I never thought I'd walk into this building again, not without choking on everything it took from me.
The lobby hadn't changed.
Same cold marble floors. Same gold accents. Same scent of money, ambition, and carefully bottled lies.
It smelled like Noah Carter. It made my skin crawl.
Three years ago, I stood in white lace with trembling hands, waiting to become his wife.
Three years ago, he left me standing at the altar with two hundred eyes and zero explanation.
Today, I return in blood-red heels, wearing the name of the company that's about to buy his.
"Ms. Reid," my assistant said... yes, I don't use Ava Carter anymore, "you're expected on the 47th floor."
I nodded once, stepped into the elevator, and felt it lift me back into a life I swore I buried.
---
Three years earlier
"Don't be nervous," Noah whispered, brushing a stray curl from my face as we stood behind the cathedral doors.
His eyes were soft. Kind. Lying.
"I'm not nervous," I lied back.
But I was. Not because I doubted the marriage.
I just never imagined anything in my life could feel this perfect.
I waited.
And waited.
The music played.
But he never came.
---
Present...
The elevator doors slid open.
He stepped in.
Noah Carter.
Sharp as ever. Dark suit. That same stillness, like the world moved around him, not with him.
He didn't even glance at me.
Didn't pause. Didn't react.
He stood beside me, adjusted his cuff, and tapped something on his phone.
He didn't recognize me.
I could scream.
I could cry.
Instead, I smiled.
The doors closed. The silence grew.
I stared at my reflection in the mirrored walls, a stranger now. Cold eyes. Crimson lips. Spine made of steel.
He didn't recognize me…
But that's the beauty of being broken. You get to rebuild yourself however you want.
I adjusted my heel with slow grace, aware of how it caught the light making it very shiny and noticable. It used to be the kind of thing he noticed how I wore my shoes, the way I painted my lips, the perfume I used behind my ear.
But now? I was just another polished woman in a city full of secrets.
He cleared his throat.
"Heading to the 47th?" he asked without looking up.
His voice.
That voice.
Low. Smooth. Poisonous.
The same voice that used to promise me always. The same one that whispered goodbye without ever saying the word.
I turned my head slightly, just enough for him to see the curve of my jaw, the hardness in my eyes.
"Apparently," I said coolly.
His brows lifted slightly, maybe it was the tone,or how I said it , but it passed just as quickly.
"Big meeting today," he said. "Merger talks."
"Big mistake," I corrected, then turned forward again.
He chuckled under his breath, like I was some harmless stranger making a joke I didn't understand. He still didn't know.
But he would.
The elevator dinged.
We stepped out together, his stride confident, mine controlled.
"Have a good meeting," he said over his shoulder.
I smiled to myself.
Oh, I plan to.
And when I do, I won't need to raise my voice.
My presence will be loud enough.
He'll feel it in the room before I speak.
Like a storm pressing against the windows.
Like something beautiful and dangerous entering his space and daring him to pretend it doesn't rattle him.
The girl he walked away from would've begged him to notice her.
But the woman I've become?
She makes men regret blinking.
A slow breath left my lips. I didn't realize how long I'd been staring at the corridor ahead. Or maybe… lost inside the war in my head.
A hand touched my arm.
"Ms. Reid?" Jordan's voice cut through, polite but firm. "They're waiting for you upstairs. We're already two minutes behind."
I blinked.
Reality snapped back at me
I nodded, smoothing a hand down the side of my blazer, then turned to face the hallway.
"Let's not keep them waiting," I said smoothly.
Jordan gave me a tight smile. "You seem distracted."
I smirked. "i'm okay"...