Ava had sent five messages over two days and made three missed calls, but Leo still hadn't replied. 'What had she done wrong? He was the one who stood her up, and now he was ignoring her?' She was utterly confused.
She tried calling again, but it went straight to voicemail. Leo had been off the radar since Friday. He was supposed to spend the weekend with her before heading to Montreal today. He even stood her up on their dinner and yet not contacting her. 'Maybe he was just busy.'
According to Milo, Leo had been signed by Ferrari. That was great news—she knew how much it meant for him. But ignoring her texts and calls? That was bizarre. Frustrated, she pushed her phone aside and tried to refocus on her work. At least her anger fueled her creativity, making her want to paint. But she had no time for that now.
She'd already been MIA since Monday, taking care of Ethan for days. Now, she needed to catch up. She had buried herself in work since the weekend, hoping to keep her mind off the Leo drama. Though, every now and then, she relapsed, checking her phone.
She had finished her smaller projects and had just sent off drafts to contractors after Milo finalized the supplier details. Milo had stopped giving her updates on Leo after the last one—showing her social media posts of him partying, meeting with Ferrari, partying again, and socializing with women. That had made her stomach twist.
After hours of trying to concentrate on Palazzo's sketches, she finally gave up. Searching through online, she found James Maddon 's number Leo's ex-manager and dialed. After a few rings, he picked up.
James: "James Maddon speaking. Who is this?"
Ava: "Hi, hello. It's Ava. Ava Sinclair."
James: "Sorry, kid. I don't know any Ava."
Ava: "Leo never mentioned me?"
James: "Ah… Ava. Yes, I remember now. What's up?"
Ava: "Is Leo okay? He hasn't been answering my calls or replying to my messages. Is there something I should know?"
James: "Uh… I can't really say much, kid."
Ava: "Please, I need to know."
James: "Well… he told me he saw you with someone else."
Ava: "What?! Nonsense! Who? and he was the one who stood me up!"
James: "Hey, don't shoot the messenger. Look, I gotta go. But listen, Leo's a good kid. He'll come around." And then he hung up.
Ava was furious. So, this was his excuse? He thought she was with someone else? Who? So without confronting her or asking her, he just decided to move on without giving her a chance? She had enough drama in her life already—her family, work, everything. She didn't need this.
Shoving her sketchbook into her bag, she headed to Ethan 's penthouse. Ethan had given her a key, telling her she could drop by anytime. She had accepted, but warned Ethan, "If anything goes missing, don't blame me." Ethan had smirked. "Take whatever you want. Once the renovation is done, I won't need any of it." Classic Ethan—arrogant, but he's not wrong.
Inside his penthouse, she settled at the kitchen island, sketching. Ethan wanted something simple, easy to maintain (even though she doubted he'd be the one cleaning it), yet luxurious.
"Luxury minimalism," she had explained to him.
For the kitchen, she kept the color palette dark wood, pine, beige, and black. Warm lighting for ambiance, bright white lights near the cooking area. After an hour, she took a break, heading to the bathroom. The main bathroom had white brick tiles for the walls and navy hexagon tiles for the floor—neat but cheap-looking.
Ideas flooded her mind, and she quickly took notes on her phone. She pulled down the toilet seat, sitting there while sketching her new design. At some point, she leaned back against the shower glass, too focused to notice Ethan entering the bathroom— completely naked.
The moment she registered his presence, she screamed. Ethan turned around, startled. "What the hell—Ava?! What are you doing here?" he asked her while grabbing the towel.
Flustered, she scrambled to her feet, shoving past him. "I was sketching!" she blurted, her face burning. "I didn't hear you come in!"
Ethan smirked. "You expected me to knock first? It's a shower. and my shower. In my home."
"Ugh, whatever. I'm leaving!" She grabbed her things and stormed out, still mortified.
That night, she tried texting Leo again. Still nothing. Her messages weren't even delivered. With a frustrated sigh, she turned off her phone and went to sleep.
The next day, she and Milo went to Palazzo to recalculate inventory. Near lunchtime, Milo left to meet Alessia, who was officially his girlfriend now—not surprising at all.
Ava stayed behind, eating a sandwich she had packed. The lounge was empty, all the staff out for lunch. That's when a man in his forties approached her.
"Excuse me, miss. Do you work here?" he smirked at her.
Ava looked up. "Urmm.. Sorry, I'm not working here, but you can ask the receptionist over there." She gestured politely before returning to her sketch.
