Chapter 4
1016 Words
By the time I left my room, I was calm.
At least on the outside.
Inside was something else entirely.
Colder. Quieter. Controlled.
Every step I took down the stairs felt deliberate, measured, like I was stepping into a role I hadn’t realised I would have to play.
The house was louder now.
Full.
Guests had started arriving for the dinner. Voices filled the space, laughter echoing through the walls, glasses clinking softly in the background.
It should have felt like a celebration.
Instead, it felt like a stage.
And I was the centre of it.
I stepped into the room, my expression neutral, my movements steady. No one noticed anything different.
Of course they didn’t.
Why would they?
To them, nothing had changed.
I scanned the room without making it obvious, my eyes moving from face to face until—
I saw him.
Daniel stood near the far side of the room, talking to one of my father’s business associates like nothing had happened.
Like he hadn’t just destroyed everything.
He looked the same.
Perfectly put together. Calm. Confident. Charming.
The man I had been ready to marry.
My stomach twisted, but I didn’t let it show.
I couldn’t.
Not yet.
His eyes lifted.
And for a second—
they met mine.
Something flickered across his face. Brief. Almost unreadable.
Then it was gone.
Replaced with that same familiar warmth.
That same smile.
The one I had once trusted.
“Maisie.”
My name fell from his lips like nothing had changed as he excused himself and made his way over to me.
Each step he took felt heavier than the last.
I forced myself not to move.
Not to step back.
Not to react.
“Happy birthday,” he said softly as he reached me, his hand brushing lightly against my arm.
The contact sent a sharp, unwanted jolt through me.
I forced a small smile.
“Thank you.”
My voice didn’t shake.
That surprised me.
“You look beautiful,” he added, his gaze lingering just long enough to feel real.
Like it used to.
I tilted my head slightly, watching him carefully now.
Studying him.
Looking for something I hadn’t seen before.
A c***k.
A lie.
Anything.
“Do I?” I said lightly.
He smiled again, completely at ease.
“Always.”
Liar.
The word echoed in my mind, but my expression didn’t change.
Not even slightly.
He reached for my hand, his fingers wrapping around mine in a way that used to feel grounding.
Now it felt calculated.
Like everything else.
“Where did you disappear to earlier?” he asked.
“Needed some quiet,” I replied simply. “It’s a lot.”
That part wasn’t even a lie.
He nodded like he understood.
Like he always had.
“Just one more day,” he said quietly. “Then everything changes.”
My heart didn’t react the way it should have.
No excitement.
No nerves.
Just a cold, steady awareness.
“Oh, I know,” I said.
Our eyes met again.
And this time—
I didn’t look away.
Something passed between us.
Not warmth.
Not love.
Something sharper.
Something unspoken.
But he didn’t notice.
Or maybe he did.
And just didn’t realise what it meant yet.
“Come on,” he said, gently guiding me toward the dining room. “Everyone’s waiting.”
Of course they were.
I let him lead me, my hand still in his, my posture relaxed, my expression calm.
The perfect bride.
Exactly what they expected.
Dinner passed in a blur of voices and movement.
Conversations I barely followed.
Laughter that didn’t reach me.
I nodded when I was supposed to.
Smiled when people looked at me.
Played my part perfectly.
But all the while, I was watching.
Listening.
Noticing things I hadn’t before.
The way Amelia kept glancing at Daniel.
The way he avoided holding my gaze for too long when she was near.
The subtle tension beneath their calm.
They thought they were careful.
They weren’t careful enough.
At one point, Amelia leaned slightly closer to him, her voice low, meant to be private.
I didn’t hear the words.
But I saw the look she gave him.
And I saw the way his jaw tightened in response.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
“Maisie, darling, you should sit,” Nancy’s voice cut in smoothly as she gestured toward the table. “You are the centre of all of this, after all.”
Of course I was.
I took my seat without hesitation, smoothing my dress as I did, my movements slow and composed.
My father sat at the head of the table.
Amelia beside him.
Daniel beside me.
Exactly how it should look.
Exactly how they wanted it to look.
Perfect.
I picked up my glass, taking a small sip just as my father began speaking.
“A toast,” he announced, his voice carrying easily across the room.
The noise settled.
All attention shifted.
“To my daughter,” he continued, glancing at me briefly before his gaze softened as it moved to Amelia instead. “On her twenty-first birthday, and on the beginning of a very promising future.”
Promising.
I almost smiled.
Glasses raised around the table.
“To Maisie.”
“To Maisie,” they echoed.
I lifted mine slightly.
“Thank you,” I said.
And I meant it.
Just not for the reason they thought.
Because this—
this moment—
this entire performance—
was the last one they would ever get from me.
I set the glass down gently, my fingers steady against the stem.
Beside me, Daniel leaned slightly closer.
“Tomorrow,” he murmured, just loud enough for me to hear.
I turned my head, meeting his gaze.
“Yes,” I said softly.
Tomorrow.
The word lingered between us.
But we weren’t thinking about the same thing.
Not even close.
Because while they were planning to take everything from me—
I was already planning how to make sure they lost it all.
And the best part?
They still had no idea.
- Writer
