Chapter 39

Mira’s POV

The question hung in the air like smoke that refused to clear.

Marlo leaned back with a satisfied grin, clearly proud of himself for stirring trouble. Everyone’s eyes shifted to Ace, waiting.

Ace didn’t even blink at first. He just took a slow sip of his drink, like he hadn’t just been dragged into something messy.

Then he scoffed.

“In love?” he repeated, almost amused. “That’s a bit dramatic, don’t you think?”

Marlo raised a brow. “So that’s a no?”

Ace shrugged casually, his gaze flickering toward me for the briefest second before looking away. “Obviously.”

Something about how quickly he answered made my stomach twist.

“Come on,” Zara chimed in, clearly entertained. “You didn’t even think about it. That’s suspicious.”

“It’s not suspicious,” Ace replied, his tone flat but controlled. “It’s just not true.”

“Not even a little crush?” Danny asked, half teasing, half curious.

Ace let out a dry laugh. “You all need better hobbies.”

The conversation broke into scattered laughter, but it didn’t feel as light anymore.

Because for a second, when his eyes met mine, there was something there. Something he buried very fast.

Dro squeezed my hand gently beside me, pulling my attention back.

“Alright,” he said, his voice cutting through the tension. “Let’s not turn this into an interrogation.”

“Fine,” Marlo muttered, throwing his hands up. “Kill the fun.”

The game continued, questions bouncing from one person to another, dares getting slightly more ridiculous as the alcohol started settling in. Zara ended up dancing barefoot in the sand after losing a round, dragging Danny with her while everyone cheered.

But my mind wasn’t fully in it anymore because It kept drifting back to Ace.

He had shut down that question too quickly. I didn’t expect anything but still, we had a connection the very first day we met. So it all meant nothing?

I forced myself to laugh along when Marlo tripped over absolutely nothing and blamed the sand for “attacking him,” but the thought stayed there, quietly nagging.

After a while, the group started thinning out.

Zara and Danny disappeared again, this time not even pretending they were coming back anytime soon. Marlo staggered off toward the house, muttering something about needing water before he “passed out and died dramatically.”

Ace stood up shortly after, stretching lazily.

“I’m done,” he said. “You people are exhausting.”

“Goodnight to you too,” Dro replied dryly.

Ace gave a small nod, then glanced at me again, just for a second before he walked off.

I watched him go, my chest tightening for reasons I didn’t want to examine.

“You’re thinking too hard,” Dro murmured beside me.

I blinked, turning to him. “What?”

He smirked faintly. “Your face does this thing when you’re overthinking. It’s happening right now.”

I rolled my eyes lightly. “I’m not overthinking.”

“Sure,” he said, clearly not convinced.

The fire crackled softly between us as the beach grew quieter. The music had stopped at some point, leaving only the sound of the waves and the occasional night breeze brushing against my skin.

It suddenly felt colder.

Dro leaned back on his hands, staring into the flames.

For a moment, neither of us spoke. Then his voice came again, softer this time.

“My mom used to love bonfires.”

I turned to look at him, surprised by the shift in his tone.

“She said it reminded her of being a kid,” he continued, his gaze fixed on the fire. “Something about how simple it felt. Just sitting around, talking, not worrying about anything.”

I stayed quiet, sensing this wasn’t something he said often. He had never told me anything deep about himself.

“She died when I was very young,” he added after a pause.

My chest tightened instantly.

“Cancer,” he said simply.

“I’m sorry, Dro,” I said softly.

He nodded, like he expected the sympathy but didn’t quite know what to do with it.

“It was fast,” he went on. “Too fast. One day she was fine, the next, everything just changed. Hospitals, treatments, doctors who promised and failed.”

His jaw tightened slightly.

“I think that’s when things with my dad got worse.”

I frowned. “Worse?”

“He was never really around,” Dro admitted. “Always busy. Always working. But after she got sick, it was like he just disappeared completely.”

There was a bitterness in his voice now. It was subtle, but there.

“I guess people handle things differently,” he added with a small, humorless smile. “Some stay. Some run like my dad.”

The firelight flickered across his face, catching the slight sheen in his eyes. And then, unexpectedly, his voice cracked.

“I didn’t even get to say goodbye properly.”

That did it.

The tears came quietly, like he was trying to fight them but losing anyway.

I shifted closer to him without thinking, placing a gentle hand on his arm.

“Hey,” I whispered. “It’s okay.”

He let out a shaky breath, running a hand through his hair.

“I hate talking about this,” he muttered. “I don’t even know why I’m saying it now.”

“Because you need to,” I said softly.

He glanced at me, his eyes a little red now.

For once, Alejandro Montenegro didn’t look untouchable.

He looked human and this was the strangest moment I’d had since he confessed his feelings for me.

I squeezed his arm gently. “You don’t have to carry everything alone, you know.”

He let out a quiet laugh, shaking his head. “I’m used to it.”

“Well, maybe you shouldn’t be,” I replied.

He studied me for a moment, like he was trying to figure something out.

“You’re good at this,” he said.

“At what?”

“Getting people to talk.”

I smiled faintly. “Maybe you just needed someone to listen.”

He didn’t respond immediately. Then his gaze softened slightly.

“What about you?” he asked.

My heart skipped.

“What about me?”

“You always dodge personal questions,” he said. “Why?”

I looked away, my fingers curling slightly in my lap. Because if I didn’t dodge them, everything would fall apart.

Because if I told him the truth, this… whatever we had… wouldn’t stay the same.

“It’s nothing,” I said lightly. “I’m just not that interesting.”

“Bullshit,” he replied instantly.

I almost laughed at how fast that came out.

“There’s more to you than you let people see,” he added, his voice quieter now.

For a second, I considered telling him about my past, about my abusive father, the clubs, my health, everything but I stayed silent.

Not now.

Maybe not ever.

I forced a small smile. “Maybe I just like keeping a little mystery.”

He watched me carefully, like he knew I was holding something back.

But he didn’t push.

“Fair enough,” he said eventually.

A breeze passed through, colder this time, making me shiver.

“Okay, now I’m freezing,” I muttered, rubbing my arms.

Dro stood up immediately, offering me his hand. “Let’s go inside before you turn into ice.”

I took his hand, letting him pull me up.

The warmth of the fire faded quickly as we walked back toward the house, replaced by the cool night air that clung to my skin.

By the time we got inside, I could feel it in my bones.

“I’m going to change,” I said quickly. “I’ll meet you in a bit.”

“Alright,” he replied. “Don’t take too long.”

I nodded and headed straight to the bedroom.

The moment the door closed behind me, my expression dropped.

I rushed toward my bag, my hands moving faster than my thoughts as I dug through it.

“Shit,” I whispered under my breath.

I had forgotten to take my drugs all day.

My fingers finally found the small bottle, and I exhaled shakily.

“Okay… okay.”

I quickly opened it, my hands trembling slightly as I took out the pills.

Just as I was about to take them, a voice came from behind me.

“What are those for?”

Dro stood by the door, his eyes fixed on the pills in my hand.