Chapter 112

Deric POV

I should’ve ignored the call. Hell, I should’ve blocked her the moment her name showed up on my phone five times in a row. But here I was, jaw clenched, hands on the wheel, driving toward a rooftop café that Elyra had texted me like some kind of royal command. Her text was short. “We need to talk. Alone.” The kind of message that never led to anything good.

The sun was melting into the horizon when I arrived. She was already there, perched like a damn queen at a corner table, sunglasses on, long legs crossed. She didn’t wave when she saw me, just lifted her chin in that annoying way that said, you’re late.

I sank into the seat across from her and didn’t bother with greetings.

“I’m only here because you wouldn’t stop calling,” I said.

She peeled off her sunglasses slowly. “A