How did I get here?
I blink and force my attention back to Mila, schooling my expression into something that resembles interest.
Thankfully, she seems too distracted by all of the hot men to notice my lack of attention.
But as I sip on my overpriced champagne, guilt settles in my stomach as I listen to Mila gossip about the various guests in attendance.
I should be happy that one of my closest friends is engaged, except I’m too lost in my own head to feel anything but shame.
My family name used to carry weight in circles like these, but now it just hangs around my neck like a noose.
My parents are gone, both of them nothing more than memories that will eventually die with me. And despite everything that has happened to my family, I do my best tostand straight and to act like I belong here because if I falter, if I let them see even a crack, then they win.
Mila sighs as she looks around. “How are so many of these men single? They’re all so freakin’ gorgeous.”
I shrug. “Men like this don’t do commitment.”
“I’m okay with that. I’m all for a little one-night stand.”
“I am aware.”
Mila scoffs. “Don’t be a prude.”
“I am not a prude! I just don’t see the appeal of any of the men in this room.”
She suddenly reaches out to grip my arm as her jaw practically hits the floor. “Oh, my god.”
She tightens her grip so hard that her red nails almost pierce my pale skin as her face lights up, her eyes settling on a spot behind my left shoulder.
I frown. “What?”
“There he is.” She jerks her chin toward the entrance, so I subtly glance over my shoulder to see who has just arrived.
Though when I clock who it is, I wish I had stuck to my original plan of leaving the party after one drink.
Thereheis indeed.
The devil himself.
Ronan Sullivan.
Dressed in all black, Ronan should blend into the crowd of New York’s mafia elite, but instead, he draws the attention of the entire room. His powerful, broad frame cuts a path through the adoring crowd, his tailored suit looking like it might burst under the swell of his muscles with each step.
His usual arrogant smirk plays on his lips as he looks around, as if he knows every woman here would drop their morals, and their panties, for a second of his attention.
Every muscle in my body tenses as I watch him walk across the room like he owns it.
The resentment I feel toward not just Ronan, but hisentire family, coils tighter in my chest with every passing second.
The Sullivans dismantled my family and its legacy piece by piece until there was nothing left but my brother and me. They’re the reason my father’s name was dragged through the dirt.
The McCarthys are shells of what we once were, and perhaps if I was a better daughter, I’d fight harder to keep my father’s legacy alive.
But even if I did fight back, I’m no match for the Sullivans.
They have money, connections, and resources, three things that are essential if you want to survive in this world, and I have none. So, what’s the point in even trying?
What makes it even worse is that while my life was torn out from underneath me, Ronan gets to bask in his family’s success like a fucking king.
