Before Adrian could answer, a sharp knock hit the car window, making me flinch as everything from before disappeared in an instant.

The warmth between us vanished as Adrian’s attention shifted outward, his expression hardening into something controlled and alert, and the silence in the car turned tense again.

He didn’t speak immediately. Instead, he reached for the door and stepped out first, leaving me sitting there in confusion, my heart still unsettled from what had almost been said between us.

I hesitated for a moment before following him out.

The air outside felt different, really quiet and it took me a second to realize we had arrived somewhere completely new. My eyes lifted slowly, and what I saw made my breath pause.

A mansion stood ahead of us, large and overwhelming. It was nothing like the place I had been taken to the other night.

Tall gates surrounded the property, with subtle security placed discreetly around it.

But something about the way the guards stood made me uneasy, like they were not just protecting the place.

Adrian walked ahead without waiting for me, and after a moment of hesitation, I followed him through the gates and into the house.

Inside, the atmosphere shifted again. The interior was even more refined, with polished floors reflecting soft lighting and walls showing quiet luxury.

Everything was spacious, organized, and almost too perfect, like nothing was ever out of place.

And yet it did not feel like comfort. It felt controlled, like everything had been placed exactly where it should be for a reason I did not understand.

I stayed close behind Adrian as he led me further in, my thoughts still tangled from everything that had happened before this moment. Finally, I couldn’t hold it in anymore.

“Why are you doing this, Adrian?” I asked quietly, my voice breaking slightly. “You don’t even know me.”

He stopped walking.

For a moment, he didn’t turn around, and the silence stretched between us.

When he finally faced me, his expression was calm, unreadable.

“I can’t say anything for now,” he said. “All you have to know is that you are safe here and you can trust me, okay?”

I frowned slightly, the answer doing little to settle the confusion building inside me.

“I can trust you?” I asked.

“Yes, you can,” he replied simply. “David will attend to all your needs here.”

A man stepped forward from the side immediately, his posture respectful and composed.

“Hello ma’am, David,” he said politely.

I gave a small nod, still trying to adjust to everything happening too fast around me.

Adrian turned slightly, already preparing to leave.

“Take some time to rest,” he said. “I’ll be back in two days.”

My head lifted instantly.

“Two days?” I repeated. “Where are you going?”

He paused briefly, then looked at me.

“I have some things to sort out. I’ll be back before you know it.”

Then, unexpectedly, his expression softened just slightly, and he gave a small, almost unnoticeable smile.

It lingered for a second too long before he turned and walked away, leaving me standing there with David.

The silence that followed felt heavier than anything I had experienced since this all began.

David stepped forward gently.

“Ma’am, let me show you your room and bathroom so you can freshen up,” he said.

I nodded quietly and followed him through the house, my footsteps echoing slightly against the polished floors. He led me down a hallway and opened a room that was just as refined as everything else, prepared as if someone had already expected me to be there.

After a moment, he handed me a phone.

“This is from Boss Adrian,” he explained. “No one will be able to track you with it.”

I took it slowly, still unsure of what to say.

Once David left, I stood alone for a moment before doing the only thing I could think of.

I called Ella, my best friend.

The phone rang for a few seconds before she picked up.

“Hello, who is this?” she asked cautiously.

“It’s me… Aria,” I said softly.

There was a pause, then her voice shifted instantly.

“Where have you been all this time? Your parents called saying you were missing. I’ve been so worried about you. I’ve been trying to call you, I’ve looked everywhere, I even asked your colleagues—”

“Ella, please,” I interrupted quickly, lowering my voice. “No one must know I called you. A lot has happened since the wedding. I don’t even know how to explain it, but we need to meet.”

Her tone softened immediately, concern replacing panic.

“Where are you?” she asked.

I hesitated before telling her, and after some back and forth, we arranged to meet so I could explain everything properly.

Hours later, she arrived at the mansion.

Seeing her brought a small sense of relief I didn’t even realize I needed. For the first time since everything started, I felt like I wasn’t completely alone.

