When Vows Turn to Lies

The Man Who Loved Too Deeply

Chapter 2: The Man Who Loved Too Deeply



It had been two weeks since the gala.



Fourteen days.



But Damien Carter remembered every second as if it were carved into the walls of his mind.



The way Aria smiled when she tilted her head, pretending to be unimpressed.

The sound of her laugh—soft and unforced.

The gentle brush of her fingers over his wrist when she handed him his jacket.



He hadn’t just fallen. He had dived.



And now, as his private jet soared above the clouds, heading to the Amalfi Coast for what was supposed to be a business retreat, all he could think about was her.



“Book an extra seat,” he had told his assistant. “I want her there.”



And now, she was.



Aria sat by the window, the golden morning sun highlighting her cheekbones as she glanced out at the sky. She wore no makeup, just a white oversized shirt—his shirt—and a pair of sleek black pants. Still, she looked like she stepped out of a dream.



“You keep staring at me,” she said, not looking at him.



“I’m not sorry,” Damien replied with a smirk. “I’m trying to memorize your face. In case you disappear again.”



She turned to him slowly, arching a brow. “Why would I disappear?”



“Because things this good don’t last in my world,” he said quietly.



For a moment, her playful expression faded. She studied him.



“Maybe they do,” she said. “You just haven’t found someone who stays.”



He reached over and took her hand, gently running his thumb across her knuckles. “I want you to stay, Aria.”



She didn’t respond immediately. But her fingers curled into his.



That was enough.





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That evening, they were at the villa overlooking the sea. The air was warm, the wine expensive, and the silence between them was no longer awkward—it was charged.



They walked barefoot along the marble hallway to the terrace, where stars stretched across the sky and the waves whispered below.



Aria leaned against the railing. “Do you always fall this fast, Damien?”



He stepped closer behind her. “Only once.”



“And what if I’m not what you think I am?”



Damien slid his arms around her waist, pulling her back against his chest.



“Then I’ll love you anyway,” he said.



Aria turned to face him, their lips inches apart. “You don’t even know me.”



“Then let me,” he whispered.



And when their lips finally met—it wasn’t just a kiss.

It was a promise.

One he didn’t know would break him.





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[End of Chapter Two]