Five Years a Secret, Now I Deny We Ever Met Chapter 13

Five Years a Secret, Now I Deny We Ever Met Chapter 13

Dean Albright patted my shoulder and wrapped the cashmere shawl more tightly around me. Her voice dropped, taking on the tone of a command that allowed no argument.

“Chloe, stop thinking about all this mess. Tomorrow morning, go meet with Mr. Julian’s assistant and sign that sponsorship agreement. Remember, *sign it*. It’s your ticket out of here. Don’t let it sail away.”

I nodded. My throat felt tight, and I could only manage a hoarse, “Okay.”

The party was ending, but my new life felt like it was just beginning.

By the time I got back to the dorm, it was nearly midnight. In keeping with Ivy League tradition, the final week before commencement filled the dorms with a restless, celebratory energy. But I had no desire to join in.

I only wanted to finalize the details of my trip to Florence as quickly as possible.

Yet halfway through my video call with Julian, as we discussed archival access at the Uffizi, a frantic pounding slammed against my door, hard enough to tear it from its hinges.

My roommate Sarah, startled by the sound, looked at me in confusion.

“Who is that? It’s so late. Sounds like a police raid.” Frowning, she went to open the door.

The person standing outside made her expression freeze.

It was Sebastian.

His tailored suit was wrinkled, his tie yanked crooked, his hair a mess. His eyes were bloodshot. He looked nothing like the triumphant heir from the engagement party.

He had driven over from the estate and called me countless times, only to be met with cold voicemail. Only then did he realize I had blocked his number. He’d tried to message me, only to be met with a glaring red error.

In that moment, the man who had always been in control finally experienced the panic of losing it completely.

“Sebastian?” Sarah’s tone was full of shock. “What are you doing here? Isn’t tonight… your engagement?”

Sebastian’s gaze went past her and fixed on me. More precisely, on the laptop screen in front of me.

On the screen, Julian was smiling, watching the farce at my door with perfect leisure.

In that instant, the panic in Sebastian’s eyes was consumed by a destructive rage. The sight of Julian’s face in my private space was a poisoned thorn stabbing his most vulnerable nerve.

“Chloe,” Julian said from the video, his posture unchanged. His lazy voice carried clearly through the room. “Tell your friend that our foundation isn’t keeping you at Auden for your last few days just so you can deal with unnecessary trouble.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Sebastian lost all reason. He shoved Sarah aside, rushed to my desk, pointed at the glowing screen, and roared, “Julian! Who the hell are you to interfere in her life?”

Julian gave a soft laugh. Through the speakers, it carried a note of superior provocation.

“Me? I’m just the person offering her a new possibility.” He paused, his gaze turning to me, though his tone was a judgment on Sebastian. “Now, I’m announcing that our foundation is sponsoring her—”

Before he could finish, Sebastian raised his fist and brought it down on my laptop with all his strength.

*Bang.*

A sickening crash.

The screen shattered, black cracks spreading like a spiderweb. Julian’s smiling face, along with my hope of reaching Florence, broke apart in a piercing electrical whine.