Chapter 14 - An Accidental ReunionA month later, during a charity gala hosted at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, past ghosts inevitably caught up to the present.
I was standing near a priceless marble statue of Athena, discussing a multi-million-dollar urban renewal grant with the city mayor, when I felt a familiar, uneasy presence behind me.
I turned around.
It was Adrian.
He looked entirely hollowed out. His tailored suits were gone, replaced by a cheap, ill-fitting blazer. The stress of his demotion, the humiliation of his corporate collapse, and the impending bankruptcy of his personal estate had carved deep lines into his face.
“Camille,” he whispered, his voice trembling slightly as he stepped out of the crowd.
The mayor excused himself politely, sensing the electric tension in the air. I remained standing beside the marble pillar, my posture upright, my expression completely unreadable.
“What do you want, Adrian?” I asked, my voice flat.
“I just... I wanted to see you,” he said, looking at me with a desperate, pathetic longing. “Everyone is talking about you. You’re on every financial magazine. You run Northstar now. I... I never knew.”
“No, you didn't,” I agreed quietly. “Because you never bothered to look past the apron strings you imagined me wearing.”
“I made a mistake,” he pleaded, taking a half-step closer. “I was arrogant. I was blind. But Camille, we were married for nine years! We built something together once. Can’t we... can’t we start over? I’ve changed. I have nothing left except—”
“Except your regret,” I finished for him. “And no, Adrian. You can’t start over with a woman you spent years trying to erase.”
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A tear tracked down his cheek, catching the gallery lights. “Is there nothing left of the woman who loved me?”
“The woman who loved you died the night you stood beside Sienna Vey and let her steal my name,” I said, turning away from him permanently. “And unlike you, I don't resurrect ghosts.”
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