I take the box and walk into the master bedroom. The dress is laid out on the vast, dark expanse of the bed, a shimmering, liquid promise of emerald silk. It looks alive, a dangerous jewel waiting to be worn. I place the red Cartier box beside it, astark, impossible-to-miss statement against the black comforter. A contract laid out for her signature.
I retreat to my study to top off my whiskey, my back to the doorway, listening. The silence is absolute for a few long moments. Then, I hear the soft click of her bedroom door opening. A faint gasp—for the dress, I assume. Then, a silence so profound it feels louder than any sound. I imagine her standing there, her gaze fixed on the iconic red box. I picture her long, elegant fingers reaching for it, the initial flicker of confusion. I imagine her opening it, seeing the cold platinum. Then, she finds the clasp, her brow furrowing as she opens it, her emerald eyes widening as they scan the four blunt lines burned into the metal.
The silence stretches, coiling in my gut. This is the final test. The ultimate choice.Will she throw it at the wall? Will she leave it on the bed, a silent refusal? Will she refuse to come out, the final chain of her defiance holding fast? Or will she accept the terms?
Then, a sound so soft it’s almost imperceptible. The whisper of silk against skin. The slide of a zipper. The smooth, definitive click of a clutch being closed.
When she finally appears in the doorway of my study, the air leaves my lungs in a sharp, painful rush. The word ‘magnificent’ is a pale, insufficient thing. She is a living, breathing masterpiece; a goddess of war sculpted from my own obsession. The emerald silk moves with her, a second skin that advertises every perfect curve I have mapped and memorized. Her dark hair is swept up in an intricate, elegant style that exposes the vulnerable, lovely line of her neck and the daring plunge of the dress’s back.
It’s not the dress that seizes me, that stops my heart.
It’s the locket.
Resting in the hollow of her throat, against the pale, perfect skin is the cool, silver-white glint of the platinum square. She’swearing it. It’s not hidden away. It’s displayed. A collar, a brand. A silent, public declaration of her surrender. She has signed the contract and put it on for the world to see.
“You’re staring,” she says, her voice a low murmur that vibrates through me.
“I’m appreciating,” I correct, my voice rough. I step forward, and before she can react, I tell her the truth. I owe her that much. “Before we go, there’s something you need to know. This isn’t just a party for me.”
Her brow furrows in confusion.
“Tonight, I’m ending it,” I say, my voice quiet but absolute. “All of it. I’m not taking over the company. I’m not interested in his empire. After tonight, I’m declaring for the NHL draft, and I’m walking away from everything. The money, the power, the name. It’s over.”
Her eyes widen, searching mine for the lie. She finds none. “But… why?” she whispers.
“Because it’s a cage,” I say, my fingers brushing against the cold metal of the locket at her throat. “And I’ve found something I want more than anything that’s inside it.” I hold out my arm. “You’re wearing my terms, Kinsley. Now I’m inviting you to watch me burn my own world down to make them a reality. Are you ready?”
She takes a deep, steadying breath, her eyes wide with the terrifying weight of my confession. When she places her hand in the crook of my elbow, it’s not with the hesitation of a fake girlfriend, but with the resolve of a co-conspirator. “Let’s go.”
The ballroom at the Monroe Grand is a glittering testament to my family’s suffocating power. Crystal chandeliers the size of small cars drip from the vaulted ceiling, casting a fractured, diamond-like glow over a churning sea of the city’s most influential faces. Politicians whose careers Asher built, titans of industry whose companies he’d crushed or absorbed, old-money socialites with brittle smiles and venomous whispers. They are all here, orbiting the sun that is my uncle.
The moment we enter at the top of the grand staircase, a hush falls. It ripples through the room, a wave of silence that parts the sea of chatter. Every head turns. The whispers that follow are not subtle; they are a rising tide of speculation and shock. I feel Kinsley tense beside me, a barely perceptible tightening of her fingers on my arm, but she doesn’t falter. She lifts her chin, her expression a perfect mask of cool indifference we had not practiced, but which she seems to have instinctively mastered. She is playing her part flawlessly, because she now understands it is not a part. It is her reality.
I guide her down the stairs, a low, possessive hand on the small of her back. The silk of her dress is cool beneath my palm. I savor the looks of raw envy from the men, their eyes lingering on the sway of her hips, on the expanse of her back. I relish the sharp, assessing glances from the women. Their eyes cataloging the cut of her dress, the fire of the emerald, the sheer audacity of her presence on my arm. They see a beautiful, unknown woman in a stunning dress. I see my victory, walking, breathing, and clinging to my arm.
“West,” a gravelly voice cuts through the noise like a shard of glass.Asher.
He stands near the grand fireplace, a small circle of sycophantic senators around him. He dismisses them with a curt, arrogant nod, his eyes fixed on us. On Kinsley. This is not the cautious assessment from our dinner weeks ago. Thisis the cold, stern glare of a chairman inspecting a flawed and unwelcome acquisition.
“Uncle,” I say, my voice smooth as glass as we stop before him.
“Miss Fischer,” Asher says, his gaze sweeping over Kinsley, his lip curling slightly. “I see you’ve chosen a more… conspicuous look for this evening.”
“Asher,” Kinsley replies, her voice perfectly steady, betraying nothing. “It’s a pleasure to see you again.” The lie is so smooth, so flawless that it makes pride swell in my chest.
“West,” Asher says, his eyes leaving Kinsley as if she’s already been forgotten. “A word. On the balcony.”
It’s not a request. It’s a command. I give Kinsley’s hand a reassuring squeeze. “Don’t move,” I murmur, for her ears only. “I’ll be right back.”
The cold February air on the balcony is a sharp, cleansing slap after the stifling heat of the ballroom. Below, the city sprawls out, a galaxy of lights glittering like a carpet of jewels. His jewels. His city.
“I’ve had time to think since our last meeting,” Asher begins, staring out at his empire. He doesn't need to say more. He's referring to the dinner and her revelation about her parentage. “Cygnus is a force, I'll grant you. An interesting portfolio but the more I consider it, the more I find the entire situation… untenable.”
“She’s not a situation, Asher,” I say, my voice dangerously quiet.
“She is the lynchpin of a very volatile situation,” he snaps, finally turning to face me. In the cold moonlight, his face is a mask of controlled fury. “Her family’s power doesn’t change the facts. It magnifies the risk. I did a more thorough background check, West. A much more thorough one. Bipolar disorder. Documented. Unstable. A walking, talking liability.”
He takes a step closer, lowering his voice to a conspiratorial hiss. “Do you have any idea what a single public episode—a manic fit, a depressive collapse—from the heiress of Cygnus, engaged to a Monroe could do to our stock price? To both our reputations? Her family’s new-money tech empire can’t protect us from that kind of fallout. It’s a risk I will not tolerate.”
