze without blinking. "No. But I've never pretended to be."
That made her pause.
It was probably the most honest thing anyone had said to her all day.