Playing with fire 🔥
309 Words
Vanessa Blake always played dirty—but this time, Ariana was ready to fight back.
After leaving Liam’s office, Ariana headed straight to her lawyer. If Vanessa wanted to play power games, she would learn that Ariana wasn’t the same naive little sister who had walked away all those years ago. She was a mother now. And mothers protect.
Liam was two steps ahead.
By that evening, he had launched an internal investigation to determine how Vanessa obtained the private photographs. Carter Enterprises’ cyber team traced a security breach to an old employee—someone Vanessa had once dated. She had used seduction to gain access. Typical Vanessa.
“She’s not just blackmailing you,” Liam said, pacing his office. “She’s trying to ruin both of us.”
Ariana rubbed her temples. “She thinks she’s untouchable. That our silence means weakness.”
“She’s wrong.”
Together, they devised a plan—dangerous, strategic, and bold.
They would leak a carefully crafted story to the press. A preemptive strike.
Ariana would go public about her relationship with Liam—not as a scandal, but as a story of growth, of two people unexpectedly brought together, building a future from chaos. They would own their truth before Vanessa could weaponize it.
“She’s playing with fire,” Ariana said softly as she stared into the mirror, fixing her hair before the press conference.
Liam stood behind her. “Then let’s show her we don’t burn—we rise.”
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That night, Ariana stepped in front of flashing cameras, Liam beside her, hand in hers. The media buzzed. The world watched.
And Vanessa, watching from her luxurious penthouse, threw her glass of wine at the screen as her plans unraveled live on national TV.
The war had begun.
But this time, Ariana and Liam weren’t backing down.
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- Writer
