Chapter 24
Apr 30, 2025
Miranda’s POV
The phone rang, loud and shrill, cutting through the heavy fog of sleep. I groaned and turned over, blinking rapidly, trying to adjust to the light creeping in from the crack in the curtains.
My head felt thick, and my body heavy, still recovering from the night before. The alcohol had been strong, and the memories of Damon were even stronger.
The way he touched me, the way he kissed me, it felt too real to be just a fleeting moment.
I glanced at the clock. It was barely past seven in the morning. Who the hell would be calling me at this hour?
The ringtone didn’t stop. It kept ringing. My hand fumbled on the nightstand as I reached for the phone, blinking at the strange number flashing on the screen.
I didn’t recognize it, and for a second, I almost picked it up. But something told me not to.
Maybe it was the residual anger still brewing in my chest from the night before, or maybe it was just my exhaustion. Either way, I didn’t pick up.
The ringing stopped.
I closed my eyes, trying to drift back to sleep, but then, just as I was on the edge of slumber, my phone buzzed on the nightstand, making me jump.
My stomach tightened as I reached for the device, the name on the screen catching my eye: New Message.
I opened it, not thinking much of it at first. But the moment I saw the photo, the breath caught in my throat.
It was Damon. And he was kissing someone.
My heart dropped straight into my stomach as I shot up in bed.
The image burned into my mind, Damon holding another woman tightly, their lips locked in a kiss.
She was a beautiful blonde, with long hair cascading over her shoulders. She had that confident, playful look that made it clear she wasn’t just some random woman in Damon’s life.
I blinked at the phone, trying to convince myself that this wasn’t real. It couldn’t be. Not after what we had shared last night. Not after he left at the break of dawn, promising nothing had changed.
But it was there. The proof. The betrayal.
Anger started to surge inside me. Hot, blinding, uncontrollable rage. The kind of fury that only came when you’d been lied to and humiliated.
How dare he? How dare he do this to me? To us? We were only days away from our wedding, and he was kissing another woman? What the hell was he thinking?
I shot up from the bed, barely sparing a glance in the mirror as I grabbed clothes from the floor, throwing them on without even taking the time to shower. I couldn’t. I was too pissed.
I didn’t even care what I looked like as I stormed out the door, fumbling to start the car and peeling out of the driveway toward his New York office.
I didn’t know what I was going to say when I saw him. What I was going to do. But one thing was clear: I had to confront him.
I parked outside his office, the sleek glass building standing tall in front of me. I didn’t even bother to check myself in the rearview mirror before slamming the car door and marching inside.
The receptionist barely glanced up as I walked past her, my heels clicking on the polished floors. My mind was buzzing, the only thing I could focus on was getting to Damon.
I turned the corner, and then I saw him, standing by a desk, talking to someone. The woman. She was there, right in front of him, smiling in that infuriatingly flirtatious way that made my blood boil. The way she looked at him made me feel like a stranger.
And then she noticed me.
She didn’t stop smiling. She didn’t even flinch. In fact, she seemed to enjoy the sight of me, like she knew exactly what she was doing to me.
She brushed past me on her way out, her shoulder grazing mine. I clenched my fists at my sides, but I didn’t say anything. I wasn’t here for her. I was here for Damon.
The door clicked shut behind her, and it was just Damon and me. The anger roared inside me, making it impossible to stay calm.
I didn’t waste a second. “Who the hell was that?” I demanded, my voice shaking with the fury I could barely contain.
Damon looked at me with a raised eyebrow, his expression unreadable. “What are you doing here, Miranda?” His voice was calm, too calm, like he hadn’t just kissed another woman. Like he hadn’t just betrayed me.
“Don’t play dumb with me, Damon,” I snapped. “I saw the picture. You were kissing her. Tell me why.” I pulled out my phone and shoved it in his face, the photo still glowing on the screen.
His eyes darted to the phone and then back to me. He didn’t flinch. He didn’t seem surprised at all. “Miranda, it’s nothing,” he said, the words rolling off his tongue too easily. Too dismissive.
I felt like my chest was about to explode. “Nothing? You’re kissing another woman, and you’re telling me it’s nothing?” My voice was rising with each word, and I didn’t care.
He stepped toward me, his hand raised in a calming gesture. “It’s really not what you think, okay? She’s an old acquaintance, and we were just—”
“Just what?” I interrupted, stepping closer to him, my hands shaking with barely controlled anger. “Just sharing a kiss in front of her office? Is that how you solve all your problems now? By making out with random women?”
He frowned, his jaw tightening. “It’s not like that, Miranda. You’re overreacting.” He sighed, as though trying to explain himself in a way that didn’t make me want to throw something at him. “We’re getting married for convenience. Nothing more, nothing less.”
My heart stopped. My breath caught in my throat, and I stared at him in disbelief. “Convenience?” I repeated, my voice barely above a whisper. “Is that what this is to you? All of it? The wedding? The promises? Us?”
Damon didn’t answer right away. He just stood there, staring at me, the same calm expression on his face like I wasn’t about to have a breakdown in front of him.
I blinked back the sting of tears, the anger now twisting in my gut.
I turned on my heel, my heart pounding in my chest, and stormed out of his office.
