Page 16

Now, here that same girl was, clinging to Adrian like a trophy.

Ella glanced over at Sienna, smirking as she tightened her grip on Adrian’s arm and leaned into him. “I’ve missed you so much.”

Adrian’s jaw clenched. Without a second of hesitation, he got up and yanked his arm free, shoving her off with an effortless flick of strength.

His voice dropped into a dangerous growl. “I have nothing to do with you. What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

Ella gasped, stunned by the rejection. But she wasn’t done saving face. Her eyes darted to Sienna, then back to Adrian, and she made her move again—this time louder, more dramatic, like a scene from a bad soap opera.

“Why are you acting like this?” she whined, grabbing his hand. Don’t push me like that.”

Before Adrian could throw her off again, she tugged Adrian’s arm and suddenly dragged herself closer to Theo and Sienna, plastering on a fake smile before addressing her target.

“Oh! Sienna! Didn’t you used to work with Mr. Vaughn not long ago? What a surprise!”

Sienna didn’t return the smile. Her gaze flicked to Theo, who raised a brow at her but said nothing, then offered his arm to her and they both got up to walk away.

She moved to take Theo’s arm—but Ella also jumped to her feet, closing the distance between them. Her hand shot out, grabbing Sienna’s wrist and yanking her back toward herself with a high-pitched laugh that was anything but sweet.

“It’s been so long since we hung out!” Ella announced loudly, drawing attention from the people nearby. “You and Mr. Montgomery got married not long ago, but now you’re acting like we’re not good enough for you? That’s not very nice, right, Sienna?”

Sienna blinked, her face unreadable.

Ella pouted, her red lipstick smeared like a clown mask. “Let’s have dinner tonight! You, me, Mr. Vaughn—and maybe Mr. Montgomery, too. You two lookadorabletogether.” She smirked between Theo and her, tightening her grip on Adrian’s arm like she owned it.

Adrian looked down at her hand in disgust.

His jaw clenched. His eyes darkened, and the fury flashing through them was unmistakable. His eyes snapped to Sienna immediately after, concern flickering in his expression. He could feel the shift in her energy, the tension behind her calm eyes. His jaw ticked. His whole body was coiled with rage—rage that someone dared try to humiliate his woman in front of him. The last thing he wanted was for her to feel embarrassed or cornered.

Sienna, however, didn’t flinch.

But Sienna turned that fake smile right back at Ella, cool and composed. “Sorry, I’m too busy,” she said sweetly. “Having dinner with you would be a waste of my time. And I hate wasting my time.”

With that, she slid her hand into Theo’s and turned her back on Ella without another word.

Ella’s face turned red, her jaw trembling with embarrassment. She huffed and tried to recover, twirling toward Adrian like nothing happened.

“Adrian! You and I can go to eat. I’ll book a great restaurant and we can—"

“Enough.”

Adrian snapped abruptly, towering over her. His eyes were thunder, his presence electrifying. He grabbed her wrist and shoved it off himself, making her stumble.

“I told you to stop showing up in front of me.” His tone dropped, lethal and cold. “I’ve been saying the same fucking thing for years.Are you really that slow, or do you just not understand the goddamn language?””

“But Adrian! You cancelled the engagement over a text message back then! That was unbelievably disrespectful.” Ella whined, pouting. “My dad said you and I should spend more time together. A date. That would be so romantic…”

Adrian’s jaw clenched, and his stormy gaze narrowed on her. His tall frame radiated tension as he growled, “If your father wants you to spend time with someone, he can take you on a damn date himself.”

With a rough push, he shoved her off himself. Then he turned on his heel, his tailored suit shifting with his broad, powerful strides as he walked away without a second glance.

Ella stood frozen, cheeks burning with humiliation. Her eyes flicked around, desperate to see if anyone had noticed. She’d wanted to humiliate Sienna, but now, it was her they were watching, their eyes laced with amusement and barely hidden laughter. Panic rising, she rushed after Adrian, her heels clattering frantically against the marble floor.

Theo had watched everything closely. His attention wasn’t just on Ella or Adrian—it was especially on Sienna. He noticed how Adrian’s eyes stayed locked on her. Intense. Like she was the only person in the room.

Sienna avoided Adrian’s eyes, pretending not to notice. But Theo caught it. The way her gaze had flicked toward Adrian earlier when they were sitting together. The tension in her shoulders. The momentary softness in her expression. It was with a flicker of something Theo didn’t like. His brows pulled together in a frown.

“Are you still in love with him?” Theo asked bluntly.