CHAPTER 2: THE RING AND THE RUMORS
750 Words
The diamond felt like handcuffs.
By 3pm, the photo was everywhere.
Me. Damien. His hand on mine. The ring catching the sun like it was trying to blind Port Harcourt.
_CEO DAMIEN COLE ENGAGED TO UNKNOWN DECORATOR_
_Cole Group Heiress Found!_
_Who is Tasha Okoro??_
My phone hadn’t stopped buzzing since we left my shop.
“Delete i********:,” my bestie Amaka texted. “Now.”
“Is this real??” my landlord texted. “Because if yes, rent can wait.”
Unknown number: “Gold digger. Stay away from him.”
I dropped the phone on the leather seat of Damien’s G-Wagon and stared out the window.
“So,” I said. “That was fast.”
Damien didn’t look at me. Both hands on the steering wheel. Jaw tight.
“The press release was scheduled. My mother pushed it up.”
“Your mother.” I turned the ring. It was too big. It kept sliding.
“Right. The woman who offered you 50 million to get married.”
“To get _engaged_,” he corrected. “Marriage is after 90 days. If we make it.”
_If we make it._
Like this was a business deal he expected to fail.
We pulled into a mansion in Peter Odili Road. White gates. 3 guards. Roses everywhere.
This wasn’t a house. This was a statement.
“My mother wants dinner,” Damien said as the gates opened. “Tonight.
Rule 4: You act in love. Touch my arm. Smile. No matter what she says.”
My stomach flipped. “And after dinner?”
“After dinner you go home. With the first 5 million naira.”
5 million. Just for dinner.
I should’ve felt relieved. Instead I felt sick.
Mrs. Cole was waiting in the parlor. Pearl necklace. Red lips. Eyes that scanned me like I was damaged goods.
“So,” she said, not standing. “This is her.”
Damien’s hand found the small of my back. Warm. Possessive.
“Mom. This is Tasha. My fiancée.”
The word sounded wrong in his mouth. Too soft.
Mrs. Cole sipped her wine. “Chloe called me. Crying.”
My blood went cold. “Chloe?”
“His ex,” Damien said quietly. “Of 3 years.”
“Ex who thought she was getting the ring,” Mrs. Cole added, smiling.
“Tell me, Miss Okoro. What do you do for a living again? Decorating?”
“Interior design,” I said. Chin up. “I own Nice’s Haven.”
“A small shop,” Mrs. Cole mused. “In Mile 1. How... quaint.”
Damien squeezed my back. Warning.
“We’re in love,” he said. Flat. Final.
Mrs. Cole laughed. “Are you? Then prove it.
The Cole Foundation Gala is in 2 weeks. You’ll host it. Together.
If you can survive the press and the board for 2 weeks, I’ll believe the engagement.”
Two weeks. Not 90 days.
She was testing us.
Dinner was torture. Every question was a knife.
“Where did you meet?”
“At a charity event,” Damien lied smoothly.
“Who proposed?”
“I did,” Damien said, and looked at me. For real this time.
My heart did something stupid.
When we left, I had 5 million in my account and a headache.
In the car, I finally took the ring off. My finger felt naked.
“You didn’t have to do that,” I whispered. “Lie for me.”
Damien stared straight ahead.
“I’m not lying to the board. Or my mother.”
“So you are lying to me?”
He didn’t answer.
His phone rang. _Chloe_ flashed on the screen.
He declined it.
Then it rang again.
Damien cursed under his breath and answered.
“Don’t,” was all he said. Then he hung up.
The car went silent.
My phone buzzed. New IG notification.
A photo. Damien and a beautiful woman. Laughing. At a beach.
Caption: _Missing us @damcole? 3 years down the drain for THIS? #GoldDigger_
Chloe.
And 10,000 likes already.
I looked at Damien. He was gripping the wheel so hard his knuckles were white.
“Rule 2,” I said quietly. “No feelings.”
I slipped the ring back on.
“But how are we supposed to survive 2 weeks... when the whole city already hates me?”
Damien finally looked at me. And for the first time, he looked scared.
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*END OF CHAPTER 2*
- Writer
