Knights in shining armor

(ARIELLE'S POV)

One of the drunken men seemed to recognize Jared. He whispered to the others, "Could these bitches know Smith?"

The second man scoffed, dismissing the idea. "Impossible. They must be some pathetic women trying to cling to the riches." His words were thick with condescension as he took a step closer, reaching for my arm. I jerked away, my voice rising in anger. "Take your hand off me!"

Jared froze. He turned slowly, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the situation.

I held my breath, desperate for him to intervene, praying he'd come to our rescue.

But I got the greatest shock of my life.

Jared barely glanced in our direction. His gaze was icy, detached-like we were invisible.

Oliver hesitated, his uncertainty clear, but Jared spoke first, his voice cool and calm.

"We just came out to get some air, Oliver." He motioned to the chaos without a flicker of emotion. "Don't get involved in something we don't know about."

I saw the tension in Oliver's shoulders as he clearly wanted to step in, but he didn't. He was frozen by Jared's indifference.

Jared didn't even spare us another glance. He turned toward the woman beside him, a face I still couldn't recognize, and then, as if we were nothing more than a passing inconvenience, he started to walk away. My heart somersaulted and sank in my stomach.

I felt my breath hitching, as my hands began to tremble. The sight of Jared, each step away from us, was like a dagger to my chest.

"Did...did he just walk away...?" Ashley stuttered beside me.

I couldn't respond as I found it hard to believe. But then, Jared finally turned his gaze towards us again, his expression unreadable now.

My chest tightened, refusing to believe he could leave us like this. I locked eyes with him, willing him to understand the danger, hoping he'd do something-anything-to help.

"Do we have any relationship that requires me to help you?" He asked, looking me up and down. "Tell me; who are you to me?"

hit like a slap. I winced, my hope dashing to pieces as I moped in

loud voice boomed

"Back off!"

flooding my veins as I saw Dwayne, flanked by two imposing figures: Claire and Roman, Ashley's boss. Both men strode purposefully in pure black suits. Their presence was so commanding that I could feel Dwayne's fury radiating with every step. The moment they stepped forward, the three drunken men backed off immediately, their

of the Mafia was indeed

chest still ached. I glanced at Ashley, whose eyes were wide, filled with fear and confusion. She kept

a few red marks on our skin from the scuffle. It was nothing a few ice

to me, his expression tight with worry. "Are you okay?" His eyes searched mine, scanning for any

in my body still too raw. "I'm fine," I said, though my voice didn't

bastards!" He groaned through gritted teeth. "I'm so

fault, Dwayne. You got here when it mattered. If

he mumbled, caressing my

only to realize Jared was gone. He had vanished as if he'd never been there at all.

the present. "Let's get you two

now. She caught Roman's eye,

him?" I whispered to

I'm discussing business with tonight," Dwayne explained, his voice low. "When he arrived, he called Ashley several times, but she didn't answer. That's when he knew something was wrong, and we

that Ashley was in for a lot of scolding and explanation. But that didn't matter now, all that did was that we were out of harm's

for the first time. "Use my car," he said, gesturing to a sleek

truck home." He tossed the keys

already waiting. The door opened, and Dwayne

we settled

the limo, I couldn't help the feeling of awkwardness that washed over

had us

Dwayne sitting directly across from me, his piercing eyes seeming to see right through me. Roman sat across from

as the cityscape rolled by. The tension inside the car was loud, and I didn't want to say a word. was still dazed from the encounter with Jared, and my emotions were scattered.

her voice soft with frustration. "I'm sorry, Ari," she said

small smile. "It's okay. I'll never be mad at you." I paused, the anger still simmering inside me. "Just... don't put yourself in a situation like that

said softly. "And I'm sorry for

a soft chuckle. "You're

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