William didn't bother waiting for the clapping to stop or for that miserable speech to start. He kept a steady hold on my arm as he led me away, while I tried to understand how someone's love could disappear without the slightest warning.

I never asked where we were going. I didn't have to know. As long as we were getting away from that place, it was enough for me.

William booked an Uber, and only a few minutes later, the car carried us toward a neighborhood I had never seen before. Honestly, our destination didn't matter to me at all.

The silence inside the car ended quickly. Whenever anger took over, keeping my mouth shut had never been one of my strengths.

"I'm leaving with the first man who catches my eye," I remarked, forcing confidence into my voice even though I didn't feel any of it.

From the front seat, the driver glanced at me through the rearview mirror.

"Not you, obviously," I added so Will wouldn't misunderstand me. "You've got a wedding ring."

An uneasy laugh escaped the driver. I turned my attention toward the window before Will spoke.

"I don't want you to leave with some random man, babe. I want you to have the best night of your life. I want you to feel real pleasure and remind yourself that you're still here." His voice grew firmer before he added, "More than anything, I want you to understand that Michael isn't necessary for any of it."

Beyond the glass, the city lights melted into streaks, and the blurred view matched the reckless choice forming in my head. This had never been only about sleeping with someone. Deep down, I needed proof that I could still attract someone. I wanted to know that I wasn't simply a backup choice who could be tossed aside so easily.

The worst part was knowing Michael had understood my feelings all along. There was no way he hadn't realized how deeply I had fallen for him. Everyone else had noticed. Every single person had known.

By then, Will was already holding his phone.

"I need you to help me with something."

His request brought us a name, a location, and a silent promise that the night might help me forget everything.

As soon as the car pulled up outside the club, I looked at the entrance and frowned.

"Will... I left my ID at home."

"Stop worrying," he replied, without showing even a trace of concern.

A man soon made his way toward us, and he carried himself with too much confidence to be an ordinary guest. He was one of Will's friends, dressed in a dark suit with a relaxed smile. One look at him made it clear that he understood exactly how everything worked inside that place.

"Your names are already on the list," he said while guiding us toward the entrance. "A few guests canceled at the last minute. The drinks are free, and you won't be charged for anything tonight." He casually pointed toward the confusion around the doorway. "You also got lucky because their system stopped working. Nobody is checking IDs right now."

Something about his words sounded more like a warning than good news.

Once we stepped inside, the noise and lights overwhelmed me at once. Harsh strobe lights flashed across the room, while the pounding music sent heavy vibrations through my chest. People crowded every inch of the club, and strangers kept knocking into me as they passed.

Will took my hand and led me toward a mirror along a hallway beside the main floor. He stared at my dress as though it still needed a final touch.

"Face the other way," he instructed.

I turned around without arguing. Although he was my younger brother, I had always been the one who followed his directions. Somehow, Will usually knew what needed to happen before I did.

After finding a small hidden opening in the fabric, he carefully pulled it wider with one clean tear. Then he fixed the material until it fell into place. The dress didn't look cheap afterward. Instead, it looked... unexpected.

When he was satisfied, he leaned back slightly and examined his work with approval.

"There. That looks much better."

I studied myself in the mirror. The dress revealed more of my body, but for the first time in ages, I actually felt attractive. Even my own figure seemed unfamiliar to me. I wasn't ugly after all. Maybe I only needed a little of the confidence Leticia had more than enough of.

"You may have missed your calling as a fashion designer," I said to him.

"I figured that out a long time ago, babe," he replied with a smug grin.

"And I've never doubted you."

Soon, a man walked over with a bright drink in his hand and a friendly smile on his face. I prepared myself for another cheap pickup line, but he ignored me and focused entirely on Will. They spoke for a while before my brother leaned close and shouted over the music.

"Go enjoy yourself because I'm about to do the same." He kissed my cheek before leaving with the gorgeous, tall man who had dark hair. "And remember," Will shouted over his shoulder, "the drinks are already paid for! Keep going until you can't even remember your name."

"Wait, what was my name? Was it Babe?" I teased.

"Don't you dare," he responded with a playful grin. "I'm the only person allowed to call you that."

"Oh, Will, you know I barely drink..."

"Well, you're drinking tonight."

Without warning, the lights flashed before the entire club went dark for two seconds. At the same time, the music suddenly stopped.

"Not again," someone close to us snapped. "Everything here keeps breaking tonight."

"Expensive club with the internet connection of a cheap motel," Will joked before disappearing into the crowd.

A few minutes later, I sat alone at the bar with a glass that somehow stayed full. The alcohol tasted far too smooth. Everything around me gradually began to move at a slower pace. Then I sensed it. Someone was watching me. I couldn't tell who it was, but the weight of that stare pressed against my skin. The heat from it almost burned.

