I didn't sleep that night. Not after Liam's offer.
Fake engagement.
Six months of pretending to be in love with the man who once unknowingly fathered my child. The irony was bitter enough to choke me.
I lay awake on the velvet couch, watching the city lights blink like restless stars through the panoramic windows. My fingers curled around my phone, hovering over the one photo that meant everything to me: Eli's first day of preschool.
Same gray eyes. Same grin.
How would I look him in the face and lie like this?
But Eli needed his surgery. I needed the money. And Liam was offering more than just a raise—he was offering me power. Resources. A chance to finally build the tech consulting firm I'd once dreamed of.
All I had to do… was pretend.
The next morning, I said yes.
He didn't smile. Not really. But something in his eyes shifted.
"We'll make the announcement this weekend," he said. "Keep your answers vague. Mention how we reconnected through work. Avoid anything too detailed."
"Right," I murmured. "And if they ask about a ring?"
He walked over to the nightstand, pulled out a small velvet box.
Inside was a diamond so radiant I had to blink.
"It belonged to my mother," he said quietly. "Use it for now. She would've liked you."
I stared at the ring. It was real. All of it. A dangerous fantasy about to blur into a chaotic truth.
"Are you sure you can pull this off?" I asked.
Liam's smile was faint but cocky. "I've sold lies far worse than this."
I wanted to ask what lies, but I didn't.
Because I had one of my own.
***
The gala was held in an opulent glass dome overlooking the Huangpu River. Chandeliers dripped from the ceiling like frozen fireworks. Everyone who mattered in the tech world was here—and all eyes were on us.
Liam's hand gripped mine like we'd been together for years. His body was close, too close. And when the cameras started flashing, he leaned in and kissed my temple.
I flinched.
He noticed.
"Relax," he whispered. "You're supposed to look madly in love with me."
"That might be easier if you weren't so…" I trailed off.
"So what?"
"Complicated."
He grinned. "Then you're doing great. You look just the right amount of tortured."
I smiled for the cameras, but my insides felt like they were shattering.
Because this wasn't just a photo op. It was a resurrection of everything I'd buried.
He raised our joined hands for the press. "To the future Mrs. Grayson," he said loud enough for reporters to catch.
The crowd erupted. Champagne. Flashbulbs. Questions.
And then… silence.
A man approached us with an easy smile and a predator's eyes. "Well, well. My brother does have a taste for surprises."
Liam tensed beside me. "Damien."
I blinked. Brother?
Of course. Damien Grayson. The other heir. The one everyone whispered about in boardroom corners. Ruthless. Charming. Dangerous.
He kissed my hand like a snake dressed in silk. "Pleasure, Ava. You're even lovelier than the rumors."
"Nice to meet you," I said stiffly.
He turned to Liam. "When were you going to tell the family?"
"When it was relevant," Liam said coolly.
"Careful," Damien said with a wink. "Secrets have a way of unraveling at the worst possible times."
Liam stepped forward, blocking my view. "What do you want?"
"Only to welcome my future sister-in-law. And maybe… get a private word with her later."
"That won't be happening," Liam said, steel threading his voice.
Damien laughed and walked away, but not before shooting me one last knowing look.
My stomach twisted. He knew something. Or he suspected. Either way, Damien Grayson wasn't just a threat to Liam.
He was a threat to me.
***
Later that night, back in the suite, I stared at my reflection in the bathroom mirror.
Mascara smudged. Lips swollen. Diamond ring glittering.
"You okay?" Liam asked from the other room.
I stepped out. "You didn't tell me you had a brother."
His face darkened. "Half-brother. Barely even that. He's dangerous. Ambitious. And he hates that I'm ahead."
"And now he's suspicious," I added. "About us."
Liam nodded slowly. "He'll dig. He always does. Which means we have to be airtight."
He walked toward me, undoing the buttons of his tuxedo jacket, then his shirt. He was undoing more than that. He was shedding the CEO—becoming just a man.
I stepped back. "What are you doing?"
"Convincing them will be easier if we convince ourselves first."
I blinked. "Excuse me?"
He stopped, voice low. "Let me touch you like I used to."
He didn't know what he was asking.
But my body did.
He reached for me, pulled me close. His kiss was slower this time, but no less demanding. I melted into him, moaning as his mouth found my throat, then lower. My dress hit the floor. His hands explored me like déjà vu.
We crashed onto the bed, limbs tangled, breath hot and fast.
His lips hovered over my stomach. "You're different," he whispered. "Like you've carried something heavier than you'll ever say."
Tears burned behind my eyelids.
Because I had.
And he was lying on top of the reason.
After, I curled against him, raw and exposed. He stroked my back like he was memorizing it.
"I wish I could remember you," he whispered. "It's like I've lost something important."
"You have," I whispered back, so quiet he didn't hear.
He fell asleep.
I stared at the ceiling, listening to the beat of a man's heart who didn't know he'd already lost his own.
Then I got up, pulled on his shirt, and padded into the living room.
I opened my laptop.
One file sat at the top: Eli's medical report.
Another tab opened—an email draft. I hovered over Liam's name.
I could tell him everything.
But before I could type a word, I saw a message blink in from a blocked sender.
SUBJECT: Your fiancé has a past—and it's catching up.
ATTACHMENT: Confidential Grayson Tech files.
I gasped.
Someone was setting me up.