I shake my head. “The rumors—all of this bullshit—it’sbecauseof Jillian. She started it all. I went there to put her on notice.”
“That’s not how she put it,” Carlie says, her voice barely above a whisper as drops my hands and hugs herself tightly.
“I’ll bet.” I huff a humorless laugh.
What a fucking bitch.
Carlie’s eyes are glossy when her gaze connects with mine again. “You two were a thing?”
I take a breath, feeling a chilly shift in the air. I never told her that I dated Jillian and maybe I should have done it before now.
“Yeah, we were. A long time ago,” I admit, my gaze dropping to the floor. “But it ended badly. She cheated and I— Look, I never wanted any of that to spill over into ...this. Into us.”
Carlie’s eyes search mine, looking for something I can’t quite decipher. “I didn’t even know about all the Instagram drama until Lily called me an hour ago. It was like being hit by a truck I didn’t see coming. Then, again when I realized?—”
I run a hand through my hair, tugging at the strands. “Wait, you didn’t know about the Instagram situation? Then why did you leave without saying goodbye? I woke up and you were just …gone.”
“Adam, I ...” Carlie hesitates, her voice wavering as she takes a step back. It’s clear she’s wrestling with something deep, something she’s not sure she can share.
I reach out, my hand hovering in the space between us. “Carlie, whatever it is, you can tell me. After all of this bullshit, it’s the least I can do.”
She bites her lip, a storm of emotions crossing her face. Finally, she looks up at me, her expression reflecting a mixture of fear and resolve. “It’s just …I got scared.”
“Scared of what?” I prod gently, trying to bridge the distance between us. Hating how far apart we are right now.
With a half-hearted chuckle, she shrugs slightly. “I mean, facing my fears is not exactly my strong suit. I usually just write characters who are braver than me.”
Her attempt at humor doesn’t fully mask the genuine concern in her eyes, but it’s so Carlie—using wit to deflect her vulnerability.
I shake my head. “Carlie, I swear to you, it’s not like that. Everything I said on the Live, everything I feel for you—it’s real.”
Reaching out, I run my knuckles across her cheekbone.
Her eyes close and she nods slowly, but I can tell there’s still something she’s holding back.
“There’s more, isn’t there?” I ask, searching her face for a clue.
Carlie takes a deep breath, looking as if she’s about to to be sick. But just as she’s about to speak, her gaze drifts to the coffee table—to the envelope identical to the one I received from Nocté.
My heart skips a beat.
“That envelope ...” I start, my voice trailing off. A realization hits me like a freight train—a connection I hadn’t allowed myself to really think about or believe. “Carlie, were you ... at Nocté?”
The question hangs in the air, heavy with implications.
If it was her …
For a moment, neither of us speaks. Then, she nods slowly, her eyes not leaving mine.
“Yes, Adam, I was at Nocté. Withyou.”
A torrent of emotions washes over me—surprise, confusion, but most of all, an overwhelming sense of connection. The pieces of a puzzle I didn’t even know I was solving fall into place.
This is why I was expelled from the Upper Tier.
Sheisthe woman.
But how?