Ronan and I were over, and whatever he did now was none of my concern.
But seeing him with someone else, someone who meant something to him, stirred an emotion I refused to acknowledge.
My annoyance surged like a tidal wave as I scrutinized every detail of their interaction in the photo. Despite the professional setting, Ronan looked anything but distant or preoccupied as he usually did. Instead, there was a calmness about him that infuriated me to no end. A calmness he only had around me.
Frustrated, I angrily swiped off his story and went to her profile. Suddenly, it hit me—I knew where I had seen her before. She was seated right beside him at my fashion show, a vision in a stunning red dress. I had dismissed her then as another attendee, but evidently, she was his plus-one.
It was a feeling almost feral, something I couldn’t define, but that unsettled me deeply.
I scrolled further through her account and stumbled upon yet another picture of her and Ronan.Was this what assistants got paid to do?This time, they sat together in a meeting, her caption reading, “Meeting days with the boss.” And then I noticed his comment—likely posted by someone on his PR team—praising her as “the best assistant ever.”
The longer I stared at the photo, the more my annoyance simmered into a boiling resentment. In a fit of frustration and surging irrationality, I impulsively reported the photo asimpersonation.
With a sigh, I closed the app and tried to refocus on my day, pushing aside the troubling realization that seeing Ronan with someone else affected me more deeply than I cared to admit.
Chapter Twenty-five
NINA
Eight Years Earlier
ITALY
Shock.
That was the only word to describe what I felt. Utter, paralyzing, mind-numbing shock.
After weeks of begging my mom to let me sleep over at Ronan’s, shefinallycaved. Granted, I had to endure the world’s most mortifying Italian Mom Lecture—complete with dramatic hand gestures, a rosary clutch, and a speech about self-respect and decision-making—but she said yes.
And now, here I was in Ronan’s room.
His room in his house was quite literally the size of a school.Maybe even two. Every inch of the place looked like something out of a luxury magazine—white marble floors, gold accents, and chandeliers that belonged in a royal palace. It was extravagant but somehow still warm, like a home filled with history and stories behind every door.
Ronan walked up to me, his gaze soft and knowing. He cupped my face, his thumb grazing my cheek, then kissed me. The feel of his lips made my stomach flip, and as the kiss deepened, a dizzying rush swept over me.
“You can’t ever keep your hands off me,” I teased, smiling up at him.
He smirked. “I’d rather die.”
My heart did an actual somersault.
Before I could even process that, he squeezed my hand and tugged me gently toward the door. “Come on.”
I blinked. “Where?”
“I wanna show you something.”
I followed him through the endless halls of his house, past towering paintings and elegant furniture, until we finally reached a set of double doors. He pushed them open, leading me into a garden.
It was enclosed in glass, like a secret greenhouse hidden inside his already massive estate. Soft golden lights illuminated the space, casting a dreamy glow over everything. Climbing roses stretched toward the ceiling, rows of vibrant flowers lined the stone pathways, and a little fountain sat in the center, its water shimmering under the lights. It felt like something out of a fairytale, and I was mesmerized.
I followed his gaze to the setup.
Fabric was everywhere. Rolls of satin, silk, and tulle spilled across the table, with some cut into delicate patterns and others folded into careful designs. A dress form stood nearby, wrapped in the first beginnings of a gown.
I inhaled sharply. “Whoa.”
Ronan grinned. “Date night.”
