The Langford penthouse sat high above the city, a tower of glass and steel that kept the world firmly at arm's length. Serena stepped inside, the familiar scent of white lilies from the marble foyer mingling with the faint hum of the city beyond.
She slipped off her heels, crossing the polished floor toward the living room. The glittering skyline stretched out before her, Paris a sprawling constellation at midnight.
Her assistant, Ava, was waiting on the leather sofa, tablet in hand. "How was the opening night afterparty?"
"Eventful," Serena said, tossing her clutch onto the coffee table. "Cancel my meetings tomorrow morning. We're shifting priorities."
Ava's brows lifted. "What's happened?"
"Damien Blackwood happened. And my father has decided it would be… strategically advantageous… if I married him."
The silence that followed was broken only by the distant hum of traffic. Ava blinked once, twice. "Please tell me you're joking."
"I wish I were." Serena sank into the armchair, crossing one leg over the other. "The board meets in two weeks to 'consider' the idea. Translation: they're looking for ways to make it inevitable."
Ava swiped on her tablet. "You want me to start pulling everything we have on Blackwood Resorts?"
"Everything," Serena said. "Assets, holdings, board members, rumors—if he sneezed in the last six months, I want to know which brand of tissues he used."
Ava's mouth twitched. "And here I thought you two were just business rivals. This is starting to sound like war."
"It is war," Serena said flatly. "The difference is, this one comes with a wedding dress."
As Ava started typing furiously, Serena rose and moved to the window, her reflection blending with the lights of the city.
In her mind, Damien's voice lingered: That's how long we have before the board decides. And when they do… they won't care what either of us wants.
If that was true, then she had fourteen days to make sure the board wouldn't dare force her hand.
And that meant finding out what Damien Blackwood really wanted—before he found out what she couldn't afford to lose.
----
The headline glared at Serena from Ava's tablet, the glowing letters like a slap in the face.
Blackwood Resorts Stock Spikes After Merger Rumors with Langford Hotels.
She read it twice, scanning the brief article beneath. It was speculative fluff—anonymous "insiders" hinting at a strategic alliance, "sources close to the board" whispering about an "unprecedented partnership."
The kind of thing that could send shareholders into a frenzy… and lock the board into considering the merger as a serious inevitability.
"Who leaked this?" Serena demanded.
Ava shook her head. "The article's by MarketPulse Paris. They never give up sources. But the timestamp's interesting—it went live at 12:42 a.m. Paris time."
Serena's mind calculated quickly. "That's less than an hour after I left the estate."
Ava hesitated. "You think Damien did it?"
"It's his style," Serena said, pacing. "Push the rumor into the market, make it profitable, then let the board follow the money. He doesn't need my agreement—just momentum."
Ava scrolled down. "Except… Blackwood Resorts' statement to the press came after the article went live. Which means they were reacting, not starting it."
That gave Serena pause. "So if it wasn't him…"
"…then someone in your camp leaked it," Ava finished grimly.
The thought sent a cold ripple through her. There were only a handful of people who'd known about the proposal—her father, the board, and a few key staff who'd been present tonight.
Her jaw tightened. "Pull communications logs. I want to know exactly who sent what between nine p.m. and midnight. Cross-reference with anyone who's had recent contact with MarketPulse reporters."
Ava's fingers flew across the screen. "On it."
Serena stopped pacing and looked out at the city again. This was more than just a rumor—it was a calculated move, designed to box her in.
And the fact that it might not have been Damien? That was somehow worse.