Sabrina shot Brian and Olivia a look, and the three of them quietly slipped out of the lounge. Eason followed close behind. George left too, his girlfriend tucked under his arm. Watson took onest, silent nce at the couple cuddled up on the sofa—something dark flickering in his eyes—then walked out as well.

    Later that night, the birthday party kicked off for real.

    Downstairs, the bar was alive with shing lights and pulsing music. The DJ was on stage, moving with the beat and hyping up the crowd. People were singing along, dancing, just totally letting loose and soaking up the vibe.

    After a wild round of partying, the music suddenly cut off. Carolyn stepped onto the stage, mic in hand.

    “Thank you all so much foring to my birthday party tonight.”

    She’d swapped her daytime mermaid dress for a ck strappy number that fit the club’s energy perfectly—her hair in big waves, smoky eyes, looking every bit the confident, sexy birthday girl. Standing center stage, the spotlight on her, she finished her intro, then paused, getting a little emotional.

    “There’s someone I really need to thank tonight—her name is Allison.”

    Allison stood right up front, catching Carolyn’s gaze. Carolyn looked back at her, voice warm and sincere. “If it weren’t for her, I honestly might not be here right now. Allison saved my life, and I’ll always be grateful.”

    She took a breath, her eyes dropping, voice turning soft and a little sad. “And I have one more thing to say. Joshua Fisher and I are just friends. Joshua is with Allison now. Please, I’d really appreciate it if everyone stopped making jokes about me and Mr. Fisher.”

    She said every word slowly, clearly, like she wanted everyone to really get it.

    “I admit it—I used to be head over heels for Mr. Fisher. But that’s in the past. I’ve moved on, and I hope you all can, too. I don’t want anyone, even if you mean well, to do things that put me in an awkward spot. And please, don’t try to mess with Joshua and Allison’s rtionship.”

    For a second, the whole room went quiet. Then people started whispering.

    “Wait, is that for real? Carolyn used to be in love with Joshua? I never heard that before.”

    “Probably only her close friends knew. I’ve known her for three years and this is news to me.”

    “I can’t believe she just said all that in front of everyone. What happened to make her go public like this?”

    “I heard she and Tessa had a huge fight earlier today. Like, full-on screaming match. Rumor is, they''re not even friends anymore.”

    “Seriously? Weren’t they super close? What could’ve happened? Is it about Joshua?”

    “Wouldn’t be surprised.”

    “So Joshua and Allison are back together now? When did that happen? Didn’t the Owens family announce months ago that the engagement with the Fishers was off?”

    “Yeah, I remember that. Plus, wasn’t Joshua linked to an actress not long ago?”

    “Yeah, Megan, right? There were rumors she was about to marry into the Fisher family.”

    “Probably just for publicity. The Fishers are old money—they’d never let a celebrity marry in.”

    “Megan? Wait, is that the Megan I know?”

    “You know her?”

    “Are we talking about Megan from Sunbeam Media? The top star?”

    “Yeah, that’s the one. You know her?”

    “Yeah, Megan’s just her stage name. Her real name’s Jenny, she’s the Lee family heiress from Rivertown. She’s actually Joshua’s distant cousin. That whole dating thing? Just a misunderstanding. I even saw her at the Fisher family’s New Year’s party.”

    “For real?”

    “Swear to God.”

    …

    Sabrina was stunned. She gave Carolyn a big thumbs-up. “Carolyn’s got guts. Seriously, respect.”

    Olivia nodded. “You know, after that whole Trayson thing, I wasn’t sure about her. Guess I was wrong.”