Esmeralda
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Her phone vibrated in her clutch, and for a moment, panic seized her heart. The elegant ballroom of the Luminaire Grand suddenly felt suffocating, the crystal chandeliers casting shadows that seemed to dance mockingly across the marble floors. Only one person had this number for emergencies—Penelope "Penny" Estrel, who was watching Luca back at the Blackwood Plaza Hotel. Her best friend had insisted on accompanying them from Crystal Cove, knowing how difficult this return to Blackwood City would be.
But before she could reach for it, Alex's hand caught her wrist. The touch was electric, familiar in a way that made her pulse jump traitorously beneath his fingers. Even after three years, her body remembered him.
"Not this time, Esmeralda." His grey eyes burned into hers, storms brewing in their depths. The intensity of his gaze hadn't changed in three years—still able to see through her carefully constructed walls, still able to make her feel exposed. "Not until you explain why you really ran."
The crystal pendant at her throat—the one Luca loved to play with—felt suddenly heavy. Every lie, every secret, every careful plan she'd made seemed to crystallise in this moment, under the weight of his scrutiny.
"Is everything alright here?" Julian's smooth voice cut through the tension like a blade through silk. He appeared at Esmeralda's side, his presence both casual and deliberately positioned between them. The subtle scent of his expensive cologne provided a sharp contrast to Alex's familiar sandalwood—a reminder that she wasn't the same woman who'd once lived in Alex's carefully controlled world. "Esmeralda, I believe there's an urgent matter requiring your attention?"
She hadn't said anything about urgent matters, but gratitude flooded her as she recognised the lifeline Julian was throwing her. In the short time she'd known him, he'd proven to be remarkably perceptive. "Yes, thank you for reminding me, Julian."
Alex's grip tightened momentarily before he released her, but the phantom warmth of his touch lingered. His expression darkened as he looked between them, something dangerous flickering in those storm-grey eyes—the same eyes that looked back at her every day from their son's face. "How convenient."
His voice was arctic, carrying that edge of authority that had once ruled her world. "Tell me, Esmeralda, does Le Montague know all your secrets, or just the ones that suit your purpose?"
The irony of his accusation wasn't lost on her. Here she stood, keeping the biggest secret of all—their son, sleeping miles away, probably clutching his dragon plush and fighting his fever.
"My car's waiting outside," Julian offered, ignoring Alex's barb with practiced ease.
"That won't be necessary," Alex cut in, but Esmeralda was already stepping away from him. Each step felt like breaking free of a magnetic pull, her body remembering a time when she would have stayed, when his word was law in her carefully gilded cage.
"Thank you, Julian. I'd appreciate that." She forced herself to meet Alex's gaze one last time, suppressing a shiver at the promise of retribution she saw there. The look was pure Alexander Vale—the businessman who'd built an empire through sheer force of will, the man who'd never accepted defeat. "Goodbye, Alexander."
"This isn't over," he called after her, his voice carrying that same dangerous edge that had once thrilled and terrified her in equal measure. "We both know you can't run forever, Esmeralda."
The use of her full name—the way it rolled off his tongue like dark honey—brought back memories she'd fought to suppress. Nights in their penthouse, whispered promises, the way he'd say her name like a prayer in their most intimate moments. Before everything shattered.
The cool night air hit her face as they stepped outside the Luminaire Grand, and only then did she realise she was trembling. The city sprawled before them, a glittering maze of lights and shadows. Somewhere in that maze, their son slept, unaware that his father stood mere miles away.
Julian's driver held the car door open, and she slipped inside, the leather seats cool against her bare shoulders. Her fingers shook as she finally pulled out her phone. Three missed calls from Penny, and a text that made her heart skip:
Penny: He's running a fever. Nothing serious, but he's asking for you and that bedtime story.
Her fingers flew across the screen: On my way.
"Everything alright?" Julian asked as the car pulled away from the curb. Through the tinted windows, she caught a glimpse of Alex emerging onto the steps of the Luminaire Grand, his tall figure commanding even at a distance. Their eyes met through the glass for a brief moment, and something in his expression made her breath catch.
