I stare ahead, careful not to let the panic rising in my throat show in my eyes or in the tightening of my jaw.“I understand,” I say evenly.
“Good.”She tilts her head, studying me the way a jeweler inspects a gem for flaws.
“Marriage requires complete unity,” Valentina says calmly.“You walk as he walks.You speak as he speaks.You do not contradict him in public.”
She lets that settle before continuing.“You honor his decisions.You protect his reputation.”A pause.Precise.“Your life becomes his.”
The air feels thinner.I can’t get a full breath in.
But I nod once.Controlled.Respectful.Noncommittal.
Valentina rests her hand over mine.The gesture looks gentle, almost motherly—but her grip isn’t.“A woman who cannot meet these expectations… draws attention.”
My pulse slams against my ribs.“I won’t.”
“I know you won’t.”Her smile is soft but triumphant.“That is why you were approved.”
The car slows.
I look up—and everything inside me freezes.
An elegant storefront rises before us, marble and glass shining in the morning light.In the window, under glowing spotlights, mannequins stand draped in bridal gowns—silk, lace, beadwork gleaming like a temptation or a snare.
My heart rockets into my throat.
I paste on a smile because it’s the only thing I can control.But panic surges beneath it, sharp and suffocating.If I let even a sliver show, I’ll come apart right here in the car.
Valentina’s fingers brush mine before she opens her door—an encouraging gesture that feels more like a warning.
The look she gives me—cool, satisfied, victorious—turns my stomach.
Like I’ve just stepped into the final move of a game she’s been playing since before I arrived.
“Come,” she says softly.“Everything is prepared.”
Jagger
I pace the room, trying not to think about why it’s taking Adena so long.Four hours shopping, and not a single text or phone call.
Anything could have happened to her.
I filled the time the way I'm supposed to—hit the hotel gym until my shoulders burned, mapped the route they'll take tonight, made calls to the bars Marquez likes, coordinated with Ortega's security team about positions and sight lines—how to stay in the shadows but close enough if things go wrong.
Everything accounted for.Prepared for.
Except her.
The woman who walked into an operation and dismantled every contingency plan just by existing.Who reads a room the way most people read air.Who can sit across from Valentina and win a poker hand that should've gone the other way.
Adena.Whose faith enables her to walk into a situation and make everyone believe whatever story she's selling, including me.
Just when I’m mentally ripping my hair out, Adena strolls in, followed by the concierge dragging an armful of shopping bags.One of them is a large box he sets down carefully, like it’s armed, before leaving.
Her locks have been styled in a knot, similar to Valentina’s, and her makeup is way too dramatic for afternoon.
She looks like a painted doll.A miserable one.
“More dresses?”
