Chapter 7: The Message
760 Words
Ava Sinclair’s POV
The email came at 3:17 a.m.
I was awake—again—scrolling through the gallery of fake smiles from last night’s gala, trying to erase Genevieve’s smug face from my mind when the notification pinged.
Unknown Sender. No subject. One attachment.
And one line of text:
> “How much longer can you pretend?”
I clicked the attachment.
The image opened slowly, pixel by pixel.
A shot of me and Lucas on the balcony—his face leaning in toward mine, lips inches from mine, eyes locked on me like I was the only thing in the world he saw.
Anyone would have called it intimate.
But I remembered the moment. That kiss never happened.
We were interrupted.
But this photo told a different story.
It looked like a kiss. A confession. A secret.
A lie, frozen in high definition.
“Lucas…” I whispered, standing quickly and heading for his office.
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Lucas Grayson’s POV
She burst in like a storm. No knocking. No hesitation.
Just fire in her eyes and a phone clutched tight in her hand.
“Who took this?” she demanded, tossing the device on my desk.
I looked at the photo. My jaw tightened.
“I don’t know,” I said calmly.
“Someone was watching us last night. This is a threat.”
“Yes.”
“And it’s not just about the kiss that didn’t happen. It’s the message.”
She crossed her arms. “How much longer can you pretend?”
I met her gaze. “They think we’re faking.”
She raised a brow. “Aren’t we?”
I didn’t answer.
Because I didn’t know anymore.
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Ava’s POV
Lucas didn’t flinch. Didn’t panic. Didn’t call his security team. That scared me more than anything.
He was used to secrets like this.
Blackmail. Power plays. Shadows with teeth.
I sat down slowly. “Is this Dean’s doing?”
He exhaled. “If it is, he’s getting bolder. And reckless.”
“You think he’s trying to expose the marriage as fake?”
“No. I think he’s trying to make it real—for the wrong reasons. If the board thinks I’m emotionally compromised, they’ll use it to strip control.”
I rubbed my temple. “This is insane. What kind of family does this to each other?”
“The Graysons,” he said quietly.
And then he added, “You married into war, Ava.”
---
Later that morning, the household buzzed with subtle tension. Elena brought in coffee, pretending not to notice the way I looked like I hadn’t slept. Lucas had a board meeting scheduled, but we both knew that wasn’t the priority anymore.
Before he left, I stopped him at the door.
“I need to ask you something.”
He turned. “Go ahead.”
I hesitated. “Genevieve. She said something last night… about the real reason for our marriage staying buried. What was she talking about?”
Lucas’s eyes darkened. The air between us shifted.
“There’s more to the will than you know,” he said finally. “My grandfather didn’t just want me to marry. He wanted me to marry someone he believed could protect the Grayson name.”
I frowned. “Why me then? You barely knew me.”
“Because my grandfather did.”
That stopped me cold.
“What?”
Lucas nodded. “He met you once. Years ago. At a charity fundraiser your father hosted. You were sixteen. You spoke up in front of a room of men twice your age and made them all listen.”
“I… barely remember that night.”
“He didn’t forget it,” Lucas said. “He wrote your name down.”
I was stunned. “So I was... handpicked?”
“In a way, yes.”
I sank into the nearest chair. “That’s insane.”
Lucas crouched in front of me. “You weren’t some pawn, Ava. You were the only one he believed had the strength to survive this world. The only one who wouldn’t lose herself in it.”
I looked into his eyes. “And what about you, Lucas? Have you lost yourself?”
He didn’t answer.
Because the truth was already in his silence.
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Lucas’s POV
I left the penthouse that day more shaken than I wanted to admit.
The woman I married to protect my legacy… was becoming the only part of it I couldn’t control.
And I wasn’t sure if I wanted to anymore.
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- Writer
