Chapter 6 FIANCEÈ
\~~~SERENA.
He turned back to his desk like our entire conversation had been nothing more than a boardroom negotiation. Like we hadn’t just discussed marriage. Like he hadn’t just told me I would belong to him in every sense that mattered.
There was no pause, no second glance and no hesitation.
Just Damien Hale looking calm, controlled, and unbothered.
The man had just agreed to marry me.
To marry me…
I blinked, still sitting there, watching him move with the same cold precision that had terrified and fascinated me from the start. The room suddenly felt too big, and the air too thin.
Then, without looking up, he reached for my phone that was lying on the desk.
“Give me your passcode,” he said simply.
My brows furrowed. “Why?”
He glanced at me, a flicker of amusement in his eyes. “Because you will need my number. And I don’t like being searched for. I prefer to be reached directly.”
I hesitated for a second before unlocking it and handing it over. He dialed a number, pressed the call button, and slid the phone back toward me. His name flashed across the screen. Damien.
“Now you have me.”
My throat went dry. “I know I asked for us to do this, but are we not moving too fast? People will…”
He cut me off smoothly, leaning back against his chair. “My driver will pick you up tomorrow morning at nine. Don’t be late. I don’t like to wait.”
And just like that, his attention returned to his screen, dismissing me completely.
No goodbye. No final look. Nothing.
I sat there for a beat longer, the silence between us louder than before. My pulse thudded in my ears as I finally rose from the chair.
Each step toward the door felt unreal, heavy, like I was walking out of one life and straight into another I didn’t understand yet.
The moment the door shut behind me, I exhaled shakily, realizing I’d been holding my breath the entire time.
He’d gone back to work like none of it mattered. But my world?
It had just tilted off its axis.
But, maybe all of it was best.
It was not as if Ryan had ever introduced me to the public, or people necessarily knew the man I was dating except that he was a Hale.
He made sure our relationship was kept from the public.
—————
The next morning came faster than I wanted.
Sleep had been a myth. Every time I closed my eyes, his voice echoed in my head. His calm, assured, impossible voice to ignore. ‘My driver will pick you up at nine.’
And here I was, staring at my reflection in the mirror. The woman staring back almost didn’t look like me. The champagne-gold dress hugged my curves with quiet authority, its satin fabric catching the light with every breath I took. The neckline dipped just enough to tempt, balanced by elegant long sleeves that screamed money and restraint.
Now that i think of it, I’m glad Lia, my friend forced me to get this dress on pre order last year.
However, a small smile played on my lips as I thought of Ryan. And his entire family.
How would they take the news?
Ryan, would no doubt, go berserk.
He doesn’t like Damien, and he never fails to tell me.
The only reason the only family still worships the ground he walks on is because of what he had.
Damien controls the family wealth. Even Ryan had been doing everything he could to make the man place him in charge of one of his subsidiary companies.
And then, Damien.
It wasn’t just that I had asked him to marry me.
It was the way he’d said yes… like he’d been waiting.
There was something in his eyes yesterday. Something unreadable and calculated. But beneath all that control, there’d been a spark… recognition maybe? Or was I imagining it?
Because when his gaze lingered a little too long, I’d felt it. That magnetic pull that made my stomach twist. The one I’d felt three years ago the first time I saw him.
And now… I was supposed to be his fiancée.
By ten this morning, the world would know.
A sharp honk outside cut through my thoughts and I peeked through the blinds. And there, a sleek black car parked at the curb. His driver, right on time.
My pulse jumped.
I smoothed my dress, grabbed my bag, and forced my legs to move.
Every step toward the car felt like a countdown.
And as I slid into the back seat and caught sight of my reflection in the tinted glass, one thought pulsed through my mind, steady, heavy, and dangerous.
This wasn’t just a marriage.
This was a game of power, and I’d just stepped onto Damien Hale’s board.
——-
The cameras flashed before I even stepped out of the car.
Through the tinted glass, I could already see the reporters, investors, and photographers, all buzzing like moths to a flame. And that flame, apparently, was me.
Damien’s driver had opened the door before I could even breathe, and I stepped out, my heels kissing the marble pavement like a declaration. The air was heavy with noise, with curiosity, with questions waiting to slice through flesh.
And there he was.
Damien Hale.
In a charcoal-black suit that surely cost more than my tuition fees, standing at the top of the steps with that calm, unreadable expression. As if this chaos had been choreographed just for him.
When his gaze landed on me, something in his eyes flickered with approval, possession, and maybe even pride. Whatever it was, it made my stomach twist.
He descended halfway down the stairs, offering me his hand.
“Right on time,” he murmured, his voice low, smooth, and dangerous.
I placed my hand in his not because I wanted to, but because the entire world was watching. His touch burned against my skin, and when his thumb brushed over my knuckles, I swear my pulse skipped.
“Relax,” he said quietly, leaning in just enough for only me to hear. “You’re mine now. They just don’t know how much yet.”
Before I could respond, we stepped onto the stage.
Flashes erupted, microphones pushed forward and the space went electric.
Damien adjusted the mic with effortless control, his gaze sweeping the crowd.
“Good morning,” he began, his voice carrying that smooth authority that made people listen and made them obey. “I have an announcement that concerns the future of Hale Industries… and, as of today, my personal life.”
The crowd erupted in murmurs.
He turned slightly, his hand sliding to the small of my back. A move so subtle yet so claiming it made every camera in the space click.
“This is Serena Evans,” he continued, his gaze slicing through the crowd before settling on me. “My fiancée. Soon-to-be wife.”
The word wife echoed through the room like a gunshot.
I kept my expression still, my smile poised, even though my heart was sprinting. Every instinct screamed to run, but his hand at my back was both anchor and chain.
A reporter raised her mic. “Mr. Hale, this is rather sudden. Care to share how long you’ve been seeing Miss Evans?”
Damien’s lips curved, that dangerous, knowing smirk.
“Does it matter?” Damien’s tone cut clean through the noise, smooth but dangerous. His gaze locked on me like a claim he had no intention of hiding. “What matters is that she’s mine now. That’s all you need to know.”
And just like that, he pulled me closer, his hand tightening at my waist as if to punctuate his statement. The heat of his body, the whisper of his cologne. God, I hated how easily my breath faltered.
Because at that moment, under the blinding lights and clicking shutters, I couldn’t tell anymore if I was pretending… or already playing the part too well.