As soon as I turned, I saw him. He was so unfairly handsome that his face hardly seemed real. The alcohol had probably created some kind of illusion.

His tall frame stood out immediately, while his eyes reminded me of frozen water. They were cold, pale, and strangely calm. The way he carried himself demanded attention, and his perfectly fitted black suit made me curious about the body hidden beneath it. He looked much too dressed up for a club like this.

No smile touched his face. He simply kept his eyes on me. It almost seemed as though he was deciding whether I would become his next target.

I looked away for a moment and tried to make myself appear even slightly tempting. When I glanced back, he was no longer there. He had completely disappeared.

It didn't matter. I had always hated winter anyway. Too much cold only made people miserable and left them trapped in gloomy thoughts...

"How long are you going to act like you never noticed me?" A voice suddenly spoke beside me, and a cold shiver raced along my back.

He was standing right there. I drew in a slow breath before meeting his eyes. Somehow, I forced myself to show confidence that I had never truly possessed.

"What about you?" I retorted as the alcohol loosened my tongue. "How long were you planning to watch me like that?"

"Long enough to realize that you probably won't remember much of tonight when you wake up tomorrow."

A laugh slipped out of me.

"I'm so drunk that I'm starting to think you aren't real."

The edge of his lips lifted slightly.

"Is that so? What makes you think that?"

"I've never met anyone this handsome before!" The confession escaped before I could stop it. I hadn't meant to say any of that. At that moment, I would have gladly bitten my tongue off.

"That clears up quite a few things," he replied calmly. "It also explains why you haven't tried to get away from me."

Without any shame, I slowly looked him over from head to toe. He noticed every second of it and gave me a confident grin. It seemed as though he already knew where the night was heading.

A tie rested neatly around his neck. Men who wore ties had never appealed to me. However, this man could make anything work, especially something that happened behind closed doors.

"Why would someone like you come to a club like this?" I asked.

"Saving drunken women happens to be what I do best," he answered immediately.

I stayed quiet. My thoughts were moving too slowly, and I couldn't trust myself to flirt without blurting out something humiliating.

"So, what are you good at?" he asked. His warm breath touched my ear and sent a shiver through every part of me.

"Taking care of spoiled children," I admitted.

One of his eyebrows rose.

"That's certainly a direct way to tell me you're a mother."

"I don't have any children," I quickly explained, but the words came out in a mess. "I look after someone else's children. I work as a nanny."

"That works perfectly." His lips grazed the sensitive spot on my neck, and my body shook. "I happen to need someone to look after me right away."

Standing so close to him felt dangerous. His cologne clouded my senses, while the warmth from his body seemed to sink straight through my skin.

I understood that following him would be risky. Still, he seemed like the kind of man who could make someone ignore every warning. Tomorrow, I could always convince myself that he had actually been unattractive. I could blame his perfect face on the tequila and call the entire encounter a drunken illusion.

He turned me around until I faced him, then lowered his head toward mine. Before I could think clearly, my body had already welcomed him closer.

"Sir," called out a man who stood much taller than most people around us. He cleared his throat and stepped close enough that neither of us could ignore him. "Something serious has happened."

Our lips never met. Only the possibility of the kiss remained between us.

For a brief moment, he shut his eyes and looked as though he regretted being alive. When he stepped away, all the warmth disappeared from him. He became calm, guarded, and completely out of reach.

He left without giving me so much as a goodbye.

I remained where I was while my mind wandered back to my hatred of winter. Why had I hated it so much again?

Right. I was completely drunk. None of my thoughts could stay in a proper order anymore.

Part of me wanted to chase after him and shout, "Sir, I have an emergency too! I think I just fell for you the moment I saw you."

I was absolutely hopeless.

I couldn't remember the exact moment I decided to search for the bathroom. All I could recall was the sudden urgency, the floor swaying beneath my feet, and the lights burning my eyes. Fuck, the alcohol had completely ruined my sense of direction.

I pushed open a door while already struggling with my underwear. When I reached back to shut it, a man's hand came down over mine and kept the door from closing. A solid body pressed against my back a second later. Then that scent reached me... It was one no amount of alcohol could ever erase from my memory.

A tremor ran through my entire body as I turned around to look at him.

"You walked into the wrong bathroom." I could only hope the words sounded clear. My lips and voice didn't seem willing to work together. This man looked like something my mind had invented, yet he was tearing apart every one of my senses.

For a long moment, he only stared at me. Then he answered in a dangerously calm voice, "No. You're the one who came into the wrong bathroom. Or did you really follow me in here without even trying to hide it?"

"Why would I follow you?" I gave a disbelieving scoff. "No one chases after a mirage. You're nothing more than something my imagination created."

