Riyana didn't look back.
After blocking Alex, she didn't reopen the chat.
Didn't reread the messages.
Didn't hesitate.
For the first time—
She chose herself.
The next morning felt… different.
Lighter.
Quieter.
Stronger.
Riyana stood in front of the mirror, tying her hair slowly. Her reflection looked the same.
But she wasn't.
Not anymore.
The girl who begged someone to stay—
Was gone.
And in her place stood someone colder.
Sharper.
Unreachable.
"Good," she whispered to herself.
"No more mistakes."
Across the city—
Bosco Moretti already knew.
Marco stood in his office, arms crossed.
"She blocked him. Permanently."
Bosco didn't react immediately.
He simply nodded once.
"Good."
Marco studied him.
"That's all?"
Bosco turned slightly, his expression unreadable.
"What else do you expect?"
Marco smirked faintly.
"Nothing. Just… thought you'd be more interested."
Bosco's voice dropped.
"I am."
A pause.
"But not in him."
Marco exhaled.
"Then in what?"
Bosco looked out the window.
"At what comes next."
And what came next…
Was unexpected.
The Collision
It happened in the most ordinary place.
A quiet art gallery.
Riyana walked slowly along the walls, her eyes scanning the paintings with quiet focus.
Art had always been her escape.
Her silence.
Her truth.
She stopped in front of one painting.
A woman standing alone in the rain.
No shelter.
No protection.
Yet she wasn't crying.
She looked… calm.
Strong.
Unbreakable.
Riyana's fingers tightened slightly around her bag.
"She survived," she murmured.
"Of course she did."
A deep voice answered.
Right behind her.
Riyana froze.
That voice—
She knew it.
Too well.
Slowly…
She turned.
And there he was.
Bosco Moretti.
Standing too close.
Watching her.
For a moment—
Neither of them spoke.
The air between them felt… charged.
Heavy.
Unavoidable.
Riyana's expression hardened instantly.
"You're following me now?"
Bosco's lips curved slightly.
"If I were, you wouldn't have noticed."
Her eyes narrowed.
"I noticed you."
"That's because I wanted you to."
Silence.
Sharp.
Dangerous.
Riyana crossed her arms.
"What do you want?"
Bosco didn't answer immediately.
His gaze moved to the painting.
Then back to her.
"You like strong women."
She scoffed.
"I like reality."
Bosco stepped closer.
"Is that what you call it?"
Riyana didn't move.
"Better than illusions."
Something in her tone shifted.
Colder.
More personal.
Bosco noticed.
Of course he did.
"You've changed," he said quietly.
Riyana's eyes flashed.
"You don't know me."
"I know enough."
Her jaw tightened.
"No. You don't."
Silence.
Then—
Bosco spoke again.
"Alex."
The name hit.
Hard.
Unexpected.
Riyana's entire body went still.
Her eyes turned sharp.
Deadly.
"How do you know that name?"
Bosco didn't flinch.
"I make it my business to know things."
Her anger rose instantly.
"That's not your business."
"It became my business the moment he came back."
Her breath hitched.
Just for a second.
"You've been watching me?"
Bosco didn't deny it.
"I've been aware."
"That's not the same thing."
"It is in my world."
Riyana let out a bitter laugh.
"Your world sounds exhausting."
"And yours sounds predictable."
That struck a nerve.
Riyana stepped closer.
Now there was barely any space between them.
"Say what you want to say."
Bosco's voice lowered.
"You deserved better."
Silence.
The words hung between them.
Heavy.
Unexpected.
Riyana blinked once.
Then her expression hardened again.
"I don't need your sympathy."
"It's not sympathy."
"Then what is it?"
Bosco held her gaze.
"Understanding."
She shook her head immediately.
"No."
Her voice was sharp.
"You don't get to understand me."
"Why not?"
"Because you're exactly the kind of man I avoid."
That didn't offend him.
If anything—
It intrigued him.
Bosco stepped even closer.
Close enough that she could feel his presence.
His intensity.
His control.
"And what kind is that?"
Riyana didn't step back.
"Men who think they can have anything they want."
Bosco's lips curved slightly.
"And I can't?"
"No."
Her voice was firm.
"You can't have me."
Silence.
The tension snapped tighter.
Bosco's eyes darkened.
"I'm not trying to have you."
"Good."
A pause.
"Because you never will."
That should have ended it.
It didn't.
Instead—
Bosco leaned slightly closer.
Not touching.
But close enough to blur the line.
"I don't chase women, Riyana."
Her breath slowed.
"Then don't start now."
Bosco's voice dropped to almost a whisper.
"But you…"
A pause.
"…are not like other women."
Her eyes flashed.
"I'm not interested in being special."
"You already are."
"No."
She stepped back finally.
Breaking the tension.
"I'm just someone who learned her lesson."
Bosco watched her carefully.
"And what lesson is that?"
Her gaze turned cold.
"That love doesn't exist."
Silence.
For a moment—
Something unreadable passed through Bosco's expression.
Then he spoke.
"Wrong."
Riyana almost laughed.
"There it is."
"What?"
"The delusion."
Bosco didn't react.
"You believe in it."
She shook her head.
"Of course you do. Men like you always do—when it benefits you."
"That's not how it works."
"That's exactly how it works."
Her voice sharpened.
"Love is temporary. Self-interest is permanent."
Bosco studied her.
"You don't believe that."
"I do."
"No."
His voice was calm.
"You experienced something broken. That's not the same thing."
Her patience snapped.
"Don't."
"Don't what?"
"Don't act like you understand my pain."
"I do understand patterns."
"I'm not a pattern."
"You are to men like him."
Silence.
That hit.
Deeper than she expected.
Riyana looked away briefly.
Regaining control.
Then back at him.
Stronger.
Colder.
"You're not different."
Bosco's gaze didn't waver.
"I never said I was."
That answer surprised her.
"You're honest about it?"
"Yes."
"About what?"
"That I take what I want."
Her lips pressed together.
"And I'm not something you can take."
Bosco's voice softened slightly.
"I know."
That wasn't what she expected.
Silence fell again.
But this time—
It wasn't hostile.
It was… intense.
Unspoken.
Unresolved.
Riyana stepped back fully.
Creating distance.
"I don't have time for this."
Bosco didn't stop her.
"Then don't waste it."
She turned—
Then paused.
Just for a second.
Without looking back—
She said:
"Stay out of my life."
Bosco's voice followed her.
"I'm not in it."
A beat.
"Yet."
Riyana walked away.
Her heartbeat steady.
But something inside her—
Wasn't as unaffected as she wanted it to be.
Bosco watched her leave.
His expression unreadable.
Marco's voice came through his phone.
"You ran into her?"
Bosco didn't look away.
"Yes."
"And?"
A pause.
Bosco's lips curved slightly.
"She's stronger now."
Marco chuckled softly.
"That's good, right?"
Bosco's eyes darkened.
"Yes."
A beat.
"Which makes it more interesting."
Because for the first time—
Riyana Leone wasn't broken.
She wasn't soft.
She wasn't easy.
And that…
Was exactly why Bosco Moretti couldn't look away.