"But I've seen you around, giving orders. You sure you 're not in charge?" His voice was smooth, almost eerie.
Ava tensed slightly. "No, I'm sorry, I'm just the one that the hotel hired to decorate.," she clarified.
"Ah, so you technically are working here." He pulled out the chair across from her. "Mind if I keep you company, Ava?"
Her head snapped up. How does he know my name? "I didn't recall telling you my name," she said cautiously.
He chuckled. "I make it a point to know interesting people."
Ava stood up, suddenly uncomfortable. "I have to get back to my office."
Before she could walk away, he grabbed her wrist. "Relax, baby. I'm trying to make conversation here," he said, his hand gripping her wrist.
"Let go of me," she hissed, trying to pull away, but he didn't budge.
A loud thud echoed through the lounge as the man staggered back, clutching his face. Ethan pushed the creep guy aside then he stood beside her, fist clenched.
"I believe the lady told you to leave her alone," Ethan said, his voice dangerously calm.
The man chuckled, straightening his suit. "It's so good to finally meet you properly…. my dear nephew."
Ethan stiffened. Ava froze. Ava's eyes widened. Did he just say nephew?
Without another word, the man straightened his suit and walked away, leaving Ethan, still frozen in place.
Later, Ava kept trying to ask Ethan about it, but he refused to talk then dropped her in front of her office. Frustrated, she walked to her office before she found Maya and Alessia chatting in the pantry and decided to join them.
"You okay, ladyboss?" Alessia asked.
Ava shook her head.
"You know you can talk to us, right?" Maya added, patting her shoulder.
Ava turned to Maya, crossing her arms. "Oh Really? Then why didn't you tell me that you 're pregnant?"
Maya paled. "I—"
Ava stormed into her office.
Maya followed. "I didn't mean to hide it, Ava. You've just been dealing with so much…"
Ava turned around, eyes flaring up. "I'm your best friend!"
Maya pulled her into a hug.
Between sniffles, Ava muttered, "My mother keeps asking me for money. Ethan's uncle is some creep. Leo is ignoring me—"
Maya pulled back, "First, as I said before, ignore your mother. You don't owe her. Secondly, who is Ethan's uncle? and Leo is probably ignoring you because he's busy?" she said.
Ava hesitated.
"You know I can't simply ignore my mom. She doesn't work and my brother isn't exactly reliable. I also have no idea who Ethan's uncle, the guys creep me out. and I just found out that Leo was ignoring me because stupid ass he thought I'm seeing someone else! Stupid."
Maya smirked. "Okay.. I can't understand your family. and please stay away from any danger…. for the Leo situation, I think I might have a solution."
Ava's eyes are full of glistening hope. "What is it?"
"Do grand gestures.. Guy like that, I think.. and Leo at Montreal for the next game right? Go and surprise him!" Maya patted her shoulder. Encourage her.
That night, Ava booked a ticket to Montreal for next Sunday. . 'I'm coming for you Leo' she whispered, convincing herself that this is the right solution.
The next Sunday morning, she boarded her flight, heart pounding. After nine exhausting hours inside the plane, she finally landed in Montreal and rushed to the Grand Prix —just in time for the race.
She screamed Leo's name from the sidelines, cheering for him. And when he won—her heart swelled with pride. She made her way to the podium, excited to surprise him.
Then she saw it—Leo, kissing another woman. Right in front of everyone.
Her smile vanished.
Her heart shattered.
Tears welled up.
So this was why he had been ignoring her. He's the one who had someone else. She turned and walked away.
She wasn't that desperate.
Then—"Ava? Ava!"
Leo was chasing after her. He grabbed her hand, his eyes wide with shock.
"Wait. What are you doing here?" he asked.
Her voice trembled. "I came to surprise you, but it turns out I'm the one who's surprised."
Leo silenced before running a hand through his hair. "You moved on first." he said slowly.
Ava's breath caught. "What the hell are you talking about? You stood me up that night!"
"You didn't wait for me!" Leo shot back. "I came for you and you, you... You were with him—that guy!"
Ava clenched her fists. "I waited for you for three freaking hours. And what guy? Ethan? He's my client!"
Leo faltered. "You two looked close."
"Doesn't matter, I even rejected him already," she admitted.
Leo's breath hitched. "Why?"
"Because I like you, dumbass." Ava shouted and shook her head. Disappointed.
He stared at her, searching her eyes for the truth. Then, without warning, he pulled her close and kissed her, deep, desperate, and full of longing.
"I like you too, Ava. Way too much." Leo whispered in her ear.