Chapter 5 - The Unraveling
The breaking point arrived on a rainy Thursday afternoon.
I was leaving my architectural firm when a hand grabbed my wrist.
I spun around to find Liam standing in the downpour, looking disheveled and frantic.
"Luna, please. You have to stop this," he begged, his hair plastered to his forehead.
I snatched my arm away, stepping back under the awning. "Stop what, Liam?"
"This... this sick game with my father! It's ruining my life!"
"You ruined your own life the second you slept with my sister in my bed," I said coldly.
"Amber is driving me crazy!" he shouted, his voice cracking.
"She complains all day about the budget, she’s alienating my friends, and my mother won't stop screaming at me for embarrassing the family. I made a mistake, Luna. I want you back."
I looked at him—really looked at him.
The man I had loved for three years now looked like a petulant child throwing a tantrum.
"You don't want me back, Liam. You just want your comfortable life back. And I'm not your safety net anymore."
Before he could respond, a sleek black car pulled up to the curb.
Nico stepped out, holding an umbrella.
His eyes immediately locked onto Liam, and the temperature in the air seemed to drop ten degrees.
"Is there a problem here?" Nico asked, stepping between us like a shield.
Liam recoiled, instinctively intimidated by his father's presence. "Dad, this is between me and her."
"Nothing concerning Luna is just between you and her anymore," Nico stated flatly.
"If you ever approach her like this again, I won't just cut your trust fund, Liam. I will freeze every asset you have and banish you to the London office. Do you understand me?"
Liam swallowed hard, looking between us with bitter resentment.
"You're both crazy," he muttered, turning and walking away into the rain.
Nico turned to me, his expression softening instantly. "Did he hurt you?"
"No," I said, realizing how safe I felt standing next to him. "He just proved exactly why I'm done with him."
Nico escorted me to the car.
As we drove back to my apartment, the silence between us felt different. Heavy. Charged.
"This game we're playing," Nico said suddenly, staring out the rain-slicked window. "It has served its purpose."
My heart sank.
Was this it? Was it over? Had Liam’s misery finally satisfied him?
"I suppose it has," I replied, trying to hide the disappointment in my voice.
Nico turned to look at me, reaching across the leather seat to gently touch my cheek.
"I want the game to end, Luna, because I don't want to pretend anymore."
I looked up at him, my breath catching in my throat.
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying that I started this to teach my son a lesson. But somewhere along the way, the lesson stopped mattering."
He leaned in closer, his thumb tracing the line of my jaw.
"I want you, Luna. Not as a weapon against my son. Not as a scandal for the press. Just you."
I didn't answer with words.
I leaned forward and pressed my lips against his.
The kiss was everything Liam had never been—passionate, commanding, and entirely consuming.
May you like
When we finally pulled away, Nico rested his forehead against mine, a fierce possessiveness in his eyes.
"We have one last family dinner this weekend," Nico whispered. "It's time to finish this."
