lena woke to find her face plas

e tablet Lucien's assistant had left on the nightstand blink

r Couple or PR Stunt? Inside the Fast-Tracked Engagement of

with a forced smile and Lucien's hand at her waist.

headlines that blared quest

to Empire: Who

unist? A Look Into Her Fa

ock broke her spiral. It was Camilla, Lucien's executive assistant, who swept into the suite with military precis

schedule. You have a styling session in a

I didn't agree t

back. "It was

urse

btle, confident, accessible, and hair in a side part

milla didn't flinch. "You're not just Elena anymore. You're an extensi

k to keep from exploding, though

one more name to her list

sat beside Lucien on a velvet couch, smiling like a woman who wasn't quietly seething. The journ

e designer to being the fiancée of New York's most elusive billionaire in just da

t in smoothly. "The right peop

gaze stayed on Elena. "And what

ne of her own. "Let's just say

t ("A private event"), what drew them to each other ("Mutual vis

came the

She was a talented designer in her own right, wasn't she? Worked with

had ever publicly connected he

er. "I believe the interview was

said lightly. "But lineage

ge had already been done. Her heart raced, her hands

Verve kn

view, silence settled between them. Then Elena proceeded to t

estion, since I didn't tell them anything," Lu

knowledge. Not even I knew that detail." Elena continued as she was c

enough answ

w," she

ere records I came across recently,

ucien. You let me walk i

e," he said quietly. "That

blazing. "I don't need your p

inching. "Some truths are

nd some lies are jus

ged open, and she walked ou

*

r heels, unzipped the gown, and padded barefoot toward her ov

urnal, which was a comfort she hadn't touched in weeks.

ed Po

smiling in a soft pink dress, and besi

er talked about the Thornes. Not once. And now, the press

to trembling in her hand, an

n the door c

re, silent, as h

he said simply. "Di

was... stillness, no mask or branding, just a man holding t

speak; neither did she thank him, but

window and her by the bed, as a ghost of heat

ment, Elena felt something sh

g built by betrayal, so she reached for the photo,

hing. Because whatever flicker had spa

t