A Dance With Danger
924 Words
Chapter 5: A Dance with Danger
Sophia barely got a moment to breathe after the bombshell Raymond dropped at dinner. An engagement party? That was far from part of the plan.
As soon as they returned to Damian’s penthouse, she turned to him, arms crossed. “Tell me this is a joke.”
Damian, who had already loosened his tie, gave her a flat look. “You think my father jokes?”
Sophia groaned, pacing the living room. “This is insane. A private dinner with your family is one thing, but a full-blown engagement party? With guests? Journalists? What if someone figures it out?”
Damian leaned against the couch, arms folded. “Then we make sure they don’t.”
She exhaled sharply, dropping onto the couch. “This isn’t what I signed up for.”
His gaze darkened slightly. “You signed up to be my fiancée. This is part of it.”
Sophia scowled. “You should’ve warned me that your father would turn this into a spectacle.”
Damian ran a hand through his hair. “I underestimated him.”
Sophia let out a humorless laugh. “Oh, great. That makes me feel so much better.”
A tense silence stretched between them.
Then, Damian sighed and sat across from her. His voice softened—just a little. “I’ll handle it, Carter.”
She looked at him skeptically. “And how do you plan to do that?”
He smirked. “We’ll be the perfect couple.”
Sophia wanted to argue, to tell him this was a disaster waiting to happen. But the way he said it—with absolute certainty—made her hesitate.
Still, she wasn’t convinced.
“I need a drink,” she muttered, pushing herself off the couch.
Damian didn’t stop her. But as she poured herself a glass of wine in the kitchen, she heard him say, “We start tomorrow.”
She turned. “Start what?”
He met her eyes. “Convincing the world that we’re in love.”
---
Scene Break: Lessons in Love
Sophia knew it was coming.
But she didn’t expect it to start at seven in the morning.
She groaned as the doorbell rang incessantly. Dragging herself to the door, she swung it open to find Damian standing there, looking way too awake for this hour.
“What are you doing here?” she muttered, rubbing her eyes.
He stepped inside like he owned the place. “We have work to do.”
Sophia frowned. “It’s Saturday.”
Damian glanced at his watch. “And your point is?”
She groaned again, shutting the door behind him. “Fine. What’s the plan?”
He turned to her, his face serious. “We need to be seen together. In public. Looking like a real couple.”
Sophia hesitated. “You mean… dates?”
He nodded. “Starting today.”
Her stomach flipped.
This was dangerous.
Pretending in front of his family was one thing. But now? Out in the open? Where people could analyze, speculate, and twist every little thing they did?
She swallowed hard. “And if I say no?”
Damian smirked. “Then the contract is void. And you lose the money.”
Sophia’s fingers clenched at her sides. “You’re impossible.”
He tilted his head. “Are you in or not?”
She sighed, resisting the urge to strangle him. “Fine. But you better not be a terrible date.”
His smirk widened. “Carter, I’m the best date you’ll ever have.”
She highly doubted that.
---
Scene Break: The First Date
Damian didn’t do things halfway.
Which was how Sophia found herself stepping out of a limousine in front of one of the most exclusive brunch spots in the city.
Paparazzi were already swarming outside.
Her pulse spiked. “You planned this.”
Damian offered his arm. “Of course.”
Sophia exhaled slowly. Showtime.
Sliding her hand through his arm, she let him lead her inside, forcing herself to relax. They needed to look natural. In love.
But the moment they stepped inside, things got worse.
“Damian?”
The voice sent a chill down Sophia’s spine.
A woman stood near the entrance, dressed in a designer dress that screamed rich and untouchable. Her eyes flickered to Sophia, then back to Damian, lips curling into a smirk.
Sophia didn’t know who she was.
But she could already tell—this woman was trouble.
Damian’s jaw tightened. “Madeline.”
Madeline.
The name sent alarm bells ringing in Sophia’s head.
This was her. The woman Raymond wanted Damian to marry.
And judging by the look on her face, she wasn’t happy about Sophia.
Madeline’s gaze swept over Sophia with barely concealed disdain. “And you must be the fiancée.”
Sophia forced a smile. “That’s me.”
Madeline’s smirk didn’t waver. “How… unexpected.”
Damian didn’t give her the satisfaction of a reaction. “Madeline, if you’ll excuse us, we have a date.”
Madeline’s eyes gleamed with amusement. “Oh, of course.” She turned back to Sophia. “Enjoy it while you can, sweetheart.”
Sophia’s stomach twisted as they walked past her.
She leaned in close to Damian. “She hates me.”
He didn’t react. “Good.”
Sophia frowned. “Good?”
Damian glanced down at her, his lips tilting into something dangerously close to a smirk.
“Let her hate you, Carter,” he said smoothly. “Just means you’re winning.”
- Writer
