Chapter 13
Across the hall, Clinton stood frozen, wine glass slipping from his fingers, shattering on the floor at his feet. His eyes met mine wide but I didn’t flinch.
The crystal hit the marble floor with a shatter that seemed to echo louder than the music. Red wine bled across his polished shoes, but he didn’t move.
His eyes were wide, locked on the figure standing in the center of the masquerade’s grand ballroom – Chloe, her mask gone, her smile calm and devastating all at once. And beside her Nathan, his arm draped possessively around her waist like he’d won a prize Clinton never truly owned.
A collective gasp rippled through the crowd, whispers coiling like smoke around the chandeliers “Is that…?” “Chloe Moore no, she’s Chloe Smith again…” “She’s alive – they said she vanished! “But she’s with Nathan Jones – aren’t they rivals?”
–
Alynna stood near Leo, clutching her champagne glass so hard her knuckles whitened. Her breath came out in short, harsh bursts. What the hell? she thought, bile rising in her throat. She – after ruining is going to marry Nathan? She dares stand here flaunting herself like this everything?
Leo, too, stood rigid, his eyes flicking between Chloe and Clinton, then to Nathan – taking in the way Nathan held her like she was the only thing in the room that mattered. His lips parted but no words came out – just a low, stunned laugh that never quite reached his eyes.
On the stage, Chloe let her gaze sweep over the sea of shocked faces, savoring the bitter taste of their disbelief. She caught Clinton’s stare desperate, broken and she didn’t even blink.
–
–
‘Enjoy the party,” she said sweetly, her voice slicing through the murmurs. She tucked her hand n Nathan’s arm as he guided her down the steps, the soft rustle of her dress trailing behind her ike a silk banner of triumph.
Clinton’s paralysis broke the moment her heels touched the floor. He lunged forward, uncaring o the eyes on him, the shards of glass crunching under his shoes as he nearly tripped over his own desperation.
‘Chloe
–
wait – Chloe, please-”
He grabbed her arm from behind, the contact so familiar it sent a flicker of memory through both of them – a ghost of nights when he used to touch her freely. But she turned sharply, eyes like shards of glass.
‘Let
go of me, “Chloe said, her voice soft but poisonous. She tugged her arm free but Clinton only stepped closer, arms wrapping around her like he could anchor himself back to her if he just held on tight enough.
‘You’re here. You came back. Why are you doing this?” His voice cracked in his throat, raw and too loud. “Why are you with him? What is this, Chloe?”
She pushed at his chest, her palms firm and cold. “I don’t know you,” she said. “Don’t touch me.”
The words hit harder than any slap she could have given him.
Leo was suddenly there too, moving through the circle of guests who parted like wolves sniffing blood. His face was red, veins pulsing in his neck. “So you’d pretend you don’t know us now?” he
4:27 pm
–
you think you can stand there
spat, voice rising above the music. “After everything you’ve done and flaunt your filth while our family name is dragged through the mud?” He stepped forward, arm half-raised as if to grab her, but Nathan was already between them. One hand pressed to Chloe’s back, the other catching Leo’s wrist in midair.
“Touch her,” Nathan said, his tone all calm venom, “and I’ll break every bone in your hand. She’s not your punching bag anymore.”
1
Leo barked out a laugh, eyes narrowed as they flicked from Nathan’s grip to Chloe’s face. “Sc this is it, then? You found yourself a prince charming? You think that changes what you are?”
shrill and Before Chloe could speak, Alynna’s voice cut through the tension like a knife trembling. “She’s a whore! That’s what she is. I knew it – you were probably spreading your legs for him even when you were still married to Clinton. That’s why it was so easy for you to run That’s why-”
—
She didn’t get to finish. Chloe stepped forward so fast it shocked them all her palm connected with Alynna’s cheek with a crack that seemed to silence the entire hall. The glass in Alynna’s hand dropped, fizzing onto her silk dress as she staggered back, hand pressed to her stinging skin.
Chloe’s eyes glittered, her voice quiet but cutting enough to draw blood. “Careful, Alynna. Keep my name out of your mouth. It’s not your playground anymore.”
