Gairah Nakal Brondong Pemikat Hati

Sophia Hart stood before the full length mirror and smoothed the front of her silver gown for what must have been the tenth time.

"It is just another party," she whispered to herself.

The words sounded hollow.

Tonight was Alexander Kingston's thirtieth birthday. The most influential business figures in the country would be there. Politicians, celebrities, investors, and reporters had all been invited. Every major publication had been talking about the event for weeks.

Sophia reached for the small velvet box on her dressing table.

Inside lay a pair of simple silver cufflinks engraved with one sentence.

Keep moving forward.

Alexander had once said those words in an interview many years ago, before he became one of the youngest billionaires in the country. Back then, he had spoken with warmth and conviction. She remembered watching that interview again and again, falling in love with a man she had never met.

Later, fate had brought them together.

Or perhaps fate had only brought her close enough to break her heart.

She closed the box and smiled faintly.

"I hope you like them."

A knock came from the bedroom door.

"Mrs. Kingston, the car is ready."

"Thank you."

She picked up the gift and took one last look at herself.

Not perfect.

But presentable.

Maybe tonight would be different.

Maybe tonight Alexander would look at her the way husbands looked at their wives.

Maybe.

The Kingston Grand Hotel glittered beneath hundreds of crystal lights.

Luxury cars lined the entrance while photographers called out the names of arriving guests.

"Mr. Kingston!"

"Over here!"

"Sir, one photo with your wife!"

Alexander stepped out first.

Tall, composed, and dressed in a perfectly tailored black tuxedo, he carried himself with effortless confidence. Every camera turned toward him.

Sophia stepped out beside him.

For a brief moment, flashes exploded around them.

Alexander offered his arm without looking at her.

She slipped her hand through it.

To everyone watching, they looked like the perfect couple.

Only they knew how much distance existed between them.

As they entered the ballroom, conversations paused.

"Happy birthday, Alexander."

"Congratulations."

"You look wonderful."

People surrounded him almost immediately.

Sophia released his arm.

"I will let you greet your guests."

He gave a short nod.

"Do not wander too far."

Not because he wanted her close.

Because appearances mattered.

Sophia understood.

She always had.

She wandered toward the quieter side of the ballroom, greeting familiar faces with polite smiles. Some greeted her warmly. Others merely acknowledged her presence before turning their attention back to Alexander.

She had grown used to it.

Five years of marriage had taught her many things.

One of them was that loneliness could exist in a crowded room.

A cheerful voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Sophia."

She turned.

Grace Bennett hurried over with two glasses of champagne.

Grace had been her closest friend since university and one of the few people who still treated her like Sophia instead of Mrs. Kingston.

"You look beautiful," Grace said, handing her a glass.

"So do you."

Grace studied her carefully.

"You are nervous."

"Is it that obvious?"

"Only to someone who knows you."

Sophia laughed softly.

"I keep hoping things will get better."

Grace sighed.

"You have been saying that for five years."

"I know."

"And has anything changed?"

Sophia looked across the ballroom.

Alexander was speaking with several foreign investors. He smiled politely at something one of them said.

She could not remember the last time he smiled like that at her.

"He works too much," Sophia answered.

Grace raised an eyebrow.

"That is not the same thing."

Before Sophia could reply, the ballroom doors opened once more.

The room fell noticeably quieter.

Eleanor Sterling entered.

She wore an elegant cream colored dress and sat in a wheelchair pushed by her personal assistant.

Her beauty was delicate rather than striking. Long dark hair framed a face that seemed almost fragile.

People approached her immediately.

"Miss Sterling."

"It is wonderful to see you."

"We heard you were recovering."

Eleanor thanked each of them with gentle humility.

Then she looked across the room.

Her gaze settled on Alexander.

For the briefest moment, something flickered across her face.

Longing.

Alexander excused himself from his conversation and walked toward her.

"I am glad you came."

"I almost did not," Eleanor replied with a small smile. "I did not want to ruin your celebration."

"You could never do that."

Sophia lowered her eyes.

Grace noticed.

"Do not."

"Do not what?"

"Hurt yourself by watching."

Sophia forced a smile.

"They are old friends."

Grace looked unconvinced.

"That is not what worries me."

Music filled the ballroom as servers moved gracefully between guests carrying trays of drinks and appetizers.

Alexander eventually returned to the stage to welcome everyone.

"Thank you all for joining me tonight," he began.

The applause was warm.

Sophia watched quietly from the side of the room.

