Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Damian

The room felt frozen.

Harper stared at me while Lily stood nearby holding her stuffed bear.

Neither of them spoke. Neither did I.

My eyes remained fixed on the file displayed on my phone.

EVELYN VALE — CONFIDENTIAL DNA REPORT.

Harper finally found her voice.

“What does that mean?”

I swallowed.

“I don’t know yet.”

“Then open it.”

Her words were sharp.

Nervous.

Afraid.

I understood why.

So was I.

Lily looked between us.

“What’s wrong?”

Harper immediately crouched beside her.

“Nothing, sweetheart.”

Lily frowned.

“That’s not true.”

Children always noticed more than adults thought.

Harper forced a smile.

“Why don’t you go back to bed?”

Lily hesitated.

Then she nodded.

“Okay.”

She hugged Harper first.

Then me.

A minute later she disappeared down the hallway.

The moment she was gone, Harper turned back toward me.

“Open it.”

I unlocked the file.

My stomach tightened as the first page appeared.

Harper moved closer. Close enough that our shoulders touched.

Neither of us stepped away.

We read silently.

Then Harper suddenly grabbed my arm.

“Wait.”

I looked at her.

“What?”

She pointed at a paragraph.

My eyes followed.

The blood drained from my face.

“What is it?” she asked.

I read the line again.

Then a third time.

Just to make sure.

The words hadn’t changed.

“They tested your mother’s DNA before her death.”

Harper frowned.

“Why?”

“I don’t know.”

I continued reading.

The silence stretched.

Then everything became worse.

Much worse.

“Oh God.”

Harper immediately stiffened.

“What?”

I turned the phone toward her.

She read the paragraph herself.

The color vanished from her face.

“No.”

The word came out barely above a whisper.

“No.”

I wished I could disagree.

I couldn’t.

Because the report was clear.

Very clear.

Someone had requested a private DNA comparison years ago.

Someone connected to both families.

Harper sat down heavily.

“This has to be wrong.”

Maybe it was.

I hoped it was.

But deep down I wasn’t sure anymore.

Too many secrets had already surfaced.

Too many lies.

Harper pressed a hand against her forehead.

“My entire life…”

Her voice broke.

I sat beside her.

Neither of us spoke for several seconds.

Finally she looked at me.

“What if everything my mother told me was a lie?”

I hated hearing the pain in her voice.

“Let’s not jump to conclusions.”

She laughed bitterly.

“That’s easy for you to say.”

“No.”

I shook my head.

“It isn’t.”

Her eyes met mine.

For once there was no anger.

No walls.

Only fear.

The same fear I felt.

The same uncertainty.

I reached for her hand.

This time she didn’t pull away.

“We’ll figure it out.”

Her fingers tightened around mine.

“Together?”

The question hit me harder than expected.

Together.

The word felt important.

Dangerously important.

“Together.”

Something softened in her expression.

The tension eased slightly. Not much.

Just enough to breathe.

Then Harper looked down at our joined hands.

“We’re getting really bad at pretending this marriage is fake.”

I smiled despite everything.

“Maybe.”

“You were supposed to be a temporary husband.”

“And you were supposed to be a temporary wife.”

She laughed quietly.

The sound eased something inside me.

For weeks our relationship had been changing. Slowly and Steadily.

Without either of us noticing.

Now it was impossible to ignore.

Harper leaned back against the couch.

“Do you regret it?”

The question surprised me.

“Regret what?”

“Marrying me.”

The answer came immediately.

“No.”

Her eyes widened slightly.

“You didn’t even think about it.”

“I didn’t need to.”

The room grew quiet.

Outside, New York glittered beneath the night sky.

Inside, everything felt smaller.

More personal.

More dangerous.

Harper looked away first.

“You’re impossible.”

“So I’ve heard.”

A smile tugged at her lips.

Then disappeared.

“What happens if this report changes everything?”

I understood what she was really asking.

What happens to us?

The question hung between us.

Heavy.

Complicated.

Real.

I studied her face.

The woman who entered my company looking for revenge.

The woman who turned my life upside down.

The woman Lily already loved.

The woman I was beginning to need far more than I should.

“I don’t know.”

It was the truth.

Harper nodded slowly.

“At least you’re honest.”

“Always.”

She laughed softly.

“That’s definitely not true.”

“Fair.”

For a few moments we simply sat there. Comfortable and Quiet.

Together.

The realization struck me unexpectedly.

I couldn’t remember the last time silence felt peaceful.

Then Harper suddenly stood.

“I need tea.”

I looked up.

“Tea?”

“Tea.”

“It’s two in the morning.”

She pointed at me.

“You drink coffee at midnight.”

“Good point.”

She smiled.

A real smile.

One I was becoming addicted to.

Minutes later we were standing in the kitchen.

She prepared tea.

I watched.

“You’re staring again.”

I didn’t bother denying it.

“You make good tea.”

Her laugh echoed through the room.

“That is the worst excuse I’ve ever heard.”

“Probably.”

She handed me a cup. Our fingers brushed.

Neither of us reacted.

Which somehow felt more intimate.

Like touching each other has become normal.

Dangerous.

Very dangerous.

Harper leaned against the counter.

“You know what Lily said earlier?”

“Which part?”

“The married people hug part.”

I groaned.

“She’s going to keep doing that.”

“Definitely.”

A smile spread across Harper’s face.

Then she looked thoughtful.

“She likes this.”

“This?”

“Us.”

The simple word landed hard.

Us.

I stared into my cup.

“Yeah.”

Harper looked away.

“That scares me.”

“Me too.”

Because if this ended badly…

Lily would get hurt.

And so would we.

The realization sat heavily between us.

Neither of us knew what to say next.

Then suddenly my phone buzzed.

One message.

Unknown number.

Immediately my instincts sharpened.

I opened it.

A single photo appeared.

My entire body went still.

“Damian?”

Harper noticed my expression instantly.

“What happened?”

I couldn’t answer.

Not right away.

Because the picture showed something impossible.Something that changed everything.

“Damian.”

Her voice became urgent.

Slowly I turned the screen toward her.

She stared at the image.

Then gasped.

The photograph showed Evelyn Vale.

Richard Blackwood.

And a young woman standing between them.

A woman who looked exactly like Harper.

Except the picture had been taken twenty-five years ago.

“What is this?” Harper whispered.

My heart pounded.

Then another message arrived beneath the photo.

Four simple words.

She’s not who you think.

Before either of us could react, a final message appeared.

Meet me tomorrow. Bring your wife.