#Chapter 19: What Was Never Ours

(Violet’s POV) Ronan stared at me like I’d just slapped him. As if he couldn’t fathom the idea that I might mean the words I’d said. “You’re serious,” he said, voice low and disbelieving. “You’re actually going through with this?” I didn’t blink. “I was always serious.” His lips curled in a faint, bitter smirk. “Right. This is just another one of your stunts. You’ll walk out, wait for the attention to come back, then come crawling into my arms again like always.” I turned toward him, slowly. “No, Ronan. I won’t.” The smirk faltered. “I only came back for one thing,” I said, my voice like ice cracking over water. “My mother’s relics. That’s it. I never came back for you.” The silence between us split wide open. I watched him blink. Once. Twice. He didn’t know what to say. Didn’t know how to handle truth that didn’t feed his ego. “I never wanted to win you back,” I added. “There’s nothing to win. Not anymore.” His expression shattered—just for a second—then he