Sold to Bastard Alpha after My Divorce! novel Chapter 26

Chapter 26: Chapter 26

Aria’s POV

I woke to suffocating silence.

My eyes stared at an unfamiliar ceiling. My brain felt like cotton. Thick. Foggy. Wrong.

Where was I?

I tried to piece together the fragments of last night. They came in flashes. Broken. Disconnected.

Being arrested. Men in black uniforms breaking down my door. The cold cell. Kael’s voice through the phone...

My heart clenched.

Then what? He came for me. The park. Finn. Kael brought me here...

Wine.

We drank a lot of wine.

Oh God.

I shot upright. My heart hammered so hard it threatened to burst from my chest. I looked around wildly—floor-to-ceiling windows showcased the glittering lights of Meridian Territory. Silk sheets. Everything elegant. Everything expensive.

Blood Crown Grand Hotel. I was still here.

But Kael was gone.

The room was empty. Just me. Alone.

When did he leave? Why did he leave? What did I say last night? What did I do?

I stumbled to the bathroom mirror. Froze the moment I saw my reflection.

Dear God.

The woman staring back was a disaster. My eyes were swollen like walnuts. Dark circles underneath. My hair was a tangled bird’s nest. Last night’s makeup was smeared across my face like abstract art. And my neck—the bruises from Finn’s grip were visible. Purple and angry against my skin.

I looked like I’d crawled out of a war zone.

A groan escaped my throat. Shame crashed over me in waves.

How badly had I embarrassed myself in front of Kael?

I searched my memory desperately. Only fuzzy fragments remained. I’d talked a lot. About my family. About Finn. About how much I hated both the Shadow Moon and Nightfang names.

I’d called him... "pretty"?

No no no no no.

I buried my face in my hands. Wanted to disappear. Wanted the floor to swallow me whole.

I even remembered grabbing his arm. Begging him to stay. And he did stay. He sat on the edge of the couch, so close...

Then what?

Then nothing. Complete blank. Empty space where memories should be.

Artemis whimpered softly in my mind. She didn’t know either.

I leaned against the cold counter. Took a deep breath.

The hotel room felt different in daylight. Less magical. More real. The sheets were wrinkled where I’d slept. A half-empty wine bottle sat on the coffee table. Two glasses. Evidence of my humiliation. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

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