Liv’s POV

The night was winding down at the bar, the clink of glasses and soft hum of conversation filling the air. The girls and I had settled into our usual rhythm, chatting about anything and everything.

Rose was telling us some wild story about a mishap at the conference she went to, while Lara kept interrupting with her usual sarcastic one-liners.

The laughter flowed as easily as the drinks, and for a moment, I could forget about the tension of the day—the confusion, the emotions I was trying so hard to make sense of.

I was starting to feel at ease when Lara suddenly stopped mid-conversation, her eyes narrowing...