She laughed at something he said. Then they disappeared into a bookstore together. Lucas stared after them. His coffee had gone cold, yet he never touched it. A painful memory surfaced without warning. Years earlier, Lucas had watched another woman smile at him exactly the same way. Victoria. Back then, he believed he had found forever.
He remembered late night conversations, shared dreams, promises about the future. Then came the collapse of his first company, investors withdrew funding, projects failed, and suddenly Victoria became distant. Within weeks, she left. Not because he had changed, because his financial future had. The betrayal taught Lucas a lesson he never forgot.
Love could be genuine, but appearances could deceive. That lesson was the reason he had spent 3 years hiding his feelings for Hannah. And now it was the reason he couldn’t ignore Marcus. Later that evening, Hannah sat across from Marcus at a small restaurant. For the first time in years, life felt lighter. Marcus made her laugh. He listened carefully.
