Chapter 13
675 Words
Sienna’s POV
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By the time the last guest left and the estate crew began clearing the event space, exhaustion hit me like a truck.
Physically, mentally, emotionally—I was spent.
I leaned against one of the garden pillars, watching as chairs were folded, tablecloths stripped, and stray glasses collected. The night air was cool against my skin, carrying the lingering scent of wilting lilies and whiskey.
It was over.
Finally.
Eleanor had gotten the most extravagant second funeral the world had ever seen.
I should have been relieved. Pleased, even. Instead, a strange emptiness settled in my chest, the kind that only came when you realized a chapter had truly, irreversibly ended.
I exhaled, rubbing my temple.
That’s when I heard it.
A voice—Leo’s voice.
And he wasn’t alone.
I hadn’t meant to eavesdrop. But something about **his tone—sharp, frustrated—**made my feet stop moving.
So I lingered by the edge of the terrace, just out of sight, and listened.
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A Scandal in the Making
“This whole thing is a f*****g mess,” Leo muttered.
“Leo—”
“No, don’t ‘Leo’ me, Mark. We just buried the same woman twice, and now you’re telling me I have to deal with this bullshit?”
I frowned, pressing my back against the cold stone pillar.
What bullshit?
Mark, his Pr manager, let out a heavy sigh. “It’s not going away, Leo. The scandal is still trending. You punching that paparazzi—”
“He was harassing someone.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Mark’s voice was firm. “All the world sees is a Hollywood golden boy snapping.”
Leo let out a bitter laugh. “So what? My career is in jeopardy now?”
Mark hesitated. “People are talking, Leo. Producers are nervous. The studio is considering pushing back your next film.”
A heavy silence settled.
Then Leo’s voice came, low and sharp.
“And David’s brilliant solution to all of this is what? Fake dating Sienna?”
I stiffened.
What?
Mark didn’t deny it.
“I think it’s a good PR move,” Mark said carefully. “It’ll clean up your image. People eat up romance stories, especially if it’s with someone like Sienna—”
“Are you hearing yourself?” Leo snapped.
Mark sighed again. “I’m just saying it’s not the worst idea. You two already have history—”
“It’s insane.” Leo’s voice was sharp with anger. “And Sienna isn’t some PR stunt. I’d rather set myself on fire than use her like that.”
Something in my chest tightened.
Mark was silent for a beat. Then, “Look, Leo, I know you don’t want to hear it, but you need damage control—”
Leo wasn’t having it.
The sound of shuffling footsteps. A chair scraping back.
“I’m done with this conversation,” Leo muttered. “I’m not faking s**t. And if you or David bring it up again, we’re done.”
Then, just like that, he walked away.
Leaving Mark alone.
Leaving me alone with the new weight of what I had just heard.
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What the Hell?
For a long moment, I just stood there, staring at nothing, heart pounding.
Leo had refused.
Gotten angry, even.
But that wasn’t the part my brain was stuck on.
No, the part that kept replaying in my head was what he’d said about me.
“Sienna isn’t some PR stunt.”
“I’d rather set myself on fire than use her like that.”
Why?
Why did that feel like something else? Like it meant more than just not wanting to exploit me for a headline?
And why—after everything—did I still feel something when I heard it?
I exhaled sharply, shaking my head. This was not my problem.
I wasn’t going to get sucked into Leo’s chaos.
Not again.
So I straightened, forced the thoughts away, and walked back inside—pretending I had never heard a thing.
- Writer
