Chapter 15 Meet Selene
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The soft hum of classical piano floated through Le Château d’Or, a restaurant so refined even silence seemed curated. Crystal chandeliers threw fractured light across the marble floor, catching on polished silverware and perfectly folded napkins. Every detail screamed luxury, the kind of world the Valmere family never needed to belong to, but owned effortlessly.
At their private corner table sat the siblings, already the center of attention without trying.
Caelum, ever composed, scrolled through morning reports on his phone. Lucio sipped espresso, pretending not to be bored. Deborah stirred her coffee in slow circles, her elegance effortless but her mood unreadable. Only Aston looked too bright, too cheerful for a morning this calm.
Deborah noticed first. “You’re smiling like a man about to confess something stupid.”
Lucio snorted. “He’s probably bought another racehorse or crashed another one.”
Aston grinned, leaning back. “Neither. Though thank you for assuming I’m that predictable.”
Caelum glanced up from his screen. “Then what’s with the grin?”
“You’ll see.” He checked his watch, eyes flicking toward the restaurant’s grand double doors. “Actually… you’re about to.”
And then she entered.
Selene.
She was breathtaking, tall, poised, wrapped in a deep scarlet dress that whispered against the floor as she moved. The air shifted with her arrival, subtle but undeniable, as though the room had been waiting for her to appear.
Aston rose immediately, the grin widening. “There she is.”
Deborah froze mid-sip. “There who is?”
“My surprise.”
Lucio blinked. “Please don’t tell me it’s another car.”
“No,” Aston said, voice full of pride. “Everyone, meet Selene.”
The woman approached with perfect grace, her smile trained, practiced, almost too flawless. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you all,” she said, extending her hand first to Caelum.
Caelum stood and shook it politely. “Pleasure’s ours.”
Lucio gave a short, curious nod. “You must be new. Aston doesn’t bring people around.”
“I like to think I’m special,” she said with a smile.
Deborah’s gaze sharpened. “That’s one word for it.”
Selene turned to her. “And you must be Deborah. Aston’s told me so much about you.”
“Has he?” Deborah replied, tilting her head slightly. “That's strange. He never mentioned you.”
Lucio coughed into his napkin to hide a laugh. Caelum shot him a warning glare.
Selene hesitated, only for a moment, before recovering with another smile. “Well, I suppose he wanted it to be a surprise.”
Deborah’s lips curved faintly. “Mission accomplished.”
A waiter appeared with champagne, pouring into thin crystal flutes. Aston lifted his glass, the light catching on something metallic near his hand, a ring.
Deborah noticed first. Then Caelum. Then Lucio.
Caelum’s voice cut through the air. “Aston.”
Aston blinked, following his brother’s gaze to the ring. His grin turned sheepish. “Ah. Right. About that…”
Lucio set his glass down. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Deborah’s tone was calm, but her words sliced cleanly. “You’re wearing a ring. On your left hand.”
Aston cleared his throat. “Because… we’re engaged.”
Silence fell like a dropped blade.
The world seemed to pause. Even the piano faltered mid-note before resuming, softer this time, like it knew it shouldn’t intrude.
“Engaged?” Caelum repeated slowly, disbelief tightening his voice.
Selene’s smile didn’t waver, though her fingers brushed Aston’s arm like she needed reassurance. “We were planning to announce it next week. But Aston thought it would be better to tell you all in person.”
Deborah leaned back, eyes never leaving Selene. “Announce? That would imply people already knew you existed.”
“Deborah,” Aston warned gently.
She ignored him. “That's funny. I wasn’t aware you were even dating anyone, and let alone planning a wedding.”
Lucio leaned forward, elbows on the table. “Hold on. You’re telling us you’ve been secretly dating this woman, and now you’re engaged? How long?”
Aston hesitated. “About… six months.”
“Six months?” Caelum repeated, incredulous. “You’ve known her for half a year and you’re marrying her?”
Selene met his stare calmly. “When you know, you know.”
Deborah’s voice was low, laced with quiet venom. “Or when you want something badly enough, you act fast before anyone asks questions.”
The words hung between them like smoke.
“Deborah.” Knight’s tone was warning now.
But she wasn’t finished. “It’s strange, isn’t it? You, Aston, the man who runs background checks on his tailor, suddenly falls in love with a woman we’ve never heard of, never seen, and conveniently forgets to mention her until now?”
Selene’s lips tightened, but her composure didn’t crack. “I understand this is… unexpected. But I assure you, my intentions are genuine.”
Deborah smiled sweetly. “Intentions are like perfume. They smell nice, until you realize they’re designed to cover something.”
Lucio exhaled, muttering, “And there it is.”
Aston frowned, his easy charm fading. “Enough, Deborah. I get that you’re protective, but she’s not the enemy.”
“No,” Deborah said softly. “Not yet.”
The silence that followed was heavy, charged. Even the waiters seemed to sense it, keeping their distance.
Caelum finally spoke, his voice calm but cold. “You should have told us, Aston. Marriage is not a casual decision, especially for us.”
Aston’s expression hardened. “I knew you’d all react like this. That’s why I didn’t say anything. Selene isn’t like the others. She’s different.”
Deborah’s gaze didn’t move from Selene. “You’re right. She’s very different.”
Selene turned to her, tone clipped but still polite. “You don’t know me.”
“I don’t need to,” Deborah replied. “I read people better than contracts.”
For the first time, Selene’s calm faltered, just a flicker, a fraction of hesitation, before she straightened and took Aston’s hand. “I hope one day you’ll change your mind about me.”
Deborah’s response was soft, almost kind. “And I hope one day I won’t have to say I told you so.”
Aston pushed back his chair, frustrated. “We’re leaving.”
Caelum sighed, but didn’t stop him. “Do what you need to do. But remember who you are, Aston. Remember what our name costs.”
Aston met his gaze, then looked at Deborah. “You don’t have to like her, Deb. But you will respect her.”
Deborah’s voice was calm, composed, the storm beneath her surface perfectly contained. “Respect is earned, not announced.”
And with that, Aston and Selene walked out, the echo of their steps fading through the marble halls.
Casper leaned back, exhaling. “Well… that went well.”
Caelum rubbed his temple. “He’s in over his head.”
Deborah said nothing for a moment, her gaze fixed on the door they’d just left through. Then, quietly, she spoke.
“She’s not who she says she is.”
Caelum looked at her. “You’re sure?”
Her tone was flat, absolute. “One hundred percent.”
Lysander smirked faintly. “Gut feeling?”
“No,” Deborah whispered, her reflection glinting in the window beside her. “Instinct. The same instinct that’s kept this family alive.”
Outside, through the glass, Selene glanced back once from the car. Her smile was perfect, too perfect.
And in that fleeting reflection, Deborah saw it again.
That flicker of something sharp, dark, and familiar.
It wasn’t love in Selene’s eyes. It was something suspicious. Something.....darker.