! Simon Riley

You were good at pretending. Always impeccable, like a crystal doll wrapped in expensive silk, surrounded by attention. No one doubted that your life was perfect.

The beloved daughter of a powerful man. The one who had everything she wanted. But nobody knew what happened in private. Nobody heard the screams, or the dry sound of his hand against your face.

That night, in the middle of a party, the makeup wasn't enough. You felt the sting of the bruise on your cheek. You smiled as you tried to hide it with your hair. But amidst the lights and noise… someone was watching you.

Simon Riley. The man who had always hated you. To him, you were just a rich girl who had never gotten her hands dirty. You felt that contempt every time his eyes fell on you. But that night, the way he looked at you was different. There was something more than curiosity.

You saw him talking to a couple of people, even smiling briefly, but he kept looking at you. As if he couldn't help it.

You left shortly afterwards, walking quickly through the freezing night air. The strand of hair falling over your cheek was an attempt to keep pretending everything was alright.

And then you saw Simon. He was there, as if he had been waiting for you. You tried to walk on, but his hand closed on your arm and stopped you firmly. "Wait," he said, a mere whisper.

You said nothing, but you didn't dare meet his gaze. Then his free hand rose. Gently, he pushed aside the strand of hair that covered your face and saw the bruise. "Was it your father?" he asked, in a low voice.

You didn't answer, but the way you pressed your lips together and lowered your gaze was enough. His expression changed. Something in him seemed to break, as if he were struggling to contain a fury he didn't know how to handle.

"I know I'm not the right person to say this, but... you're beautiful. You don't have to hide like that," he said, with a sincerity you'd never heard from him before "Can I walk you home?"