The Billionaire regret: Reclaiming his contract Bride

Gala

CHAPTER 12: The Gala

New York City – Two days later

I stood in front of the mirror in my hotel room, adjusting my dress for the hundredth time.

Black. Elegant. Professional.

Not the kind of dress Damien used to buy me. This one I bought myself. With my own money. For my own event.

My phone buzzed. FaceTime from Damien.

I answered. Liam's face filled the screen.

"Mommy! Guess what!"

"What, baby?"

"Daddy and me made cookies! But we burned them a little. But they still taste good!"

The camera flipped. Damien's face appeared. He had flour in his hair.

"Define 'a little,'" he said. "We may have set off the smoke alarm."

I laughed despite myself. "You set off the smoke alarm?"

"Twice. But we're fine. Everything's fine." He looked at me through the screen. His smile faded. "Wow."

"What?"

"You look... wow."

I felt my cheeks heat. "It's just a dress."

"It's not just a dress. You look beautiful."

"Daddy thinks you're beautiful!" Liam announced from somewhere off-screen.

"Thank you, buddy," Damien called back. Then to me, "Nervous?"

"Terrified."

"Don't be. You've got this. This is your event. Your success. You're going to kill it."

"Thanks."

"What time does it start?"

"Seven. But I need to be there at five for final setup."

"And our dinner?"

"After. If I survive."

"You'll survive. And I'll be waiting." He paused. "I'm proud of you, Sophia."

There it was again. Those words that made my chest tight.

"I should go. Maya's waiting for me."

"Okay. Good luck. Not that you need it."

"Bye, baby!" I called to Liam.

"Bye, Mommy! Love you!"

"Love you too."

I hung up.

Took a deep breath.

I could do this.

The Plaza Hotel – 5 PM

The ballroom was stunning.

Everything I'd designed. Everything I'd planned. Coming together perfectly.

Gold and white decorations. Crystal chandeliers. Floral arrangements that cost more than my monthly rent.

"It's perfect," Maya said, coming up beside me. "Sophia, this is incredible."

"We did it together."

"No. This was you. Your vision. Your execution." She squeezed my arm. "You should be proud."

I was. For the first time in a long time, I was actually proud of myself.

"The client wants to meet you," Maya said. "They're in the executive suite."

"Now?"

"Now."

I followed her to the elevator. Up to the executive floor.

A woman in an expensive suit greeted us. "Ms. Martinez? I'm Jennifer Park."

My blood ran cold.

Jennifer Park.

Damien's assistant.

"I—" I started.

"Mr. Cross would like to speak with you. If you have a moment?"

This was a trap.

The whole contract. The whole gala. It was Damien's company.

Of course it was.

"I need to get back to setup..." I said.

"It will only take a moment."

Jennifer led me to a conference room.

And there he was.

Not the Damien who made pancakes in my kitchen.

The Damien I'd first met six years ago.

CEO. Billionaire. In a perfect black suit. Every inch the powerful businessman.

"Hello, Sophia."

"You set this up." My voice was shaking. "The contract. The gala. This was all you."

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I needed to see you. And you wouldn't come back to New York otherwise."

"So you tricked me?"

"I gave your company a legitimate contract. You've done excellent work. The gala will be perfect. That's not a trick."

"But you manipulated me into coming here..."

"Yes." He stood. Walked toward me. "I did. Because I was desperate. Because I needed to see you. Needed to find you. And when I discovered you owned Martinez & Associates, I saw my chance."

I was shaking. With anger. With hurt. With betrayal.

"I trusted you."

"I know."

"I left my son with you. I came here. I thought..." My voice broke. "I thought we were trying. I thought we were building something real."

"We are..."

"No!" I stepped back. "We're not. Because this whole thing is based on lies. You manipulated me. Again. Just like you always do."

"Sophia, please..."

"I'm going to finish this gala. Because I'm a professional. Because my reputation matters. But after tonight?" I looked him in the eyes. "We're done. You get supervised visitation with Liam through lawyers. That's it. No more daily visits. No more family dinners. No more..." My voice cracked. "No more us."

"Sophia..."

"Goodbye, Damien."

I walked out.

Walked straight to the bathroom.

And broke down.

I'd been so stupid. So naive.

He hadn't changed. Not really.

He was still the same man who manipulated. Who controlled. Who did whatever he wanted without caring who he hurt.

I'd let my guard down.

I'd trusted him.

I'd fallen in love with him again.

And he'd destroyed me.

Again.

The Gala – 7 PM

I put on my professional face.

Smiled at guests. Made small talk. Ensured everything ran smoothly.

The gala was perfect. Everything I'd dreamed of.

But I felt nothing.

Just empty.

Damien was there. Somewhere in the crowd. I avoided him.

"Sophia!" An older woman approached. "The event is magnificent. You have such talent."

"Thank you."

"I'm Margaret Hastings. I run Hastings Events in Los Angeles. I'd love to discuss bringing you on for some of our projects."

Business cards exchanged. Contacts made. Success building.

This was everything I'd worked for.

So why did I feel like I was dying inside?

"Sophia."

I turned. Richard Cross stood behind me.

"Richard."

"My dear." He took my hands. "The event is beautiful. You should be very proud."

"Thank you."

"Walk with me?"

I didn't want to. But Richard had always been kind.

We walked to a quiet corner.

"He told you," Richard said. "About the contract."

"Yes."

