The image of Kimberly and Leah, always polished, always poised, always venomous, flashed through her mind. She knew they were capable of cruelty, of entitlement, of delusion. But this… this was bigger than their childish obsession with who Ryan loved. This was corruption, power, legacy, and reputation colliding under one spotlight.
The kind of scandal men like her father whispered about behind closed doors.
Eve exhaled slowly.
She didn’t want to think about any of it right now.
Not tonight.
Not when she was building warmth with her hands, not when the scent of herbs and butter had begun to fill the kitchen, not when her thoughts wanted to drift back to Ryan and the quiet intimacy they’d shared.
So she refocused.
She washed her hands again, set a pan on the stove, added a small pat o
