Page 7 of Vows of Deceit
Cassie handed him a glass of wine. “I know.”
They sat. Ate. Talked about nothing. Laughed at a memory from their honeymoon. He complimented her pasta. She asked him about his project in Italy. He gave a vague answer and changed the subject.
And when he fell asleep beside her, Cassie lay awake. The bracelet wasn’t the betrayal. It was the proof and proof was power.
Chapter Five
Past Is Present
Three years earlier. The scent of wild roses filled the gardens of the King estate as strings of fairy lights blinked to life overhead. It was the annual spring charity gala hosted by her parents, and the crowd glittered with Manhattan’s elite. Cassie King stood just out of reach of the patio lights, a crystal flute in one hand, watching from the shadows.
She had never liked these events. Too many eyes, too many whispers, too many comparisons.
Especially when her sister was around.
Kelly King floated through the crowd like she was born to own it with her smile dazzling, her golden hair cascading over one shoulder, dressed in a white sheath that shimmered under the lights. Cassie, in contrast, wore a muted emerald gown, her hair pinned in a soft chignon, makeup understated.
Invisible. That was her role.
Until she saw Damien.
He stood by the fountain, wearing a navy tuxedo and a crooked grin as he laughed at something Leo said. Damien Sterling had always looked a little too perfect, but when he smiled it was dangerous. The kind of dangerous that made even grounded girls feel like gravity was a suggestion.
Cassie’s stomach twisted. She’d seen him before, years ago at boarding school functions. And again at holiday benefits their families hosted. But tonight, for the first time, she felt his gaze meet hers across the garden.
It lasted a second.
Then Kelly appeared beside him, laughing as she looped her arm through his.
And Cassie turned away.
What Cassie hadn’t known was that Damien had only been speaking to Kelly because his father told him to.
Sterling Ventures and the Kings Grand Hotel chain had long flirted with the idea of partnership. Aligning through marriage? Even better.
But Kelly was never interested. She liked attention. Not commitments. And though she flirted effortlessly, she never planned to settle for someone her parents picked.
Damien knew that.
Which made his fascination with Cassie all the more inconvenient. He noticed her at every event. Quietly listening. Sharp-eyed. Polite. Graceful. Beautiful in a way that felt earned. She didn’t try to own the room. She simply belonged.
That spring gala was the first time he tried to approach her. The first time he realized how tightly she guarded herself because when he introduced himself and offered her a drink, she looked startled.
“You don’t have to pretend,” she said. “I know you’re only talking to me because Kelly’s not interested.”
Damien blinked. “What?”
Cassie’s smile was brittle. “It’s fine. I’m used to being the more approachable King. I won’t take it personally.”
He stared at her for a moment, stunned.
“No offense,” she added gently, “but I’d rather not be someone’s second choice.”
She walked away, leaving him holding two glasses of champagne and a jaw full of questions.
Weeks passed and he couldn’t stop thinking about her. He saw her again at a museum benefit, then at a rooftop networking dinner. She was always gracious. Always just a little removed.
Until one evening, she was alone on the balcony at the Sterling Foundation fundraiser, curled in a chair with her shoes off and a glass of merlot in hand.
