ELESTE'S POV
The dining room is full of strangers.
Expensive suits. Designer dresses. Fake smiles. Cold eyes.
These are the people Victoria called "important business associates." Board members. Investors. People who need to meet me and decide if I'm worthy of the Chen name.
I'm terrified.
I sit at the long table, wearing my new diamond necklace and a dress that cost more than my adoptive parents made in a year. I look like a Chen.
But I don't feel like one.
Aria sits across from me. She looks perfect. Elegant. Every inch the princess she was raised to be. But I can feel her emotions underneath the mask: anxiety, exhaustion, dread.
She's barely holding it together.
Damien sits next to Aria. Too close. His leg almost touching hers under the table.
And his emotions are overwhelming.
Hunger. Possession. Obsession. Want.
All of it focused on Aria like a spotlight that never turns off.
I've been feeling emotions my whole life, but I've never felt anything this intense. This consuming.
It terrifies me.
"So, Miss Zhao," an older man says to me. His name is Mr. Wang. Board member. Rich. Powerful. "Tell us about yourself. About your life before... all this."
All eyes turn to me.
My heart races. But I remember what Aria taught me: short answers, polite, don't give them ammunition.
"I grew up in a small village," I say carefully. "My adoptive parents were wonderful people. Simple. Kind. They passed away six months ago."
"And then you discovered you were a Chen?" A woman asks. Mrs. Liu. Sharp eyes. Sharper emotions underneath: curiosity, judgment, suspicion.
"Yes, ma'am. Through a DNA test."
"How convenient," someone mutters.
The words are quiet, but everyone hears them.
The emotion in the room shifts. Suspicion. Doubt. They don't believe me. Think I'm some kind of con artist.
"The DNA test is legitimate," Victoria says coldly from the head of the table. "We've verified it multiple times. Celeste is my biological daughter. That is not up for debate."
Silence.
Heavy, uncomfortable silence.
I can feel everyone's emotions swirling: doubt, curiosity, calculation. They're trying to figure out what this means for them. For their investments. For their connections to the Chen family.
"And what about you, Aria?" Mr. Wang turns to her. "This must be difficult for you."
Aria's emotions spike with pain. But her face stays calm. Perfect.
"It's an adjustment," she says smoothly. "But Celeste is family. We're handling it together."
Liar.
Her emotions tell the truth: she's breaking. Drowning. Barely surviving.
But no one else can feel what I feel.
"How generous of you," Mrs. Liu says. Her tone suggests it's anything but generous. "Not many people would be so gracious about being replaced."
"She's not being replaced," Damien says quietly.
Everyone looks at him.
His emotions are dark. Dangerous. Protective.
"Aria will always be part of this family," he continues. His voice is soft but carries a threat underneath. "DNA doesn't change that. Anyone who suggests otherwise is welcome to leave."
The temperature in the room drops.
No one speaks.
No one dares.
Because Damien Chen is not someone you contradict. Not if you value your business. Your reputation. Your life.
"Of course," Mr. Wang says quickly. "We meant no disrespect. We're just... curious about the situation."
"Then satisfy your curiosity elsewhere." Damien's eyes are cold. "This is a family matter. Not a business discussion."
Servants bring out the next course. The conversation shifts to safer topics. Stock prices. Market trends. Boring business talk that makes my head spin.
I pick at my food. I'm not hungry. Too nervous. Too overwhelmed by all the emotions pressing in on me.
Suspicion. Greed. Jealousy. Calculation.
These people don't care about me or Aria. They only care about what we mean for their investments.
I glance at Aria. She's eating mechanically. Not tasting anything. Just going through the motions.
Her emotions are a tangled mess: pain, anger, exhaustion, and something else.
Something that spikes suddenly.
Desire.
Hot and sharp and unexpected.
I look around, confused. What caused that?
Then I see it.
Damien's hand, moving under the table. Reaching toward Aria.
His fingers brush against hers. Just barely. Just for a second.
And Aria's emotions explode.
Desire floods through her. Intense. Overwhelming. The kind of want that makes your whole body ache.
But it's immediately followed by guilt. Crushing, suffocating guilt.
She pulls her hand away quickly. Puts it in her lap. Hidden.
But I felt it. Felt everything.
The desire. The guilt. The war happening inside her.
She wants him.
God help her, she wants him.
And she hates herself for it.
Damien's emotions shift: satisfaction, hunger, anticipation. He knows what he's doing to her. Knows exactly how she responded.