He turned me around and held me against the door while pressing his hips firmly into mine. The heat of his body pushed through the fabric between us as he leaned close to my ear.

"Does any of this feel imaginary to you?" His lips brushed near my ear before he added, "Do I feel like an illusion?"

My underwear was already gathered around my ankles, and my need to use the bathroom had somehow disappeared. Yes, my body had responded to him. However, it had nothing to do with fear or confusion. It came from a fierce desire unlike anything I'd ever known.

Before I could protest, pull away, or gather even one sensible thought, the lights flashed. Once. Then twice.

The music from the club broke apart before falling completely silent. In the next moment, the whole system shut down.

Panic reached me before logic had the chance. Acting on instinct alone, I turned around and held on to him.

His arms closed around me at once, and his hold felt strong and protective. The stall had already been narrow, but with our bodies pressed so closely together, it suddenly felt almost too small to breathe in.

"You're all right," he whispered, but the sound of his voice only caused me to lose even more control.

Nothing about this was all right. Deep down, I already knew that after meeting him, my life would never feel normal again. From that moment forward, I would never be satisfied with anyone who couldn't match this impossible man who made every part of me burn.

While I stood there in that tight and confusing space, far beyond anything familiar to me, one truth became painfully clear. Giving myself to him wouldn't feel like a mistake. It would become the story I carried forever. I had met the most beautiful man in the world inside a nightclub bathroom stall, and I wanted him to be my first.

The kiss came before either of us spoke. There was no promise behind it. Once it began, there was no easy way to turn back.

Enzo's POV:

When the lights went out, I should have walked away. I should have opened the door and left. There were countless things I normally would have done to keep myself under control.

Then she held on to me. That single frightened movement was enough to knock my entire world off balance.

Nothing she did felt planned. None of it seemed like some carefully arranged game. Her breathing, the way she gripped me, and the response of her body against mine all felt honest in a way I had never known before.

I held her against the stall's cold wall, while the icy tiles clashed with the heat building between us. My hands tightened around her waist, and every part of me wanted to lose control with her.

Our kiss became rougher and more urgent. I claimed her mouth without restraint, and she answered me with the same reckless hunger.

The pressure beneath my clothes had become almost unbearable. I wanted everything at once. I wanted to kiss her, touch her, and fuck her completely. Before the night ended, I intended to do exactly that.

"Mr. Illusion..." she whispered against my mouth. "I don't think we should..."

"Don't talk," I murmured before catching her lower lip between my teeth. One of my hands moved lower and pushed her dress up around her waist. A quiet moan slipped from her, and her legs began to shake.

When I touched her, I found that her body had already responded to me. I wanted to bury myself in the moment until neither of us could form a clear thought. Usually, I would've moved a woman's underwear aside without wasting time. That had always been my quick and practical way of handling things. However, hers was already barely in the way.

Then I did something I had never done before. I lowered myself onto the floor of a public bathroom stall for a woman. Yes, I actually did it. Walking away without giving her pleasure would've felt like leaving everything unfinished.

She moaned before I even reached her. Damn, had she forgotten that anyone could hear us? Strangely, that only made the moment more exciting. She acted without hesitation, as though nothing mattered except the desire burning between us.

I parted her legs and let my mouth move over her, wanting to find out whether she tasted as tempting as I had imagined. The reality was far better, and I knew at once that I could become addicted.

My eyes stayed on hers while I explored every sensitive place. She closed her eyes tightly and tried to hold back the sounds that continued escaping her lips.

"Could you..." Her voice came out weak and unsteady. "Use your tongue..." Then she swallowed before asking, "Inside?"

I lifted one eyebrow but kept teasing her.

"It's just... I've watched it before... and it looked... good."

A quiet laugh left me. Still, I had to admit that part of me felt disappointed. It sounded like the usual innocent act.

Even so, I had nothing to lose.

I gave her exactly what she asked for. A broken cry escaped her, and it sounded different from the ones before. Her eyes squeezed shut while her fingers tangled in my hair and pulled me closer. I increased the pace and kept going until her body could no longer hold back.

A moment later, she came apart beneath my touch. Her fingers stopped moving in my hair, and the tension slowly left her body. Her chest rose and fell quickly while her heart pounded against her ribs.

She released a long, trembling breath before opening her eyes.

"That was... incredible."

I rose to my feet and stared at her in confusion. She couldn't honestly believe we were finished, could she? Apparently, she did. She bent down and reached for her underwear on the floor, but I kicked it aside and sent it sliding beneath the stall door.

"My..." She lifted her face toward me, and panic filled her wide eyes.

"You aren't seriously planning to walk away while I'm still like this, are you?" I motioned toward the obvious tension beneath my clothes.