CHAPTER FIVE

They pulled up to a high-rise building in Tribeca. It was made of glass and steel and had modern architecture. A valet appeared immediately, and Dom tossed him the keys without looking.

"Mr. Hale," the valet said with a nod.

"Jeremy." Dom came around to open Cassie's door, offering his hand again. She was starting to notice he did that, the small courtesies that felt at odds with his reputation.

The lobby was understated luxury, all marble and subtle lighting. The few people present didn't stare, too well-trained or too disinterested to care about the disheveled woman in the engagement dress being escorted by Dominic Hale.

They took a private elevator to the top floor, silence settling between them again. Cassie caught their reflection in the mirrored walls— her makeup smudged and her hair falling out of its careful updo while he looked like he'd just stepped out of a magazine shoot.

They looked nothing like a couple, they looked like a beautiful disaster.

The elevator opened directly into Dom's penthouse, and despite everything, Cassie felt her breath hitch.

The space was open-concept and modern but it was warm, with actual books lining shelves and art on the walls that looked collected. It was nothing like what she'd expected from the party boy black sheep brother of Marcus. His brother's style was completely monochrome and I always wondered how I was going to live and survive in the boring space.

"Surprised?" Dom asked, shrugging out of his jacket and draping it over a chair.

"Yes," Cassie admitted.

"Everyone is." He moved to a bar cart that looked well-stocked. "Is whiskey okay? Or do you prefer wine?"

"Whiskey's fine."

Dom poured two glasses and handed one to Cassie. Their fingers brushed and she felt that strange current again, the awareness that this man was no stranger and also potentially her future husband.

She took a long drink, letting the burn ground her.

"Have a seat," Dom said, gesturing to a couch that looked like it cost more than a car. "Let's talk business."

Cassie sank onto the couch, her dress pooling around her, and watched as Dom took the chair across from her.

"First question," Dom said. "Are you actually considering this or are you just in shock?"

"Both," Cassie said honestly. "I think I'm in shock. But I'm also considering it."

"Why?"

"Because you're right. I want revenge and I want Marcus to see that I'm not some broken thing he can discard. And I want..." She trailed off, not sure how to finish.

"What?" Dom pressed.

"I want to matter," Cassie said quietly. "In my own right. Not as Richard Reeves's daughter or Marcus Hale's fiancée. I want to be someone who has power."

Dom's smile was slow and approving. "Now we're getting somewhere."

“If we are doing this, I have conditions."

Dom's smile was slow and dangerous. "I'd be disappointed if you didn't."

"I want full transparency. If you're planning to take Marcus down, I need to know how and I need to know all the details. I'm not walking into this blind."

"Agreed."

"And I want equal say in business decisions once the merger goes through. I'm not some prop you parade around while you play CEO."

"Fair enough, miss. Anything else?”

“No lying to me. I don't care how small it is."

Dom tilted his head, he looked a bit disappointed but it didn't last long. "You think I'm going to lie to you?"

"I think everyone lies," Cassie said. "Especially when there's money and revenge involved."

"I don't agree but that's a smart approach."

Dom dropped his glass, pushed off the couch and crossed to her, stopping close enough that she had to tilt her head back to meet his eyes.

"Here's what I'm proposing," Dom said. "The media's already hot, so I say let's give them more chaos."

Cassie blinked. "What do you mean?"

Dom pulled out his phone, his fingers moving across the screen with practiced ease. "I think we should announce our engagement tonight.”

“Tonight?” Cassie's voice came out sharper than she had intended it to.

“Actually, right now, while everyone's still talking about what Marcus did."

"Dom, it's been two hours—"

"Exactly..." He turned his phone toward her. On the screen was a photo she didn't remember him taking. It was here in his sitting room, his hand on her face, her eyes looking up at him. It was intimate and devastating and it looked nothing like two strangers making a deal.

"When did you…"

"I thought we might need proof." Dom's thumb hovered over his screen as he typed furiously and when he turned his screen in her direction, Cassie's heart slammed against her ribs.

“You want to post that now?”

"Absolutely. Strike while the iron's hot… by tomorrow, the narrative will already be set. You're the victim, Marcus is the hero who chose love, and I'm still the screw-up. But if we do this right now while people are still reeling..." Dom's smile was very calculating. "We control the story."

I read it one more time, trying to process all of it.

The caption read: Sometimes the wrong choice leads you exactly where you're meant to be.

"People will think I'm insane, Dom."

"Let them." He set the phone down on the coffee table between them, the image still glowing on the screen. "Or you can wait. Process this properly, talk to your parents, do the sensible thing… and then spend the next six months being pitied at every event you attend."

Cassie stared at the photo. At the girl who looked like she'd found something instead of lost everything.

"My father's going to lose his mind," she said quietly.

"Your father brokered a deal that required you to marry a Hale son." Dom leaned back, watching her. "As long as the merger still goes through and the shares still transfer, he's going to be fine.

Everybody wins. Well, except Marcus and that is the plan."

"What about your family?"

"They'll be fine." The bitterness in his voice was unmistakable. "Marrying the Reeves daughter, securing the deal Marcus fumbled… they might finally recognise me, or not."

Cassie picked up her whiskey and drained it. The burn helped clear her head but not enough. This was reckless and impulsive and possibly the worst decision she could make.

But the alternative was going home, facing the cameras alone and watching Marcus and Vanessa's love story play out while she became a footnote.

She set down her glass and met Dom's eyes.

"Do it," she said.

Dom's grin was absolutely wicked. He picked up his phone, finger hovering over the post button one last time.

"Last chance to back out," he said.

"I don't back out."

"Good."

And he hit send.