Ava’s POV 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

The door opened, and I froze. A woman stood there wearing nothing but a wrinkled white shirt, her hair disheveled, and the unmistakable scent of sex clinging to her. My heart dropped into my stomach.

"Can I help you?" she asked with a smug smile, clearly not bothering to cover herself properly.

I couldn’t speak. My mouth went dry as my brain struggled to process what I was seeing. This couldn’t be happening. Not Joseph. Not like this.

Then I heard his voice from inside, casual and intimate.

"Is that the pizza, sexy?"

The woman leaned against the doorframe and called back sweetly, "No, babe, not pizza. Just some unexpected visitor."

That’s when I saw him. Joseph appeared behind her, hastily pulling on boxers, his hair messed up, his chest still flushed.

Our eyes met and I watched his face go from confusion to pure horror as he realized what was happening.

My world shattered. The man I loved, the man I’d been worried sick about, had been here the whole time. With her.

The betrayal hit me like a sledgehammer to the chest, crushing my ribs and stealing every breath from my lungs. My knees buckled and I had to grip the doorframe to keep from collapsing. A wave of nausea rolled through me, bile rising in my throat as the reality crashed down.

He’d been so good to me. So sweet, so caring. I thought what we had was real, that I was special to him. But he was no different from Isaac, just another smooth-talking player who knew exactly what to say. Mom had been right all along, and I’d been too stupid to see it.

Goddess, I was such an idiot. How easily I’d fallen for his lies, his promises, his tender touches. Had it all been an act? Every kiss, every whispered "I love you," every moment I thought was precious, was it all just part of his game to get me into bed? And now that he’d had his fill, he could toss me aside for the next girl?

The thought made my stomach lurch violently. I pressed my hand to my mouth, fighting the urge to vomit right there on his doorstep. My whole body was shaking, hot tears streaming down my face as the pain tore through me like broken glass.

I’d actually fallen in love with him. Really, truly loved him. And he’d played me like every other girl before me.

I couldn’t stay. I couldn’t look at him anymore.

I turned and stumbled away, my vision blurred with tears, but I could still hear them behind me.

"Sophia, what the hell?" Joseph’s voice was sharp.

I kept running, my legs barely holding me up, but what she said next cut even deeper.

"Oh, relax, baby! That little thing isn’t worth worrying about. Come on, let’s get back to what we were doing."

I stumbled down the street, each step taking me further from the nightmare I’d just witnessed.

I hailed a taxi with shaking hands, tears streaming down my face. The driver glanced at me through the rearview mirror, concern flickering in his eyes.

"Where to, miss?"

I couldn’t go home. Mom would take one look at me and know something was wrong. I couldn’t handle her questions right now, couldn’t bear to see the "I told you so" look in her eyes.

"Nina’s place," I whispered, giving him the address.

The ride felt endless. Every traffic light, every turn reminded me that I was running away from the wreckage of what I thought was love. By the time we pulled up to Nina’s building, I was barely holding it together.

Nina opened the door and her face immediately crumpled with worry.

"Ava! What happened?"

She pulled me inside, wrapping her arms around me as I collapsed into sobs.

"He... Joseph was with another woman," I choked out between tears. "He’s been giving me the cold shoulder for days, and now I know why. He was cheating on me."

Nina’s face darkened with fury. "That bastard! I’m calling the girls right now. Eleanor needs to know what kind of scumbag she’s working with, and—"

"No!" I grabbed her arm. "Please, Nina. Don’t tell them. I don’t want everyone worrying about my drama. It’s over. I’m done with him completely."

"Are you sure you can really let him go?" Nina asked, studying my face carefully.

I gritted my teeth, anger flashing through my pain. "Absolutely. I won’t be fooled by him again."

"But Ava—"

"There’s no point," I said, my voice hollow. "It’s finished. I just... I can’t go home tonight. Mom will see right through me."

Nina’s expression softened. "Of course you can stay here."

I spent the entire night crying on Nina’s shoulder, her hand stroking my hair as I poured out every painful detail. By morning, my eyes were swollen and bloodshot, my face puffy from tears.

The next day at work, I plastered on enough makeup to hide a crime scene and used eye drops every hour to combat the redness. I still couldn’t believe Joseph had betrayed me like this. Seeing that half-naked woman in his apartment had been like getting hit by lightning. I felt like the world’s biggest fool.

When I got to the office, I saw Caroline looking miserable at her desk, but I couldn’t bring myself to talk to her. I could barely hold myself together, let alone comfort someone else.

I forced myself to act normal, smiling at coworkers, answering emails, pretending my heart wasn’t shattered into a million pieces.

Later that afternoon, a delivery arrived at my desk.

Pink orchids, exquisitely arranged in a crystal vase. They were beautiful, but I knew immediately they weren’t from Joseph. He always sent red roses when he bothered to send anything at all.

I pulled the card from the flowers, and a chill ran down my spine as I read it.

The signature read. Steward Garcia, Joseph’s father.

The message was brief but made my skin crawl.

"A delicate flower for an unforgettable lady."