The echo of Caleb's threat still buzzed in Alex's mind long after the café door slammed shut. He could hear the subtle shift in the air — his cousin's greed was more dangerous than any rival's bullet.
Back in his penthouse, Alex stood by the vast windows overlooking the rain-slicked city. The skyline glittered like a million promises he could never keep. He poured a glass of whiskey, but it burned his throat more than usual.
His phone buzzed. Ethan's name.
> Ethan: You sure about paying him off? He'll bleed you dry.
Alex: Let him try.
Ethan: And Maya?
Alex: She's all that matters.
Alex turned off his phone and tossed it on the marble counter. He should have felt anger at Caleb. Instead, he felt anger at himself — for letting Maya step into this mess. For not walking away when he still could have.
---
Meanwhile, at the Donovan estate...
Maya sat on the edge of her bed, her knees pulled tight to her chest. Leo's voice thundered from downstairs — arguing with their father again. She flinched at every raised voice.
A soft knock at her door. Leo slipped in, closing it quietly behind him.
"Are you happy now?" he hissed. His eyes, usually kind, were sharp tonight.
"Leo, I didn't mean—"
"You didn't mean to humiliate us? Or to become a rumor on everyone's lips?"
"I didn't mean to fall in love," she whispered. The confession tasted both sweet and bitter.
Leo's face crumpled for a heartbeat. He sat beside her, shoulders heavy with exhaustion. "He's Carter blood, Maya. Do you understand what that means? They ruined our family. And you... you chose him."
"I didn't choose him," she said. "He found me. And now I can't breathe without him."
Leo stared at her — seeing not a reckless sister but a girl fighting a war no one else would fight for her. He pressed his forehead to hers. "If he hurts you, I swear—"
"He won't."
---
Later that night...
Alex waited in the dark alley behind an old cathedral. When he heard her hurried footsteps, he turned, heart hammering like a boy's.
She crashed into his arms, breathless, hair damp from the drizzle.
"I shouldn't be here," she murmured against his chest.
"I know," he said, his lips brushing her hairline. "But God, I'm glad you are."
They stood in silence. The world felt bearable only here — hidden, stolen.
"I paid him off. Caleb. He'll stay quiet."
"You shouldn't have—"
"Don't tell me what I shouldn't do for you." He cupped her face, forcing her to look up. "I would burn every bridge if it keeps you safe."
Maya's eyes shone with a stubborn, aching love that matched his own. She rose on her toes, kissed him fiercely — as if to etch the memory deep enough to last through the storms to come.
---
The city stirred restlessly under a bruised dawn. News of Alex and Maya had already begun to spread in hushed whispers: the Carter heir and the Donovan princess, locked in a love that should never exist.
At the Carter mansion, Richard Carter stood at the breakfast table, his jaw tight as Caleb spun a tale of betrayal and scandal. The old man's cold eyes turned to Alex like frost creeping over glass.
"You humiliate this family for what? A girl? A Donovan?"
Alex didn't flinch. "I love her."
Richard barked a mirthless laugh. "Love. I gave you everything — power, wealth, a legacy. And you'd throw it away for a pretty face?"
"It's not a choice. It's her."
Caleb smirked behind his father's shoulder, the perfect snake. "I told you, Uncle. He's blinded by her. He'll ruin us all."
Alex lunged. His fist cracked against Caleb's jaw before anyone could stop him. A servant screamed as Caleb crashed into a side table.
"You open your mouth about her again, cousin, and you'll eat your teeth next," Alex snarled.
Richard's eyes narrowed. "You have a week, Alex. Marry Cassandra and restore this family's honor. Or you're out. Everything — gone."
Alex didn't respond. He stormed out, pulse pounding in his ears. He'd never been freer than he felt in that moment — free to choose her, even if it cost him the throne built on lies.
---
At the Donovan estate...
Maya's father stared her down in his study, an unlit cigar rolling between his fingers. The air smelled of expensive leather and barely hidden violence.
"You think you're in love?" Charles Donovan said softly. "You know nothing of men like him. Men like his father."
Maya squared her shoulders, fear thrumming in her veins but her voice steady. "You don't know him."
"Oh, but I do. They'll use you until you're convenient, then discard you like every other alliance we've made. End this now, Maya."
She shook her head, her throat raw. "No."
He slammed the desk so hard she flinched. "Then you are no daughter of mine."
---
That night...
They met again — at the edge of the city, where rusted train cars sat forgotten in tall grass. Fireflies danced around them like tiny stars refusing to fade.
"You'll lose everything," Maya said against his chest.
"Not everything," Alex murmured. He lifted her chin. "I still have you."
"You might hate me for this one day."
"Never."
Their kiss was desperate, bruising, the taste of rebellion and goodbye woven into it. Somewhere deep inside, both knew this moment was a promise they could never keep — but tonight, it was enough.
The whistle of a distant train cut through the quiet. Alex pressed his forehead to hers.
"Run with me. We'll disappear before dawn."
Maya closed her eyes. And for the first time in her life, she said yes to something bigger than her fear.
---