I don’t move as he leans down and presses a kiss to my cheek, his lips lingering just long enough for the cameras. My stomach twists, my instincts screamingwrong, wrong, wrong. The scent of him—familiar butnot right—clashes against everything in me. I resist the urge to jerk away, schooling my expression into something neutral as the audience eats it up.
Kelly grins like she’s orchestrated the moment of the century. “What a surprise! We all remember theit coupleyou two were back in the day. And I think I speak foreveryonewhen I say we’ve missed seeing you together.”
The audience claps. My heart pounds.
I barely have time to react before Owen straightens, reaching into his pocket. The air shifts, a collective gasp rolling through the studio as he pulls out a small velvet box.
No.
My stomach drops.
Hewouldn’t.
But he does.
Owen lowers himself onto one knee, flipping open the box to reveal a diamond so obnoxiously large it practically glows under the stage lights.
“Ashlyn,” he says, his voice smooth and full of false sincerity. “I’ve never stopped loving you. We had something amazing once, and I know we can have it again.” He flashes that perfect, media-trained smile, his grip on my hand tightening like a vice. “Marry me.”
The crowd erupts. Camera shutters click furiously.
And I can donothingbut sit there, frozen, caught in the headlights of a disaster I never saw coming.
The audience erupts into cheers, their applause filling the studio like a deafening wave. I feel like I’m underwater, drowning in the moment Kelly has orchestrated. Owen’s hand is still gripping mine, the weight of his stupid, glimmering engagement ring sitting between us like a loaded gun. My face is frozen in a practiced smile, my body rigid with the effort of keeping my emotions in check.
I can’t lose it. Not here. Not now.
Kelly leans toward the camera, her own grin wide and gleaming. “Well, folks, I think we just witnessed the most romantic moment of the year!” She turns to me, her eyes glinting with manufactured excitement. “Ashlyn, I have to ask—what do you say?”
I swallow down the bile rising in my throat. I feel every eye in the room on me—the audience, the cameras, Owen, who is squeezing my hand just a little too tight. I picture Shelley backstage, already tallying up the press coverage this moment is about to get.
The words won’t come.
I don’t nod. I don’t shake my head. I do the only thing I can do—I laugh. A soft, breathless sound that could be interpreted as shock, joy, maybe even overwhelmed excitement if you weren’t paying close enough attention. “Wow, Owen,” I say, my voice steady, though my pulse is anything but. “That’s… unexpected.”
A calculated answer. One that keeps the headlines in check without making a single promise. I can feel the cameras eating it up, the audience leaning forward, desperate for my response.
Owen beams, playing his part perfectly. He brings my hand to his lips, pressing a kiss to my knuckles. My stomach twists, revulsion curling low in my gut. “I meant every word,” he says smoothly. “We were always meant to be, Ash. I think we lost our way, but fate brought us back together.”
I don’t believe in fate. If I did, I would be in a hotel room tangled up with four men who actually love me instead of sitting here, pretending like this isn’t a nightmare come to life.
Kelly claps her hands. “Well, that is just… wow. This might just be the TV moment of the year, folks!” She throws a dazzling smile toward the camera. “We’ll be right back after this break, but let’s give it up for Ashlyn Robinson and Owen Hale!”
The applause is deafening as the cameras cut. Kelly is immediately whisked away by her team, leaving me alone with Owen in the center of the stage. He doesn’t let go of my hand.
I don’t rip it away. Not yet.
I let the handlers usher me toward the green room, my head held high, my smile still firmly in place. The second the door closes behind us, sealing us off from prying eyes, I yank my hand away so hard Owen stumbles back a step.
“Omega, what the hell?—”
“No.” My voice is ice, and I can feel the crack in my perfect exterior spreading. “You don’t get to call me that. And you sure as hell don’t get to pull some stunt like this.”
Owen chuckles, shaking his head as he rolls his shoulders back. “Come on, Ash. That was perfect. The press is already eating it up. I’m willing to bet that by the time we walk out of this room, we’ll be trending worldwide.”
I stare at him, something sick settling in my stomach. “Is that what this is? Some PR stunt?”
His gaze flickers, but he recovers fast. “I’m just helping you, baby. Your reputation has been slipping since that little incident with yourpack.” He sneers the word like it’s dirty. Like they aren’t four of the best men I’ve ever known. “People love us together. You saw the crowd out there. They want this. We’d be unstoppable.”
