The boardroom smelled like leather and old money. Eighteen faces stared at me across the mahogany table, most of them wearing expressions that said I didn't belong here.
I probably didn't.
"Ms. Robinson." Harrison Chen, the rival CEO, leaned back in his chair. "You're asking us to accept a fifteen percent reduction in our equity stake. That's not a negotiation. That's an insult."
Beside me, Duke's jaw tightened. I could feel the tension radiating off him, the desperation he was trying to hide. This merger was supposed to cement his position as CEO. Without it, the board would eat him alive.
I touched the locket beneath my blouse—once, quickly—then met Chen's eyes.
"You're right," I said. "It would be an insult. If that's all we were offering."
Chen's eyebrow lifted. "Go on."
"I noticed the Kandinsky in your reception area. 1923, if I'm not mistaken. You have excellent taste." I pulled out my tablet, fingers moving across the screen. "Alexander Corp has been quietly acquiring a collection of early twentieth-century abstracts. Rothko, Pollock, de Kooning. We're planning a private exhibition next spring at the Met."
I watched his expression shift, saw the moment his interest sharpened.
"What if," I continued, "as part of this merger, we offered your company exclusive sponsorship rights? Your name on every placard, every catalog. Plus first option to purchase three pieces from our collection at pre-auction estimates."
The room went silent. Duke's hand found my knee under the table, squeezed once. I didn't look at him.
Chen studied me for a long moment. Then he smiled. "You've done your homework, Ms. Robinson."
"I always do."
Two hours later, we had a deal.
---
Duke's penthouse overlooked Central Park, all floor-to-ceiling windows and minimalist furniture that probably cost more than most people's houses. He poured champagne—the real stuff this time, not the cheap bottles I'd been pretending to enjoy for months.
"You were incredible today." He handed me a glass, his fingers brushing mine. "The board was ready to crucify me. You saved everything."
The champagne tasted like victory. Like maybe I'd finally earned my place here.
"We make a good team," I said.
Duke set down his glass and moved closer. His hand cupped my face, thumb tracing my cheekbone. "You're not what I expected, Scarlett Robinson."
"What did you expect?"
"A con artist. A liar." His voice dropped lower. "Not someone who'd actually care."
My heart stuttered. "Duke—"
He kissed me before I could finish, and suddenly we were moving, his hands in my hair, my back against the window. The city glittered below us, a million lights that felt like they were celebrating just for us.
We made it to his bedroom somehow, clothes discarded in a trail across marble floors. His sheets were silk, cool against my overheated skin. When he touched me, it felt like more than just physical—it felt like he was finally seeing me, the real me beneath all the lies.
"I love you," I whispered against his shoulder afterward, my defenses shattered.
His arms tightened around me. "I know."
Not I love you too. Just I know.
I told myself it didn't matter. That love took time, that I'd proven myself today, that this was just the beginning.
I fell asleep believing it.
---
Morning light cut across the bed like a knife. I woke to Duke's phone buzzing insistently on the nightstand. He grabbed it, still half-asleep, then went rigid.
"What?" His voice cracked. "When?"
I sat up, pulling the sheet around myself. Duke's face had gone white, all the warmth from last night evaporating.
"I'll be on the next flight," he said. "Tell her I'm coming."
He ended the call and just sat there, staring at nothing.
"Duke?" I touched his shoulder. "What's wrong?"
"Bethany." He said the name like a prayer. "She's sick. Really sick. They're flying her back from Paris today."
Something cold settled in my chest. "Bethany Wheeler? Your—"
"My oldest friend." He stood, already reaching for his clothes. "We grew up together. She's been in Paris for two years, and now—" His hands shook as he buttoned his shirt. "They don't know what's wrong. Some kind of blood disorder."
I watched him dress, watched him transform back into someone I didn't quite recognize. The man who'd held me last night was gone, replaced by someone whose entire focus had shifted to a woman I'd never met.
"Do you need me to—"
"No." He didn't look at me. "This is personal. Family."
Not family. Not us. Just him and Bethany.
He left twenty minutes later, barely kissing me goodbye. I stood in his penthouse wearing last night's dress, surrounded by evidence of our celebration, and felt the first crack in my carefully constructed fantasy.
I'd saved his company. I'd given him everything.
But when it mattered, I still wasn't enough.
