A moment of weakness

The video went live at exactly noon.

Sienna sat in the Lancaster media office, staring directly into the camera as her voice rang steady through the live broadcast.

“My name is Sienna Monroe, and I’m here to set the record straight.”

No PR team spinning the narrative. No reporters twisting her words. Just her—facing the world on her own terms.

She recounted the truth, laying it all out.

Yes, Ethan had shown up at the gala. No, she hadn’t invited him. And no—she wasn’t having an affair. The so-called evidence was nothing more than a carefully manipulated setup, designed to destroy her reputation.

And she made sure the world knew exactly who had the most to gain from it.

“People like Richard Lancaster thrive on control,” she said, her voice unwavering. “And when they can’t control someone, they try to ruin them instead.”

A calculated risk.

Calling out Richard directly was dangerous. But if she was going down, she wasn’t going quietly.

By the time she finished speaking, the internet was already on fire.

News outlets picked up the story within minutes. Some sided with her, questioning the credibility of the so-called leaked footage. Others still clung to the scandal, dissecting her every word.

But for the first time, she wasn’t just reacting to the attacks.

She was fighting back.

She should have felt victorious.

But instead, all she felt was exhausted.

By the time she returned to the Lancaster estate that evening, the adrenaline had long since worn off, leaving behind nothing but a crushing sense of emotional fatigue.

The house was quiet as she stepped inside.

Damien hadn’t called her.

Hadn’t sent a single message.

He had seen the video—she was sure of that. But had he believed her? Had he finally realized that she wasn’t the enemy?

Or was he still doubting her?

The thought made her chest ache.

Sienna made her way up the grand staircase, her heels clicking softly against the polished marble. She wasn’t sure where she was going—her room, maybe. Or his.

She told herself she wasn’t looking for him.

That she didn’t care if he was waiting for her or not.

But the second she reached their shared bedroom and saw the dim glow of the bedside lamp—saw him sitting on the edge of the bed, his head in his hands—she knew she had been lying to herself.

Her breath caught.

Damien looked up as she stepped inside, his eyes unreadable.

For a long moment, neither of them spoke.

Then—

“You should have told me,” he said, his voice low.

Sienna clenched her jaw. “Told you what?”

Damien exhaled, standing. “That you were planning to go public with this. That you were going to put yourself in the middle of a war with my father.”

Sienna let out a sharp laugh. “Oh, I’m sorry,” she said, crossing her arms. “I didn’t realize I needed your permission to defend myself.”

Damien’s eyes darkened. “That’s not what I meant.”

“Then what did you mean, Damien?” Her voice was raw now, her exhaustion bleeding into her words. “Because from where I’m standing, it seems like you’re only upset that I didn’t come to you first.”

Damien took a slow step forward, his jaw tight. “I just—damn it, Sienna. You have no idea how dangerous my father can be.”

Sienna scoffed. “Oh, trust me, I do.”

Damien’s throat bobbed, frustration evident in every line of his body. “You don’t play games with Richard Lancaster. You don’t challenge him like that.”

Sienna narrowed her eyes. “Then what was I supposed to do, Damien? Just let him destroy me?”

Damien hesitated.

And that hesitation shattered something inside her.

Sienna inhaled shakily, forcing herself to nod. “Right. That’s what you would have done, isn’t it?*”

Damien’s jaw clenched. “That’s not—”

“It is,” she cut in, her voice barely above a whisper. “You’ve spent your entire life letting him pull the strings. You think if you just give in, it’ll be easier. But I’m not like you, Damien.”

Her chest heaved. “I won’t let him win.”

Silence.

Heavy. Thick.

Then, suddenly—

Damien moved.

One second, he was standing a few feet away. The next, he was in front of her, his hands gripping her face, his breath warm against her skin.

“Sienna,” he murmured. “Stop.”

Her pulse roared.

Damien’s touch was desperate—like he was trying to hold onto something slipping through his fingers. Like he was afraid to let her go.

Her resolve cracked.

For all his coldness, his stubbornness, his walls—this was the truth beneath it all.

She mattered to him.

Even if he didn’t know what to do with that.

Sienna swallowed hard. “Why are you doing this?”

Damien exhaled harshly, pressing his forehead against hers. “Because I don’t know how to stop.”

Her breath caught.

And then—

His lips crashed against hers.

The kiss was raw. Desperate.

His hands tangled in her hair, his body pressing against hers, every inch of him radiating heat and frustration and need.

Sienna gasped against his mouth, her fingers fisting in his shirt. She should push him away. She should make him say the words first.

But right now, she didn’t care.

Right now, she just needed this.

Him.

Damien groaned as she kissed him back, his grip tightening on her waist. He walked her backward until her back hit the wall, his body caging hers in.

For the first time in days, the silence between them was gone.

Replaced by hands, lips, the sound of their ragged breathing.

Damien’s mouth left hers, trailing along her jaw, her neck—

Then he stilled.

Sienna barely had time to process the loss of warmth before his fingers traced something at the base of her throat.

Something cold.

His expression darkened. “You’re still wearing it.”

Sienna frowned, blinking at him. “What?”

Damien’s thumb brushed against the diamond necklace around her neck—the same one he had given her the night of their first event together.

The one she had forgotten she was wearing.

Her heart slammed against her ribs.

Damien exhaled shakily, pressing his forehead back against hers.

And then, quietly—

“Tell me you’re mine, Sienna.”

Her breath hitched.

And in that moment, she knew—

This wasn’t just a moment of weakness.

It was the beginning of something they could never take back.

—

This chapter is packed with high emotions, tension, and a shift in Damien and Sienna’s relationship.