"And you're angry."

"Wouldn't you be?"

"Furious." Richard smiled sadly. "My grandson is brilliant in business. Absolute i***t in matters of the heart."

"That's an understatement."

"He's been looking for you for five years, Sophia. Five years of hiring investigators. Following dead ends. Hoping. And when he finally found you, he panicked. Didn't know how to approach you. So he did what he does best, used business."

"That doesn't make it okay..."

"No, it doesn't. It was wrong. Manipulative. Stupid." Richard sighed. "But it came from desperation, not malice. He wasn't trying to hurt you. He was trying not to lose you again."

"Well, he lost me anyway."

"Did he?"

I looked at Richard.

"You're here," he said gently. "You came to New York. You let him back into your life. You let him meet his son. That's more than he deserved. More than I expected."

"And he repaid me by lying..."

"By being terrified of losing you." Richard squeezed my hands. "I'm not excusing him. What he did was wrong. But Sophia, my dear... how many people have you seen Damien afraid of? Truly afraid?"

"I don't know..."

"None. He's afraid of nothing. Except you. Except losing you and Liam." Richard's eyes were kind. "That doesn't excuse his actions. But perhaps it explains them."

"I can't trust him, Richard."

"Can't? Or won't?"

I didn't answer.

"Talk to him," Richard said. "Really talk to him. Let him explain. Then decide."

He walked away.

Left me standing alone.

Surrounded by my success. My achievement.

And completely miserable.

11 PM

The gala was over. Guests gone. Cleanup crew working.

Maya found me. "You okay?"

"No."

"Want to talk about it?"

"Damien set this whole thing up. The contract. Everything. To get me to come to New York."

Maya's eyes widened. "Oh shit."

"Yeah."

"What are you going to do?"

"Go back to Seattle. Keep him away from me. Only communicate through lawyers."

"And Liam?"

My heart broke. "Supervised visitation. He can see him. But I can't... I can't do this, Maya. I can't keep letting him hurt me."

"Okay." She hugged me. "Okay. Whatever you need."

My phone buzzed. Text from Damien.

Damien: I'm in the lobby. Please. Just give me five minutes to explain.

I should have ignored it.

Should have gone up to my room.

Should have protected myself.

But I didn't.

I went to the lobby.

Damien stood by the window. Still in his suit. Looking exhausted.

"Five minutes," I said.

He turned. "Thank you."

"Talk."

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have manipulated you into coming here. It was wrong."

"Yes, it was."

"But I was desperate, Sophia. Five years of not knowing where you were. If you were safe. If Liam was okay. Then I finally found you, and I panicked. I didn't know how to approach you. Didn't know if you'd even talk to me."

"So you lied..."

"So I created a reason for you to come to New York. A business reason. Something you couldn't refuse." He stepped closer. "It was manipulative and wrong and I hate myself for it. But I'd do it again. Because it brought you here. It gave me a chance."

"A chance you've now destroyed..."

"Maybe. Probably. But Sophia, please understand, I wasn't trying to hurt you. I was trying not to lose you."

"You don't get to control me, Damien. You don't get to manipulate situations to get what you want."

"I know."

"I trusted you!"

"I know!" His voice broke. "And I destroyed that trust. Again. Just like I always do. Because I'm an i***t who sabotages everything good in his life."

"Yes, you do!"

"Then help me stop!" He was almost yelling now. "Help me be better! Be the man you and Liam deserve! Because I don't know how to do this on my own!"

"That's not my job..."

"I know it's not! I know I have no right to ask! But I'm asking anyway!" He ran his hands through his hair. "I love you, Sophia. I love you so much it terrifies me. And I'm so scared of losing you that I do stupid things. Things that push you away. Things that hurt you. And I hate myself for it."

Tears were streaming down my face.

"I can't keep doing this," I whispered. "I can't keep forgiving you. Keep giving you chances. Keep breaking my own heart."

"I know."

"So what do we do?"

"I don't know." He stepped closer. "Tell me what to do. Tell me how to fix this. I'll do anything."

"I don't know if you can fix this."

He flinched like I'd hit him.

"Okay," he said quietly. "Okay. If that's what you want..."

"It's not what I want!" The words burst out of me. "I want to trust you! I want to believe you've changed! I want us to be a family! But I'm terrified, Damien! Terrified that you'll hurt me again! That you'll destroy me again! That I'll lose myself again!"

"You won't..."

"How do you know?"

"Because I won't let you!" He grabbed my hands. "I will spend every day fighting for you. Fighting for us. Proving I've changed. However long it takes."

"What if it's not enough?"

"Then at least I tried. At least I fought."

We stood there. Both crying. Both broken.

"I need time," I said finally.

"Okay."

"I need to think. About us. About what I want. About whether I can really do this."

"How much time?"

"I don't know."

He nodded. "Okay. I'll wait. However long it takes."

"And Damien?"

"Yeah?"

"If I decide I can't do this... if I decide it's too much... you have to respect that. No more manipulation. No more tricks. You have to let me go."

Pain flashed across his face. "Okay. I promise."

"Okay."

I pulled my hands away.

Walked toward the elevator.

"Sophia?"

I stopped. Didn't turn around.

"For what it's worth... you were amazing tonight. The gala was perfect. You're incredibly talented. And I'm so proud of you."

My chest tightened.

"Goodnight, Damien."

I got in the elevator.

The doors closed.

And I let myself fall apart.