Chapter 520

Chapter 520:

I knew that. I just hadn’t cared. If the plan worked, Silva would get his promotion, and I’d get my money back. But the plan didn’t work.

Now, I could only hope Fabrizio was too drunk to remember how desperate I’d sounded tonight.

“You should’ve come to me. I would’ve gotten your money back,” Ashton said.

That set me off.

“I KNOW! I know you could’ve fixed it. You run a bloody empire and have strings everywhere. You could make things happen with a single call. But that doesn’t mean I should crawl to you every time something goes wrong. I don’t want to be that woman, Ashton. I’m not going to fall apart and beg you to fix my life for me p>

There it was. Every insecurity I’d buried since we got serious. Ashton’s power didn’t comfort me; it made me feel small. I could ask for help, and he’d gladly give it. He was like a towering redwood—solid and immovable. Under that canopy, I’d be protected.

But what if one day that tree came down?

I didn’t want to be some parasitic vine, living off someone else, incapable of surviving alone.

Maybe it was better to end this before I forgot how to stand on my own.

I touched the engagement ring on my finger. It was a beautiful piece—simple, elegant. He’d clearly gone to one of the best jewelers.

But had he forgotten I was a designer too? Why hadn’t he asked me to design our rings? Wouldn’t that have meant more?

Or maybe he hadn’t forgotten. Maybe he just didn’t think my work was good enough.

I started to pull off the ring.

“Mira!” Ashton’s voice snapped.

I looked up. “What p>

He was staring at my hand. “I have news p>

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“So do I.” I was done being a coward. It was time to walk away from the man who seemed too good to be true.

“It’s about your father,” he said quickly.

That stopped me.

“What about him? Wasn’t Franklin still in prison p>

“He’s dead p>

“You found her?” Lea asked.

I nodded and sank onto the barstool beside her.

“Is she all right p>

“She’s fine. Or at least she was, until I showed up, ruined her dinner, and blew up her plan p>

“Told you the PI I recommended was good,” Lea smiled. “I mostly use him for business intel, but he handles personal cases too.” She paused, reading my face. “Didn’t go well, then p>

There was sympathy in her voice, but I could hear the schadenfreude underneath. “Mira just needs time p>

Lea waved the bartender over and ordered a Boulevardier for me. “That’s what I said. She needs time to process the news. Alone. You showing up probably made things worse. Did she lash out p>

I took a long gulp. It went down smooth, but it didn’t touch the mess inside me. I couldn’t forget the look on Mira’s face when I told her about her father. Or the look that followed when I explained how he’d died. Shock. Anger. Blame. Rage. Hatred. Even disgust.