Chapter 7: Never Letting You Go

Damon’s Point Of View

The master bedroom became strangely quiet after Sienna shut the door behind her.

I stood in the middle of the room with my hands deep into my pockets, staring at the empty doorway. The room still held her scent...a sweet, simple smell of vanilla that lingered in the warm air and made my chest feel tight. For five long years, I had built an enormous, untouchable business empire. I had crushed rival companies, stopped greedy board members from taking control, and told powerful executives what to do without a second thought. I was used to giving orders and having everyone jump to obey them. But right now, inside my own home, with all my billions and global power, a woman in a plain coat had just walked away from me after looking me in the eye and telling me no. She did not want my wealth. She did not want my protection. Every good thing I tried to give her...the silk bed, the credit cards, the guards felt to her like a heavy chain meant to lock her inside a cage?

A quiet, careful knock came at the double doors. Carter stepped inside, holding a thin computer tablet in his hands. He looked unusually pale and visibly nervous. "Mr. Sterling," Carter said, keeping his voice low and professional as he stood near the entryway. "The security guards have escorted Miss Montclair off the property grounds. But... she did not leave quietly." "What did she do, Carter?" I asked. My voice dropped into a cold, dangerous tone as I turned around to face him. Carter held up the tablet screen to show me the news pages online. The articles were spreading across social media and financial blogs very fast.

IS DAMON STERLING TRAPPED BY A FORMER CLEANER? CLARISSA MONTCLAIR SAYS UNANNOUNCED MARRIAGE IS A LIE THE SECRET THREE CHILDREN: WHO IS SIENNA MERCER?

"Clarissa called two major news reporters the moment her car passed through the main gates," Carter reported, his fingers moving across the glass screen to pull up more pages. "She is telling everyone that Mrs. Sterling set up a plan using sick children to get a share of your family money. She is claiming the marriage is fake. Our company stock price is already going down on the morning market."

My jaw tightened so hard a sharp pain went up the side of my face. A quiet, terrible anger burned inside my chest. Clarissa thought she could use public gossip and cheap media leaks to force me away from Sienna. She thought she could shame me into hiding my own family. She was making a huge, foolish mistake.

"Call a press meeting," I ordered in a firm, absolute voice that left no room for debate. Carter looked up from his tablet, completely surprised. "Sir? A small statement about the company money and stocks?"

"No," I said, walking over to the big glass window that looked out over the green yard. "A live news meeting at the Sterling Enterprises headquarters tomorrow morning at nine o'clock. Invite every major reporter, television station, and financial newspaper in the city." "And what will we tell them, Mr. Sterling?" Carter asked, taking out a digital pen to write down my orders. "The truth," I said, looking at my own reflection in the dark glass. "I will tell everyone that Sienna Mercer is my legal wife. I will tell them that Leo, Toby, and Mia are my real children and my full heirs. And my legal team will present the old bank records and security videos from five years ago to prove that Richard Vance and Amber Mercer lied and set her up." Carter took a deep breath, realizing the absolute storm I was about to unleash on the city. He nodded quickly. "Understood, sir. I will set up the news team and our legal division right away." "And Carter," I added, turning my head slightly to look at him. "Stop all business with Clarissa's family. Any company that does business with the Montclair family will lose their contracts with Sterling Enterprises by noon today." "Right away, Mr. Sterling." When Carter left the room, the hallway fell back into silence. I stepped out of the master bedroom and walked down the long carpeted hall toward the nursery wing. The wooden door at the end of the hall was open just a little bit. I stopped in the hallway and stood back against the wall, taking care to stay hidden in the shadows so she would not see me watching. Inside the sunlit room, Sienna sat in a big, soft chair, holding Mia gently against her chest. Leo and Toby were sitting on the rug near her feet, quietly building a tall tower out of colorful wooden blocks. Mia’s small hand was wrapped tightly around a strand of Sienna's dark hair, sleeping peacefully with a light, steady breath. Sienna was singing a sweet, quiet song, resting her chin lightly on top of Mia's head. Her shoulders were relaxed, and the angry, defensive stance she wore around me was completely gone. In its place was a soft, loving care that made my throat feel dry and tight. She had worked hard for five long years to feed, clothe, and protect these three children all by herself. She had lived through cold poverty, cruel lies from her own family, and the daily fear of Mia's heart sickness all without a single dollar or word of help from me. She had learned to trust only herself, because every powerful person in her life had let her down or used her.

I reached into my pocket and touched the edge of my silver lighter. I had brought her into this house thinking I could fix every single problem with money, fine clothes, and legal papers. I had treated her anger like a small delay, expecting her to soften and yield once she saw my vast power and wealth. I was dead wrong. She did not fear my power, and she did not care about my money. To her, my fortune was not a comfort; it was just a shiny threat to the simple, safe life she had bled to build for her kids.

She is not going to give up, I thought, watching the morning sunlight touch her dark hair as she rocked our daughter. If I want her to stay, I cannot force her into a gilded cage. I have to destroy every single enemy that ever made her feel helpless in the first place. I took a quiet step back and walked down the hall before she could catch me watching. Tomorrow morning, I was going to bring Richard Vance, Amber Mercer, and Clarissa Montclair out into the bright light of a global news broadcast and ruin their plans completely. She might hate my ways, she might fight my rules, and she might refuse to call herself my wife when we are alone in this house but tomorrow, I was going to give her back the respect and dignity they stole from her five years ago. And whether she liked it or not, I was never letting her go again....