Whatever existed between them, she was proud of everything he had built.

His success had never threatened her.

She had celebrated every victory from the shadows.

When the speech ended, guests raised their glasses.

Sophia stepped toward a passing waiter.

"Champagne, Madam?"

"Thank you."

She reached for a glass.

At the same moment, someone cried out.

"Eleanor!"

The sound cut through the ballroom like breaking glass.

Heads turned instantly.

Sophia spun around.

Eleanor's wheelchair was tilted awkwardly near the wide staircase leading to the upper level.

One wheel balanced on the edge of a marble step.

The next second, the chair lurched.

Eleanor tumbled forward.

Her body struck the polished floor with a sickening thud.

The crystal glass in her hand shattered beside her.

Red wine spread across her cream dress.

For one terrifying moment, nobody moved.

Then chaos erupted.

"Eleanor!"

"Call a doctor!"

"Move back!"

Sophia dropped her champagne and hurried toward the fallen woman.

She knelt beside her.

"Eleanor, are you hurt?"

Eleanor looked up slowly.

Her eyes brimmed with tears.

Her lips trembled.

"Why?"

Sophia frowned.

"What?"

"Why do you hate me so much?"

Sophia stared at her, completely bewildered.

"I do not understand."

"You pushed me."

The words were barely louder than a whisper.

Yet somehow everyone heard them.

The ballroom became eerily silent.

Sophia blinked.

"I never touched you."

Footsteps approached rapidly.

Alexander.

He dropped to one knee beside Eleanor.

"Eleanor."

She clutched his sleeve with trembling fingers.

"Please... do not blame Sophia."

Her voice broke with every word.

"She probably did not mean to."

Sophia felt her heartbeat quicken.

"What are you saying?"

"I never pushed you."

Eleanor looked frightened.

"I know you are angry with me."

"I am not angry with you."

"You told me to stay away from your husband."

Sophia froze.

"I never said that."

Several guests exchanged uneasy glances.

Someone whispered loudly enough to be heard.

"I knew there was tension between them."

Another voice answered.

"I feel sorry for Miss Sterling."

Alexander rose slowly.

His face revealed nothing.

He looked at Sophia.

"Did you push her?"

Relief washed over Sophia.

He was asking.

He wanted to hear her.

"No."

She met his eyes steadily.

"I did not."

He remained silent.

Sophia waited.

One second.

Two.

Three.

His expression hardened.

"Take Miss Sterling upstairs," he instructed the medical staff who had just arrived.

They carefully lifted Eleanor back into her wheelchair.

As they wheeled her away, she looked back once.

Their eyes met.

Sophia expected fear.

Or pain.

Instead, she saw something that made her chest tighten.

Satisfaction.

It vanished so quickly she questioned whether she had imagined it.

The whispers grew louder.

"I always knew she was jealous."

"What a terrible thing to do."

"Poor Miss Sterling."

Sophia looked at Alexander.

"You believe them."

"I believe what I saw."

"You saw me standing beside her."

"I saw enough."

"No."

Her voice trembled despite her effort to stay calm.

"You saw the end of something. You never asked how it began."

"There will be security footage."

"If there is, it will prove I am innocent."

Alexander did not answer immediately.

His silence carried more weight than any accusation.

"I do not have time for this tonight," he said at last.

Sophia smiled sadly.

"No."

"You never seem to."

She turned before the tears in her eyes could betray her.

As she walked toward the exit, her phone vibrated inside her evening bag.

She ignored it.

It vibrated again.

And again.

With trembling fingers, she pulled it out.

An unknown number.

She opened the message.

If you want to know who really destroyed your marriage, come to Warehouse Seventeen at eleven tonight. Come alone.

Her breathing slowed.

Another message arrived almost immediately.

Trust no one. Not even the man you married.

Sophia stared at the screen.

A chill crept through her body.

Slowly, she looked back across the ballroom.

Alexander stood beside Eleanor once more.

He adjusted the shawl around her shoulders with quiet care before saying something that made her smile through her tears.

Sophia's chest tightened.

Then Eleanor lifted her head.

Their eyes met across the crowded room.

This time, there was no mistaking it.

Eleanor smiled.

Not with gratitude.

Not with relief.

With victory.

Sophia looked back at the message on her phone.

Her thumb hovered over the screen.

Then she slipped the phone into her bag.

Whatever waited at Warehouse Seventeen...

It might be the only chance she had left to learn the truth.

She walked out of the ballroom without looking back.