A different her.

(JARED'S POV)

I blinked and went over the headline again, ensuring I was not reading wrong. But the words did not go away. They were there, as bold as ever.

Then I swallowed hard, forcing my gaze down to the picture below, and my breath hitched. It was her. Arielle.

The same lady at the airport.

The same lady in Ashley's car. Little wonder I was drawn to her earlier in the traffic.

How could I be so blind?

Twice, in just a few days. At the airport, where I had felt that strange pull but brushed it off. In the car, where I tried to catch a glimpse, but she vanished before I could truly see her. Both times, I had let her slip away.

The realization hit me like a ton of hot breaks, shattering my heart. How could tease fate trade me like this?

I had thought I'd never see her again. But here she was.

I stared at her picture, my heart pounding. Arielle. Back in town. Successful. Famous, even.

new ambassador chef for Italy's most prestigious restaurant chain, with a branch in New

now carried a fierce intensity that sent a chill through me. What had happened to her? What had turned the woman I once knew into this... unstoppable force? I couldn't stop

I grabbed my phone and dialed my investigator. He picked up almost immediately, as if waiting

up on her," I said, the urgency thick in my

on it, Sir as I figured you'd ask for information on that. But what specifically are you

I reiterated. "Hee life since she

I'll send you a comprehensive

something I couldn't define. What if she had moved on? What if... she had

it only intensified as I remembered the boy at the airport. That boy with her same eyes.

and I couldn't breathe for a moment. I had no right to ask her not to, not after everything, but the idea of her with another man sent

my mind kept drifting back to Arielle. I found myself opening her alma

a few mentions of her achievements, but it was mostly just photos and accolades. There was no tangible insight into her personal life, no

kept drifting

her-those eyes, the fierce

in her expression, the woman she had become. There was something proud in me, too. Arielle had fought her way to the top, made a name for herself. She had built

for my investigator's email feedback felt like an eternity. I refreshed my inbox every few minutes to see if he had sent a mail, and

Subject: Arielle -Comprehensive Report.

scanned the report, digesting every

I read

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