Esmeralda managed a polite smile, though her thoughts were already racing ahead to Luca. "Just something that needs my immediate attention. Thank you for the rescue back there."
"Alexander Vale isn't known for taking no for an answer," Julian observed carefully, studying her profile in the passing streetlights. "Though I've never seen him quite so... intense."
She turned to look out the window, watching the glittering lights of Blackwood City blur past. Each passing moment was another moment away from Alex, yet somehow his presence seemed to linger in the car, as tangible as the phantom warmth of his grip on her wrist. "We have history," she said simply, leaving the weight of those words hanging in the air.
What she didn't say was how that history was still legally binding, according to Alex. Or how the biggest piece of that history was waiting for her, probably clutching his favourite stuffed dragon and asking for the knight story she always told him—the one where the knight had eyes just like his own. The same eyes that had burned into hers tonight with such intensity.
The drive was mercifully short, with Julian respecting her silence. The city passed by in a kaleidoscope of lights and shadows, each street taking her closer to Luca and further from the man who'd shattered her carefully constructed peace. Only when the car slowed did Julian speak again.
"I meant what I said about the collaboration, Esmeralda. My tech division has some innovations that would complement your boutique's direction perfectly." His voice was carefully neutral, professional—everything Alex's hadn't been.
"Thank you, Julian." She gathered her clutch, composing herself. The emerald silk of her gown whispered against the leather seats as she shifted. Another reminder of the life she'd left behind—Alex had always loved her in emerald. Said it matched her eyes. "Perhaps we can discuss it another time."
"Of course." He handed her a business card, the cream cardstock elegant in its simplicity. "And... if Vale becomes a problem, I have connections that might help."
The offer hung between them, genuine but loaded with questions she couldn't answer. How could she explain that Alex Vale wasn't just a problem—he was a storm threatening to sweep away three years of careful planning, of protected secrets, of a life built around keeping their son safe?
"That's kind of you." She tucked the card away, careful to keep her tone light. "But I can handle Alexander Vale."
Julian's smile was knowing, though he couldn't possibly know the full truth. "Somehow, I believe you can."
The moment she stepped out of the car, her phone vibrated again. Another text from Penny:
Penny: He's finally asleep, but still warm. Brought him to your room, hope that's okay.
Relief and worry warred in her chest as she hurried through the hotel's elegant lobby. The click of her heels against marble echoed her racing heartbeat, each step a reminder of how quickly life could unravel. First the gala, then Alex's revelation about the divorce papers, and now Luca's fever. The universe, it seemed, had decided to test all her carefully laid plans in a single night.
The elevator seemed to crawl between floors, each second stretching like honey. Behind her carefully maintained facade, her mind raced. Alex's words echoed in her head: "You're still my wife." If he'd never signed the papers, what did that mean? What else had she miscalculated? The woman in the elevator's mirrored walls stared back at her—composed, elegant in her emerald silk, every inch the society figure she'd once been as Alexander Vale's secret wife. But her eyes betrayed her, green depths swimming with barely contained panic.
Three years of running. Three years of building a new life, of turning herself into someone Alex would never think to look for. Three years of telling Luca stories about a knight with storm-grey eyes, trying to give him some piece of his father without risking everything they'd built.
The elevator chimed, and she forced those thoughts away. Right now, Luca needed her. Everything else—Alex, the unsigned papers, the precarious balance of her carefully constructed life—could wait. She stepped into the hallway, the plush carpet muffling her steps.
But as she reached for her key card, a chill ran down her spine. At the end of the hallway, a figure stepped into the shadows.
Someone was watching.
The crystal pendant at her throat—Alex's gift, now Luca's favourite toy—suddenly felt like ice against her skin. In the subtle reflection of the brass elevator doors behind her, she could make out the figure's silhouette. Tall. Professional. Waiting.
Her perfect escape was about to become something else entirely.
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