CHAPTER 14:

Damian walked into the living room and found Chloe hunched over her phone on the couch, shoulders curled inward as tears dropped onto the screen. The leaked “ideal type” folder glowed in her hands, those cruel edited photos staring back.

“Was I just the backup plan all along?” she asked, voice breaking on the last word. She didn’t look up.

He crossed the room in quick strides, took the phone from her, and set it face down on the table. “No. That folder was old. Before you. Before any of this.” He pulled the physical copy he still kept locked in his desk drawer and brought it back. “Watch.”

Damian grabbed the fireplace lighter from the mantel, flicked it on, and held the flame to the corner of the papers. They caught fast, curling black as he dropped the burning stack into the empty hearth. He watched until every page turned to ash.

Then he picked up his phone, opened the secure files, and deleted every digital copy while she watched. “Gone. All of it. That was never about you.”

Chloe wiped her face with the back of her hand. “It still hurts. Seeing it like that. Like I’ll never be enough for your world.”

“We sign the marriage contract tomorrow,” he said. “First thing. It locks in protection for you and the twins. No more loopholes. No more games.”

His phone rang before she could answer. Marcus. Damian put it on speaker.

“Nice leak,” Marcus said, laughing low. “Board’s loving the drama. Step down quietly by end of week or I make it worse. Much worse. Your precious family won’t survive the next round.”

Damian ended the call and tossed the phone aside. “He’s bluffing. Mostly.”

Chloe stared at the ashes in the fireplace, then back at him. “I’ll sign. But you promise me this isn’t just about image. Not just saving your company or locking down custody. Promise it’s real. That you want me here.”

He stepped closer and pulled her up from the couch, arms wrapping around her carefully, one hand settling on her lower back, the other cradling the side of her belly. “It’s real. I want you here. Both of you. All three of you.”

She leaned into him, forehead against his chest. For a moment the penthouse felt quieter.

Security’s urgent knock shattered it. The head guard stepped in without waiting. “Sir, another breach attempt. Someone tried to access Chloe’s private hospital records again ten minutes ago. Different IP, more aggressive. They’re getting bolder. The temporary marriage filing is now your only legal shield if they succeed.”

Damian tightened his hold on Chloe as the words sank in.

********

Chloe stood frozen in the middle of the penthouse living room, one hand gripping the back of the couch as the head of security finished his report.

“The attempt on the hospital records came from inside the system again, ma’am. Different credentials this time, but they almost got through. We blocked it, but they’re getting smarter.”

Her fingers dug into the fabric until her knuckles ached. She turned to Damian, throat tight. “We’re really doing this? Getting married just to protect them? Signing papers so your family can’t rip the twins away from me?”

Damian stood near the windows, arms crossed, his face set in that controlled mask he wore when things spiraled. “We don’t have forty-eight hours anymore. The lawyers pushed the filing up. Papers are ready downstairs. We sign this morning or we lose everything we’ve fought for.”

Chloe pressed both hands to her belly. The twins moved under her palms, one strong kick followed by a smaller flutter. She thought, "This is it. No more pretending it’s temporary. I become his wife on paper and pray it actually shields us." “Fine. But I want to read every line again before I put my name on it.”

They moved to the dining table where the legal team had laid everything out. Chloe sat heavily, the chair creaking under her weight, and pulled the stack closer. Damian sat across from her, pen already in hand, but he waited.

She flipped through the pages, scanning the dense paragraphs. “Here. The ‘wife’ clause. It says I agree to present as your devoted spouse in all public and legal matters. This isn’t just protection. This makes me part of your image forever, even after the year.”

“It has to look real,” Damian said, leaning forward. “The board, the press, Marcus, they’re watching for cracks. If it reads like a transaction, they’ll tear it apart in court.”

Chloe tapped the page hard. “I’m not an actress, Damian. I signed up to carry the babies and co-parent. Not play perfect wife while your mother keeps trying to poison them. Change the language or I’m not signing.”

The lead lawyer cleared his throat. “We can soften it slightly, but any major edits risk delaying filing. The surrogacy agreement ties directly to this.”

Damian looked at her, jaw tight. “Chloe, please. This buys us time. I’m not trying to trap you. I’m trying to keep our children safe.”

She stared at him for a long moment, then picked up the pen. Her hand hovered. “This better not be another way to control me.” She signed with quick, angry strokes on every line, then slid the papers across. Damian signed right after, his movements precise and final.

The lawyers gathered everything and left. Chloe stood and paced to the window, rubbing her lower back. “It’s done. I’m your wife now. On paper at least.”

The courthouse trip was chaos from the second they stepped out of the car. Photographers swarmed the steps, shouting questions and shoving cameras forward. Flashes popped like gunfire.

“Mrs. King! How does it feel to go from surrogate to wife overnight?”

“Damian, is this love or damage control?”

Damian pulled her close immediately, one arm wrapping around her waist, his hand settling protectively on her lower back just above the swell of her belly. His body shielded her from the worst of the crush as they climbed the steps. “Keep walking,” he murmured against her hair. “Head up. They don’t get to see you flinch.”

Inside the clerk’s office, the ceremony. if it could be called that was quick and cold. They repeated basic vows in front of a bored official, signed the register, and posed for the mandatory photo. Damian kept his hand on her back the entire time, thumb rubbing small circles through the fabric of her dress like he could steady her with touch alone.

Back in the town car, the tinted windows finally gave them silence. Chloe sank into the seat, exhausted, and rested both hands on her belly. She whispered to the twins, voice soft, “I just want you two safe. That’s all this was for. I’ll figure out the rest later.”

Damian reached over and squeezed her hand without a word. His grip lingered, warm and solid, longer than necessary. Neither of them spoke the rest of the ride, but the quiet felt different now. Heavier. More real.

They stepped into the penthouse and Chloe kicked off her shoes immediately, heading for the couch. Damian checked his phone, then froze. His expression darkened.

“What is it?” she asked, already reaching for her own device.

He turned the screen toward her. Vanessa had just posted a photo—an old one of her and Damian at some event, arms linked, smiling like nothing had ever gone wrong. The caption read: "Some connections never fade. Real love finds its way back. #Foreverking"

The comments exploded underneath. Chloe scrolled, stomach twisting. “She’s never going to stop, is she? She’s going to keep painting me as the intruder while she plays the victim.”

Damian’s jaw clenched so hard she could see the muscle jump. “I’ll have PR counter it immediately. This ends.”

But as Chloe stared at the post, fresh notifications kept popping up. reposts, new articles, people already questioning if the marriage was fake. Her hand trembled on her phone.

Then another text came through from an unknown number. "Congratulations on the wedding. It won’t last. The real mother is closer than you think."