Sweet Hatred Chapter 216: Island

I didn’t say anything when as she walked out the door. Didn’t cry. Didn’t scream. I just crawled into bed that night and let the weight of everything press down on like a silent punishnt. Like maybe, if I stayed still enough, I’d sink right through the mattress and disappear.

Sleep barely ca. Everything that had gone wrong in my life replayed on my mind and even in the dreams I drifted in and out of.

By the ti morning ca, I didn’t even check my phone. I showered, dressed like a robot, and dragged myself to the office only to hear Rose say Kael had already flown out for another executive trip. Sothing to do with final phase launches and high-profile closed-door deals.

I nodded like it didn’t matter. Like his absence wasn’t a hole I couldn’t stop falling through.

After that,

Days slipped into each other like wet pages. Kael and I barely saw each other, an occasional nod in the hallway, a glance across a boardroom, that was it. No words. No touches. No tension. Just a widening distance that felt like punishnt for wanting more.

Eventually, I moved back to Sarah’s place, needing her presence more than I wanted to admit. She didn’t ask questions. Just held when I let myself grief, brought silly little pastries I liked, and even dragged out to that club we used to haunt back when we were reckless and unhurt.

I didn’t dance. I didn’t drink much. But I let her put makeup on and I laughed at her terrible flirty banter with a bartender, and that... felt like sothing.

Ashlyn, on the other hand, was another story.

She had back-to-back in etings, fittings, logistics, security clearances, guest managent simulations. Every mont I was with her, I kept wondering if she was playing so elaborate long ga, just waiting for the mont to pull the rug out from under . But she never did.

If anything, she worked harder than anyone. Didn’t complain. Didn’t even flinch when Kael refused to take her calls. It was like his indifference didn’t faze her.

And that scared more than I’d admit.

I hated how much I respected her work ethic.

I hated more that she sotis made laugh.

I didn’t know if she was trying to orchestrate my downfall... or if she just genuinely believed I was capable. That maybe, in so twisted way, she wanted by her side.

Even still, the tension between us never fully faded. We were cordial. Efficient. Almost... strange allies. But never comfortable.

Only Sylas, her elusive brother, remained a no-show. Apparently, he was the creative mind behind the gala’s aesthetics. And also apparently, he couldn’t be bothered to attend a single eting. His seat remained untouched at the table, and every ti soone brought it up, Ash’s smile would twitch a little too tightly before changing the subject.

Two long, aching weeks passed.

Since I saw Kael properly or heard his voice not laced with cold resolve. I missed him. God, I missed him crazy. But I didn’t reach out. Didn’t dare.

Not after what I said to him or about us to Ash. I didn’t think he’d want to see . And maybe... maybe I didn’t trust myself around him either. And It felt ridiculous that I missed him this much when the last ti we were together felt like I was about to be executed. I wanted to get away from him as far as possible.

But then ca the night before the gala.

The island wasn’t just secluded, it was sacred. Canto Dei Leoni. Hidden sowhere between the diterranean and nowhere, this place wasn’t found on any GPS. Guests only arrived by encrypted chopper or private boats with silent crews. Generational wealth pulsed in the stones of the pathways. The kind of wealth that didn’t just own land, but rewrote rules on it.

They lodged us in a marble-bead, gold-trimd private suite that looked like it had been handcrafted by European gods. High ceilings, velvet drapes, a custom mini-bar that probably cost more than my apartnt, and a view of the ocean that made the air feel unreal.

My room? Too much.

It was ridiculous.

High, vaulted walls with golden trim. A chandelier the size of my kitchen. Fancy drapes in so ridiculous shade of royal navy. Even the damn bed looked like it belonged in a palace, massive and soft and draped in Egyptian cotton sheets that looked like it could buy my entire closet.

It should’ve felt luxurious.

But all I could think about was Kael again.

The last ti we were in a room like this, he’d pushed against a wall without saying a word, his mouth hot and angry, his hands everywhere, like he was trying to morize through sin.

I’d let him.

I wanted him to.

God, I missed him.

And I hated myself for it.

I sat on the edge of the bed, towel wrapped around my body, hair dripping down my back. The silence pressed down like a second skin. There were still voices faintly chattering from the other suites, Ashlyn’s laugh echoing sowhere down the hallway, but none of it reached .

The need overwheld again. Thoughts chipped away at my sanity. I missed him like crazy.

Those two weeks felt like months, stupid, dragging, endless weeks since I told him I wanted to end the contract. Since Olivia iced out. Since everything decided to crumble at once. And I had no one to bla but myself.

Even when Kael had vanished again, his classic Roman move. I wished I could go back in ti and undo whatever the fuck had changed in and made self sabotage.

I wanted to lt into his arms. But when things got ssy, he disappeared into silence and power suits and etings I wasn’t invited to.

And I barely saw him.

Even when I did, it was like he wasn’t really there. Just a ghost of the man who once whispered filthy things into my mouth while calling his in a voice that made my legs shake.

I wanted him to look at .

To see .

But maybe I’d lost that privilege when I pulled away.

With a deep sigh, I pushed aside my thoughts.

Tonight was the night to make sure every detail was ironed out on this obscenely rich, private island that required a private jet and a background check just to step foot on it.

Tomorrow, the world would descend.

Tonight, I just had to survive.

I stood and let the towel drop to the floor, walking barefoot across the warm marble. The shower steam still clung to my skin, but the chill in my chest remained. I dressed quickly, sothing smooth, black, business-like, and stared at myself in the gilded mirror above the vanity.

I didn’t recognize her.

But I put on her face anyway.

There was work to be done.

And no space left to fall apart.