VIV’S POV

The sun had dipped beneath the horizon, setting the sky ablaze with streaks of orange and plum. But I barely noticed. My grip on the steering wheel was tight, my jaw tighter. Aaron’s voice still echoed in my ears like a shrill alarm I couldn’t silence.

The nerve of Aaron to call me out for speaking to his mother, as if I hadn’t exhausted every ounce of patience trying to bring him back to reality. He had flipped the script like I was the villain, like I hadn’t bent over backward for him.

I pulled into the circular driveway of the Preston family estate just as twilight surrendered...