The following week felt like a slow heartbreak on repeat.
Every time Lydia tried calling, it went unanswered.
Every time she texted, it was left on read.
At first, she told herself he was just busy — that finance men like Jaden lived on stress and late nights.
But even busy people don't forget you this completely.
Something was wrong.
And Lydia's gut knew it.
That Friday evening, she saw his black Maserati parked outside The Aurum Lounge — a private club known for two things: money and secrets.
She sat in her car across the street, heart racing.
She didn't plan to follow him. She just wanted to see him — to remind herself he was real.
But when she saw him step out of the car, everything changed.
He wasn't alone.
A man walked beside him — tall, sharp-featured, with an unsettling calm in his eyes. Alexander.
They looked like two sides of the same coin — power and danger.
Lydia watched them enter the building through a private door.
Something about the way Jaden glanced around before going in made her breath catch. It wasn't caution.
It was fear.
Without thinking twice, she grabbed her purse and got out of the car.
---
Inside the lounge, the air smelled of money and expensive perfume.
Crystal chandeliers shimmered above velvet chairs.
Lydia kept her head down, pretending to scroll through her phone as she trailed behind them.
They moved to a back corridor, one guarded by men in suits.
When they disappeared inside, she slipped closer — just enough to catch the faint sound of raised voices.
> "You made your choice when you left," Alexander's voice cut through the door.
"Don't come crawling back now."
> "I didn't leave for me," Jaden shot back.
"I left because you crossed the line."
A short silence — then Alexander laughed.
> "And what about her? Does she know who you really are?"
Lydia's heart froze. Her?
Before she could move, a guard appeared from nowhere.
> "Miss, this area is restricted."
She forced a smile, murmured an apology, and hurried back to the main hall, pulse thundering.
Outside, she leaned against her car, trying to catch her breath.
Her mind raced with questions.
What had she just overheard? Who was Jaden really?
That night, when she got home, she couldn't sleep.
The man she was falling for wasn't just distant — he was hiding something big.
And now, she was sure of one thing:
She was goiing to find out the truth, even if it broke her heart in the process.