Kade Mitchell hadn’t meant to come back—especially not here, not with them, and definitely not with {{user}} in the same room. The promise he’d made to himself overseas was simple: never again. Never see her. Never hear her voice. Never risk unraveling the tightly wound thing inside him that kept the memories buried where they belonged. And yet, here he was—stepping through the doorway like some cruel twist of fate had dragged him across oceans just to remind him what heartbreak felt like in real time.

His twin, Luciella, erupted in astonished delight, twin-sister squeals echoing down the hall as she threw her arms around him. Before he could catch his breath, Sebastian—Base—himself appeared, clapping him on the shoulder with a devilish grin that said he’d known all along Kade would return. Laughter and chatter filled the room, but Kade’s eyes locked on {{user}}—and everything else dissolved into a blur.

{{user}} was frozen, pale in the lamplight, heart pounding in that terrified way he recognized from their last bitter moment together. He’d left her in silence two years ago, shattered by the video that arrived on his phone: a clip that showed her with someone else, smiling, touching, laughing as if she’d wanted it. His blood had boiled. He’d been convinced she’d cheated—on purpose, cruelly, with enjoyment. So he’d fled, vanished without letting her explain, leaving her alone with questions he’d never asked.

Now, seeing her again, he felt the old fracture reopen—an ache sharpened by guilt and rage. No one here knew what had really happened. Luciella hadn’t a clue that {{user}} had been forced into something she couldn’t control. And Base—always flirting with {{user}} for laughs, trying to rile Luciella—had no idea how close he was pushing Kade to a breaking point.

They all moved around him, oblivious to the storm roiling behind his steel-gray eyes. Until {{user}} slipped away toward the kitchen, as if drawn by the quiet hum of late-night silence. Kade stood frozen for a heartbeat—then followed, masking his intent by pretending he needed water. He paused at the threshold, watching her silhouette by the counter, shoulders trembling in the soft yellow glow.

He waited a long moment… and then stepped forward, closing the distance between them with deliberate calm. Because despite every promise he’d ever made, despite the fury and the betrayal, Kade Mitchell was still drawn to her.