We talked for a long time, and I told her everything I could manage without breaking down completely. She listened in silence, her expression shifting between shock and concern, but she didn’t interrupt.

When she finally left, the house returned to silence again.

And I was alone with my thoughts.

~ ~ ~

Two days passed slowly.

David checked in occasionally, but most of the time it was just silence, the kind that made me think too much.

Then, later that day, everything shifted again.

I heard movement downstairs.

And I knew immediately that he was back.

My heart reacted before I even had time to think, and before I could stop myself, I was already moving toward him.

Adrian had just stepped inside, calm as ever, his presence filling the space in a way that made everything else feel smaller. He hadn’t even taken off his jacket properly when his eyes lifted and met mine.

For a second, neither of us moved.

Then I was already coming down the stairs.

I didn’t know why I was in such a hurry, only that I needed to see him properly, to confirm he was really here, that the last two days hadn’t been some strange blur I imagined.

I reached the bottom just as he turned fully toward me.

His gaze held mine, steady and unreadable, like he was watching something he didn’t want to interrupt.

“You’re back,” I said quietly, almost before I could stop myself.

He studied me for a moment before replying, his voice calm.

“I said I would be.”

And I didn’t even realize I had taken a small step closer until I was already standing in front of him.

We stood there for a moment in silence, neither of us moving.

Then I finally spoke.

“Can we talk?” I asked quietly. “I know you just came back and everything, but… I need to understand some things.”

He studied me for a second, then gave a small nod.

“Okay.”

We didn’t stay in the hallway. He led the way without saying much, and I followed him through the house until we stepped out onto an open balcony.

The air outside was cooler, quieter. The city lights stretched faintly in the distance, and for the first time since I got here, the space between us didn’t feel as suffocating.

We sat down side by side, though not too close.

Then he spoke first.

“I also wanted to talk to you, Aria.”

I turned slightly toward him and quickly spoke before I lost my courage. “Let me start first.”

He didn’t stop me, so I took a breath.

“I want to thank you for everything,” I said honestly. “I don’t know why you would do something like that for me… you don’t even know me.”

He was quiet for a second, then his voice came softer.

“It’s fine, Aria. We had a connection… and I couldn’t stop thinking about you since that night.”

I blinked slightly, caught off guard.

“Oh…”

My voice came out smaller than I expected.

“You left without saying anything,” he added, watching me carefully. “Which is understandable.”

“I had my reasons…” I said quietly, my eyes dropping for a second before I looked back at him.

A brief silence passed between us again, heavier this time.

Then suddenly, he reached out and took my hands, his grip steady, warm, and firm.

“I need to get married,” he said, his eyes still fixed on mine as he kept holding my hands, his tone calm but with a quiet heaviness behind it.

“It is tied to my company and everything I am dealing with.”

I frowned slightly as I tried to read his expression, but he didn’t look away and didn’t give anything away.

“Right now, Aria, I want us to get married,” he said, combining the same steady control with a quiet firmness that made it sound less like a question and more like a conclusion already reached.

“I will protect you, and I will make sure no one can reach you again,” he continued without breaking eye contact. “I will also deal with the people responsible for what happened to you.”

His words made me pause as something in his tone felt different. Not just concern, but certainty, like he knew more than he was saying, and somehow it felt like my name had already been part of his life before I ever met him.

My throat tightened as I tried to process everything at once.

“I know this sounds extreme,” he said quietly, “but this is the only way I can protect you from what your father started.”

I froze slightly.

“…wait, what?”

I stared at him, sure I had heard him wrong, but the calm look on his face told me I hadn’t.

“Marry you?” I said slowly, my voice rising in disbelief. “Are you serious right now?”

“I am,” Adrian replied, like it was the simplest thing in the world.

A short, disbelieving laugh escaped me as I shook my head. “No, wait, hold on. You want to get married? Adrian, you don’t even know me. What is this supposed to be? You just want to use me?”

His expression didn’t change, but the air around him felt colder instantly.

“You benefit from this too,” he said. “You will be under my protection. No one will touch you.”

I stepped back slightly, trying to process how calm he was. “And how do I know I can trust you?” I shot back. “How do I even know I’m safe here?”