He's pushing her. Testing her. Breaking down her walls one touch at a time.
I want to scream. Want to tell him to stop. Want to protect Aria from whatever game he's playing.
But I can't.
Because I'm just the replacement. Just the fake heiress trying not to drown.
"Are you alright, Celeste?" Victoria asks. "You look pale."
"I'm fine." I force a smile. "Just a little overwhelmed."
"Understandable." She turns back to her guests. "This has been a big adjustment for everyone."
The dinner continues. Course after course. Conversation after conversation.
But I barely pay attention.
Because I'm watching Aria and Damien.
They don't talk to each other. Don't look at each other. But I can feel the connection between them. Like an invisible thread pulling them together.
Every time someone says something that upsets Aria, Damien's emotions flare with protective rage.
Every time Damien shifts in his seat, Aria's emotions spike with awareness.
They're circling each other like magnets. Attracted and repelling simultaneously.
And it's destroying them both.
Another brush of hands under the table.
Another spike of desire from Aria.
Another wave of guilt.
She's fighting it. Fighting what she feels. But she's losing.
I can feel her giving in. Slowly. Inevitably.
Like watching someone drown and being unable to help.
"Excuse me," Aria says suddenly. She stands. "I need some air."
She walks out quickly. Too quickly.
Running.
Damien's emotions darken. He starts to stand.
"Sit down, Damien," Victoria orders quietly. "Let her go."
"No." He stands anyway. "Excuse me."
He follows Aria out of the dining room.
Everyone watches them leave. Then the whispers start.
"Did you see that?"
"The way he looks at her..."
"They're not related anymore. Do you think...?"
"It would be quite the scandal."
I want to defend them. Want to tell these people to mind their own business.
But I can't.
Because they're right.
Something is happening between Aria and Damien. Something dark and dangerous and inevitable.
And everyone can see it.
"Celeste," Victoria says sharply. "Tell us about your plans for the future. Your education. Your goals."
She's redirecting attention. Controlling the narrative.
I answer her questions on autopilot. Say what she wants to hear. Play the role she needs me to play.
But my mind is elsewhere.
On Aria and Damien. Somewhere in this house. Alone.
I can only imagine what's happening between them right now.
What emotions are exploding.
What walls are crumbling.
What lines are being crossed.
The dinner finally ends an hour later. The guests leave. Victoria and Richard disappear to their wing.
I'm left standing in the foyer. Alone.
Should I check on Aria? Make sure she's okay?
"She's fine." A voice behind me.
I turn. Damien stands there. His emotions are calmer now. Satisfied.
"Where is she?" I ask.
"In her room. Thinking. Processing." He studies me. "You feel things, don't you? Other people's emotions."
I freeze. "What?"
"Don't lie to me." His amber eyes are knowing. "I've been watching you all night. The way you react to things before they happen. The way you tense when emotions run high. You're an empath."
How does he know?
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Yes, you do." He steps closer. "And you felt it tonight. Between me and Aria. You felt what she feels."
"I didn't—"
"Tell me." His voice drops. Dangerous. "Does she want me? Or does she hate me?"
I should lie. Should protect Aria.
But something about Damien's eyes makes me tell the truth.
"Both," I whisper. "She wants you and hates herself for it. She's drowning in guilt and desire and she doesn't know how to stop."
He smiles. Dark. Victorious.
"Good," he says softly. "That means I'm winning."
"Winning?" I stare at him. "This isn't a game! She's in pain! She's breaking!"
"I know." He doesn't sound guilty. "But sometimes things have to break before they can be rebuilt into something stronger."
"You're going to destroy her."
"No." His eyes are certain. "I'm going to save her. From this family. From these people. From a life that was never really hers." He turns to leave. "And in three months, she'll thank me for it."
He walks away.
Leaving me alone in the foyer.
Surrounded by the emotional residue of the dinner. Suspicion. Judgment. Greed.
And underneath it all: the burning connection between Aria and Damien.
A connection that's going to consume them both.
Whether they want it to or not.
I head to my room. Exhausted. Overwhelmed.
I lie in bit and try to sleep.
But all I can feel is Aria's emotions echoing through the house.
Desire.
Guilt.
Fear.
Want.
And I know—absolutely know—that tomorrow everything will be different.
Because tonight, something shifted.
Tonight, Aria stopped fighting quite so hard.
And Damien knows it.