Chapter 3

Serena’s pov

I barely slept that night.

I stayed awake in the large bed alone while the clock beside me kept moving slowly but Damien never came back.

Every sound outside made my heart jump for nothing.

I stared at the empty side of the bed and kept thinking about Liliana and the way he left me behind for her.

At some point, exhaustion finally dragged me into sleep. When I woke up the next morning, sunlight already filled the room.

I blinked slowly and reached toward Damian’s side of the bed instinctively.

It was still cold.

My chest tightened again.

He never came home.

I sat up carefully and rested one hand on my stomach.

The baby kicked softly and a small sad smile touched my lips.

“At least you’re here with me,” I whispered.

I pushed myself out of bed slowly and walked toward the bathroom.

After showering, I changed into a soft cream dress and tied my hair into a loose bun.

The mansion felt quiet downstairs.

Usually Damian’s assistants, bodyguards, or business calls filled the mornings with noise.

Today, nothing.

I stood inside the kitchen for a moment before deciding to make breakfast anyway.

Maybe he would come back hungry and things would return to normal.

I moved around the luxury kitchen slowly while the chefs stayed out of my way. The marble counters gleamed under the morning light while coffee brewed nearby.

I made pancakes myself because Damian liked them when I cooked personally instead of leaving everything to the staff.

By the time I finished arranging breakfast on the dining table, I heard footsteps entering the mansion.

My heart jumped immediately because a  few seconds later, Damian walked inside.

I froze.

He still wore yesterday’s clothes.

His black shirt looked wrinkled now, and his hair looked messy like he kept running his hands through it all night.

Dark shadows sat under his eyes and bile rose in my throat.

 Did he spend the night with Liliana?

I closed my eyes to banish the thought before opening them again and forcing a pleasant expression on my face.

Damian looked up and noticed me standing there.

For a moment, neither of us spoke. He walked toward me slowly.

I tried to search his face for answers, but his expression remained unreadable.

“Good morning,” he said quietly.

“Morning,” I replied softly.

He stopped in front of me.

Then suddenly, he leaned down and kissed my cheek gently.

“I’m sorry about yesterday,” he murmured.

I blinked in surprise.

His hand rested briefly against my waist before pulling away.

“I shouldn’t have behaved like that,” he continued. “I’ll make it up to you.”

I stared at him quietly.

Part of me wanted to ask where he spent the night but the words refused to come out.

He looked exhausted.

He rubbed one hand over his face before sighing softly.

“I’m going upstairs to shower,” he said. “I’ll be down soon.”

I nodded slowly.

He disappeared upstairs, leaving me standing alone in the kitchen again.

I looked down at the breakfast table.

Everything still felt strange between us.

Before I could think further, the doorbell rang.

I frowned slightly.

The staff usually handled visitors, but most of them were outside with the gardeners this morning.

So I walked toward the front door myself.

The moment I opened it, I froze.

Liliana stood there.

She wore a fitted white dress that hugged her body perfectly. Her long dark hair rested over one shoulder, and expensive sunglasses sat on top of her head.

One hand held a bottle of wine and the other held a designer handbag.

She smiled warmly at me.

“You must be Mrs. Cole,” she said politely.

I swallowed lightly. “Yes.”

She extended her hand. “I’m Liliana Laurent.”

“I know.”

Her smile softened slightly. “I’m sorry for coming without calling first.”

“It’s okay.”

“I’m an old friend of Damian’s,” she explained smoothly. “I just returned to town recently.”

I nodded slowly.

“The way things ended yesterday at the mall felt sudden,” she continued. “I wanted to check on him because he didn’t seem like himself.”

Something inside me relaxed slightly after hearing that.

So Damian did not go to her last night, he did not spend the night with her.

The painful knot in my chest loosened a little.

I stepped aside politely. “Please come in.”

“Thank you.”

Liliana walked inside slowly while looking around the mansion.

The grand entrance glowed with morning sunlight from the crystal windows above. The white marble floors reflected light beautifully while fresh flowers sat in large vases near the staircase.

“This house looks beautiful,” she said with a smile.

“Thank you.”

“You’ve done a lovely job with it.” Her eyes moved around the living room again. “The last time I was here, it looked quite shabby.”

