Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Harper

The room went completely silent.

I stared at the document in Damian’s hand while Mason stood beside the table.

Nobody spoke. Nobody moved.

The marriage certificate felt heavier than it should.

Finally, Damian looked up.

“What exactly am I looking at?”

Mason exhaled.

“I spent the entire day digging through old records.”

“And?”

“And somebody altered legal documents after your wife’s death.”

My stomach tightened.

Damian’s expression turned cold.

“Who?”

“We don’t know yet.”

Mason pointed at the signature.

“But whoever did it had access to private Blackwood files.”

I looked between them.

“What does that mean?”

Mason sat down.

“It means somebody inside the family has been hiding things for years.”

Damian’s jaw clenched.

“My father.”

“Possibly.”

The word hung in the air.

Possibly.

Not definitely.

But it was enough.

I watched Damian carefully.

The strong billionaire everyone feared suddenly looked exhausted.

Like a man carrying too much weight.

Mason stood.

“I’ll keep investigating.”

Damian nodded.

“Let me know the second you find something.”

“I will.”

A few moments later Mason left.

The elevator doors closed behind him.

The penthouse became quiet again.

Too quiet.

I glanced at Damian.

He was still staring at the papers.

“Are you okay?”

His laugh was bitter.

“No.”

I walked closer.

“Talk to me.”

He rubbed a hand over his face.

“For years I thought I knew my family.”

His voice was rough.

“Now every day I find another lie.”

I understood that feeling.

The last few weeks had changed everything I believed too.

My mother.

The Blackwoods.

The past.

Nothing was simple anymore.

I sat beside him.

“Maybe we don’t know the whole story yet.”

“Maybe.”

He looked at me.

“But I’m tired of maybes.”

For a moment neither of us spoke.

Then he smiled slightly.

“Look at us.”

I raised an eyebrow.

“What about us?”

“A few months ago you hated me.”

“I still get annoyed by you.”

His smile widened.

“There she is.”

I tried not to smile back.

Failed.

“You make it very difficult.”

“I’ve been told that before.”

The tension eased.

Just a little.

Enough for both of us to breathe.

Then Damian looked toward the hallway.

“Lily has school tomorrow.”

“She’ll never forgive us if we wake her up.”

“True.”

I laughed softly.

The sound surprised both of us.

Lately it felt easier to laugh around him.

Easier to relax.

Dangerously easy.

Damian leaned back.

“You know what’s strange?”

“What?”

“This marriage.”

I froze.

His eyes met mine.

“When I proposed it, I expected six miserable months.”

“And now?”

A slow smile appeared.

“Now I don’t hate coming home.”

My heart skipped.

I looked away first.

The city lights reflected through the windows. Beautiful. Dangerous. Just like this situation.

“You make that sound romantic.”

“Maybe it is.”

I swallowed.

“Damian.”

“What?”

“We agreed not to complicate things.”

His expression softened.

“I know.”

“Then stop saying things like that.”

He laughed quietly.

“I wasn’t aware there were rules.”

“There are.”

“Who made them?”

“I did.”

“Interesting.”

I narrowed my eyes.

“Don’t mock me.”

“I’m not.”

“You are.”

“A little.”

I threw a cushion at him.

He caught it easily.

Then he looked genuinely amused.

The sight did strange things to my chest.

Because this wasn’t the cold CEO everyone feared.

This was simply Damian.

The man who stayed awake worrying about Lily.

The man who made coffee at midnight.

The man who listened when I talked.

That realization scared me.

A lot.

Because every day it became harder to remember why I came here. And easier to imagine staying.

The thought made me stand abruptly.

“I should sleep.”

Damian looked disappointed.

The emotion flashed so quickly I almost missed it.

“Already?”

“It’s late.”

“Fair.”

Neither of us moved.

Again.

It was becoming a problem.

Finally he stood too.

Now we were close. Very close.

The air felt different. Warmer.

My pulse quickened.

His gaze dropped briefly to my lips. Then it returned to my eyes.

Neither of us said a word. Neither of us looked away.

The attraction between us had always existed.

But now it wasn’t just an attraction.

That was the problem. It was becoming something deeper.

Something neither of us planned. Something neither of us could control.

“Harper.”

My name sounded different when he said it.

Softer.

More personal.

“Yeah?”

His hand lifted slightly.

Like he wanted to touch me. Then stopped.

The hesitation shocked me.

Damian Blackwood never hesitated. Not in business. Not in life.

But with me? He did.

“You should sleep,” he said quietly.

I nodded.

“Probably.”

Still neither of us moved.

Then suddenly we both laughed.

The tension finally broke.

“Goodnight, Damian.”

“Goodnight, wife.”

My cheeks warmed immediately.

He noticed. Of course he noticed.

The man noticed everything.

I turned toward the hallway.

But before I could leave, a small voice interrupted us.

“Why are you saying goodnight over there?”

Both of us turned.

Lily stood at the end of the hallway.

Half asleep.

Holding her stuffed bear.

I blinked.

“Lily?”

She yawned.

“If you’re married, you’re supposed to hug.”

I nearly choked.

Damian looked suspiciously entertained.

“Lily.”

“What?”

She pointed at us.

“Married people hug.”

“No they don’t.”

“They do.”

Damian crossed his arms.

“I think she has a point.”

I stared at him.

“You are enjoying this way too much.”

“Absolutely.”

Lily smiled proudly.

Then she walked over.

Without warning, she grabbed my hand.

Then Damian’s.

And pushed them together.

“There.”

My heart stopped.

Damian’s fingers closed around mine automatically.

The simple touch sent a wave of heat through me.

Lily looked satisfied.

“Better.”

Neither of us pulled away.

For several long seconds.

Then Lily smiled sleepily.

“I like when you act married.”

The words hit harder than they should.

Because for one dangerous moment…

I liked it too.

Then Damian’s phone rang.

The sound shattered everything.

His expression immediately changed, cold, alert and dangerous.

He released my hand and answered.

“What?”

Silence.

Then all color disappeared from his face.

My stomach dropped.

“Damian?”

He wasn’t listening. Whoever was on the phone had his full attention.

A second later he ended the call.

“What happened?” I asked.

His eyes found mine.

Dark.

Shocked.

Unbelieving.

Then he spoke the last words I ever expected to hear.

“The hospital just called.”

Fear rushed through me.

“What hospital?”

Damian swallowed hard.

“The one that handled your mother’s case.”

My heart stopped.

“And they found something.”

The room went silent.

“What did they find?”

Damian looked directly at me.

Then he slowly held up a file that had just been emailed to him.

Across the front were four terrifying words.

EVELYN VALE — CONFIDENTIAL DNA REPORT.