Ava couldn't breathe.
She stood in the hallway outside Lucien's private quarters, clutching a basket of freshly pressed shirts she didn't care about. Her heart was still tangled in what happened last night, the memory he saw… of them.
In the rain.
He had remembered her touch.
Just for a second.
It was enough to light a fire inside her chest, a dangerous, flickering hope.
But that fire was also terrifying.
Because if he remembered everything, he'd also remember the baby.
And that would change everything.
She didn't mean to snoop.
Truly.
But when she entered Lucien's bedroom that afternoon, she noticed something strange, his valet drawer had been left partially open. A rare mistake for someone as meticulous as Lucien Blackwell.
She hesitated only for a moment… then moved toward it.
Inside were cufflinks, an expensive black watch, and rows of pristine white handkerchiefs.
And something else.
A small velvet box, shoved to the very back.
Ava's fingers trembled as she pulled it out. She already knew what it was before she even opened it.
Her throat tightened.
Inside the box sat a simple platinum ring, worn, but unmistakable. Her wedding ring.
The one she hadn't seen since the night she disappeared from his life.
It still had her initials engraved inside.
A.H. - Ava Hale.
She almost dropped it.
Why did he keep this?
Lucien had erased every trace of her, destroyed her identity, banished her from his world… yet this ring had survived.
Hidden.
Not thrown away. Not destroyed.
Hidden.
Tears filled her eyes as she slowly slipped the ring onto her finger, just for a second. Just to remember how it felt.
It still fit.
She took a shaky breath and closed the box. Slid it back into its drawer. And forced herself to walk away.
But before she could make it to the door…
His voice stopped her.
"You were in my study last night," Lucien said from behind her, his voice quiet… and unreadable.
She spun around, nearly dropping the laundry basket. "I, I was just putting away your shirts"
"You found something, didn't you?"
Her lips parted, but no words came out.
He took a step closer. His eyes, dark and unreadable, fell on her hands.
"Where is the ring?" he asked.
Ava froze.
"What ring?"
His jaw clenched. "The one you found. It was there. I know it was. I saw it in a dream."
Her heart skipped.
"You dreamed about it?"
"I saw your hands," he murmured. "And I knew that ring belonged to you."
Silence stretched between them.
He looked at her like he was seeing through all her walls, through the lies, the disguise, the fear.
"Tell me the truth," he whispered. "Who are you?"
Ava's hands gripped the laundry tighter.
"I'm your maid," she said, voice barely audible.
But even she didn't believe it anymore.
Lucien didn't press further.
He simply nodded once… and turned away.
But behind his cold exterior, a storm had started.
And for the first time in weeks…
Ava was no longer the only one holding onto the past.