CHAPTER 167: CHAPTER 167 SHE WAS CONSUMING

"Of course he’s sad," her bad angel said with a huff. "Maybe she’s his first love! Alexa is getting married and he didn’t even react when you smiled at him at breakfast! You were practically sparkling and he didn’t look at you once!"

Bella frowned into the darkness. "I wasn’t sparkling," she whispered back. "I was just... happy."

"Exactly. And he didn’t care."

Her heart twisted a little. The worst part was... it wasn’t even that he said anything mean. He just didn’t say anything at all. His face was blank, unreadable, like always. But today it hurt more. Why did it feel like he was further away than ever?

"You’re overthinking again," her good angel said softly, appearing with a gentle flutter. "You thought he liked Stella before. Then you thought he liked Alexa. You don’t know what’s going on in his head, Bella. Don’t decide the ending before the story even unfolds."

Bella blinked, lips slightly parted. "But what if this time... it’s real?" she whispered.

"And what if it’s not?" the kind voice responded. "You’re just scared."

"I guess..." Bella curled up tighter, cheeks warm despite the chill in the room. She hated how these thoughts kept swirling, making her doubt herself. She’d promised herself she wouldn’t compare. That she wouldn’t let it hurt her.

But it did.

A little.

Just a little.

She sighed and reached for her phone, only to stop halfway. No. She didn’t want to seem clingy. She didn’t want to call him, not if his heart was already somewhere else.

***

"Happy to see you here, Leo. I’m sorry about what happened last time," Casper said, offering a casual apology as he reached for a drink from the tray. "Let’s just have fun tonight, alright?"

Alan gave a lazy half-smile as he downed his whiskey in one go, the glass clicking softly as he placed it back on the table. Zion, as usual, was silent—his eyes distant, lost in whatever quiet war his mind was fighting.

Leonardo sat there, calm and unreadable, a sleek crystal glass of red wine cradled in his hand. He nodded, polite as ever, but didn’t say much.

Because his mind wasn’t here.

It was with someone else entirely.

No matter how many times he tried to refocus, his thoughts kept drifting back to her—to Bella.

It was strange. Unsettling.

He had never let anyone slip into his head like this before.

But now...

Now he kept remembering the way her ponytail bounced when she walked. The way her eyes lit up when she liked something. The way she nervously tried to act mean at dinner, only to glare at Stella like a grumpy kitten guarding her snacks.

She didn’t even know what she was doing to him.

And it was starting to interfere.

With his focus.

With his goals.

With everything.

Leonardo raised his glass to his lips, letting the bitter wine distract his tongue, but even that didn’t help. He could still hear her voice. Still see her eyes looking everywhere but at him that morning.

What was she thinking?

He came here to escape. But the only place his mind kept going... was home.

Where she was.

Bella.

"By the way..." Casper said, swirling the drink in his hand before looking directly at Leo and Alan. "Did you guys hear? Alexa is getting married."

His words hung in the air like a baited hook.

Leonardo didn’t even blink. He set his glass down with a soft clink, eyes still fixed forward.

"Know," he replied flatly. Just one word. Cold. Controlled.

Alan gave a vague smile, lifting his glass for another sip, as if he had heard nothing surprising. But his eyes flicked sideways toward Leo.

Casper raised a brow, clearly expecting more. "She’s marrying Archer Wyatt, right? That guy who just came back from abroad? Huh... funny. She’s been obsessed with you for years, and now suddenly—"

He stopped mid-sentence.

Leo’s eyes had finally moved to him.A silent, sharp stare now pinned Casper in place. It was deadly enough to freeze the words in Casper’s throat.

"...Never mind," Casper muttered, breaking eye contact with a nervous chuckle, pretending to sip his drink.

Alan didn’t say a word. He just watched the exchange, his fingers tracing the rim of his glass.

No one spoke for a while after that.

Leonardo leaned back against the leather lounge seat, ignoring the laughter and background music around him. The dim lights of the private VIP bar flickered against his sharp jawline, making the shadows dance across his face. His shirt collar was loosened slightly, the top two buttons undone—not out of relaxation, but out of agitation.

The glass of red wine in his hand remained untouched after one sip.

Because all he could think about...

Was her.

Bella.

Those big, warm brown eyes that always shimmered like a puppy whenever she was curious. The way her lips would part slightly when she was surprised or pouting, soft and pink like strawberry candy. The way she blinked so rapidly when she was nervous, like a bunny caught in headlights.

She was overwhelming.

Not just cute. Not just sweet. She was consuming.

He should be focused.

He had too much on his plate—company issues, traitors, external threats... But no.

All he could see was her face when she smiled at Jay... when she hugged that damned plushie... when she leaned her cheek on his shoulder last night, clinging to him like he was her only safe place in the world.

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, staring into the untouched wine in his hand. His jaw flexed slightly, but the cold mask on his face remained intact.

He had built his entire life around control. Precision. Calculated moves. He didn’t believe in distractions. Not in softness. Not in feelings.

He had dated before but he had never once felt that dangerous pull—the kind that made his pulse skip, made him forget the world outside of a single girl’s smile. He had never wanted to feel this way.

She never asked anything of him. She never demanded his attention, his affection, his money, his protection. She just... existed, like a soft, glowing light in the middle of a very cold world. Her joy over the smallest things. Her heartbreakingly innocent eyes. Her shy smiles. Her soft clinginess when she was scared.

It all scared him.