I paused slightly.

She had been here before me. Many times, probably. Duh, I knew that.

Still, I forced a small smile. “I changed a few things.”

“You changed everything,” she corrected softly.

Before I could respond, footsteps sounded from the staircase.

Damian came downstairs wearing a fresh black shirt and gray trousers.

The moment he saw her standing inside the living room, his entire body stiffened.

“What are you doing here?” he asked immediately. 

Liliana looked slightly uncomfortable. “I just wanted to check on you.”

“You didn’t need to come to my house.”

The harshness in his voice surprised even me.

“Damian,” I said quietly. “Please be nice to our guest.” 

His eyes moved toward me briefly before returning to Liliana.

Liliana gave a small awkward laugh. “I’m sorry for dropping by unannounced.”

She looked at both of us before speaking again.

“You just didn’t look like yourself yesterday,” she admitted softly. “I got worried.”

For a second, silence filled the room so I spoke before I could overthink it.

“I’m making dinner tonight,” I said politely. “You should come.”

Damian’s head snapped toward me immediately.

Liliana blinked in surprise. “Really?”

“Of course.”

A soft smile appeared on her lips. “Thank you, Serena.”

Damian looked completely unhappy beside us, but he said nothing.

A few minutes later, Liliana finally left.

The moment the front door closed behind her, Damian turned toward me sharply.

“Why would you invite her to dinner?”

I looked at him calmly.

“Because you looked broken yesterday,” I answered honestly.

His expression changed slightly.

“You clearly needed closure,” I continued quietly.

He stared at me for several seconds without speaking. I hoped he needed closure or I would have invited that woman over for nothing. Thankfully, she would be gone from our lives after tonight.

The rest of the day passed strangely.

Damian locked himself inside his office for hours while taking business calls. I stayed busy preparing dinner because I wanted tonight to go smoothly.

Part of me hoped this dinner would finally put everything behind us. Maybe Damian just needed one proper conversation with Liliana to move on completely.

By evening, the dining room looked perfect.

Candles glowed softly across the long table while the chefs arranged expensive dishes carefully.

The mansion staff moved around quietly.

At exactly seven, Liliana arrived and this time, she looked stunning.

Her dark red dress clung tightly to her body while diamond earrings sparkled against her neck.

Even I had to admit she was beautiful.

Damian’s eyes stayed glued to her the second he saw her but I ignored that.

Dinner started quietly enough.

At first.

But slowly, Liliana’s true colors began to show.

“Oh, Damian used to hate mushrooms, I remember when I used to cook his meals for him. I took great care not to add them.” she said lightly while sipping wine.

I looked toward Damian but he stayed silent.

A few minutes later, she smiled at me again.

“You’re lucky he changed. Damian used to work until three in the morning every day when we were younger.”

We again?

Every sentence reminded me that she once knew him better than I did.

“You decorated this room beautifully,” Liliana continued later. “Although it could still use some touches. Damian never cared much about interior design before.”

Her smile looked innocent.

But I was starting to notice the tone underneath every word as she kept dropping snarky comments.

I pushed my food around quietly after that.

Eventually, I stood up softly.

“Damian, can I speak with you for a second?”

He frowned slightly but followed me toward the kitchen.

The moment we entered, I lowered my voice.

“Your guest has been making uncomfortable comments all evening.”

He sighed immediately. “Serena—”

“I’m serious,” I interrupted quietly. “Maybe you don’t notice it, but I do.”

Before he could answer, another voice suddenly interrupted us.

“I’m sorry.”

We both turned.

Liliana stood near the kitchen entrance.

She looked embarrassed now.

“I didn’t mean to overhear,” she said softly. “I just came to ask if you needed help.”

I immediately felt awkward.

Liliana lowered her eyes sadly.

“I know I talk too much sometimes,” she admitted. “I don’t really have a filter.”

“Liliana—” I started.

“I just got back to town,” she continued quietly. “I don’t really have friends here anymore, and I never meant to overstep.”

She looked genuinely hurt now.

Damian suddenly turned toward me sharply.

“Look at what you caused,” he snapped. “Now she feels bad.”