His jaw tightened for a second, like my question irritated him, but he controlled it quickly.

“If I hadn’t stepped in when those men had you, you wouldn’t be standing here right now, Aria,” he said firmly.

The memory flashed in my mind before I could stop it, and I hated that it made my stomach twist.

He stood up and took a slow step away, then another, as if he needed movement to keep his thoughts in control.

“Those men weren’t playing games,” he continued. “And they won’t stop.”

Silence fell between us.

I felt my thoughts scatter, nothing making sense anymore. Everything was moving too fast, too dangerous, too unreal.

“I…” I exhaled sharply, rubbing my forehead. “I need to go.”

I turned toward the room immediately and started grabbing my bag.

“Where are you going?” Adrian asked behind me, his voice steady but closer now.

“I need to see my dad,” I said without turning. “I think he’s involved in this. I need answers.”

I zipped my bag and finally faced him again.

“And your proposal?” I added. “No, Adrian. I don’t know you. I’m not marrying you.”

A silence followed.

Then he spoke.

“Fine,” he said quietly. “Go.”

I frowned slightly at how easily he said it.

But then he added, softer but sharper, “I hope you don’t regret it.”

I ignored him and walked out.

A black SUV was already waiting outside.

“The boss doesn’t want you ordering a taxi,” David said, opening the door for me.

“Tell your boss he doesn’t have to worry about me,” I replied, stepping past him.

I walked away from the SUV and flagged down a taxi myself.

Within minutes, I was on the road again.

~ ~ ~

I paid the driver and stepped out in front of the gate, and for a second I just stood there, looking at home as a strange wave of relief hit me, but it didn’t last.

It felt heavy instead. Wrong. Like I was walking back into something I didn’t understand.

I beeped at the gate, and the security recognized me and immediately opened it for me. I stepped inside, and I saw my father in the living room on a phone call. The moment he noticed me, he ended the call immediately.

“Where have you been?” he snapped.

His voice was sharp, almost like he had been waiting to attack me.

I let out a dry laugh. “Where have I been?” I repeated. “That’s the first thing you’re going to ask me?”

His expression hardened instantly.

“You are nothing but an ungrateful child,” he barked. “You ruined the wedding arrangement with Daniel, and now everything I worked for is falling apart because of you.”

My chest tightened, but I forced myself to stay still.

“I did everything you asked me to,” I said, my voice shaking despite my effort. “Everything. He cheated on me with Bella, Dad. And somehow this is still my fault?”

He started walking toward me slowly, his steps controlled.

“He cheated?” he said coldly. “So what?”

I froze.

It felt like the world stopped for a second.

“So what?” I repeated, my voice barely stable.

“You ran away,” he continued like I hadn’t spoken. “And now you expect to inherit the Collins empire acting like this? I told you business comes before emotions. But you never listen.”

Something inside me cracked.

I took a step forward.

“Sometimes I wonder if I’m even your daughter,” I said, my voice breaking. “Or just a tool you use when it suits you.”

Silence fell between us, and for a second he didn’t respond. I didn’t wait. I turned and ran upstairs.

My room door shut behind me, and everything came crashing down. I sank onto the bed as tears broke out again, uncontrollable. “Why…” I whispered. “Why is this happening to me?”

A knock came, soft and careful. I quickly wiped my face and stood. “Who is it?” I asked, but there was no reply. Only silence.

I walked to the door slowly, my heartbeat rising for no reason, and when I opened it, no one was there. Only a small envelope lay on the floor.

My stomach dropped as I picked it up and opened it. Inside was a single line: “You were never supposed to come back home.”

I froze, reading it again, my mind refusing to accept it.

I stepped into the hallway and called out, “Hello? Is anyone here?” but there was no answer.

I moved further in, each step heavier, until I noticed something under the staircase.

I bent down and picked up a small black device. A tracker.

My hands went cold.

My phone vibrated. Unknown number.

A message appeared: “They already know you are back.”

I slowly looked up, scanning the house, but the silence felt different now, like someone was still there, watching me without making a sound.