Chapter 10: The Fire Beneath the Smile

The sun hung high in the sky as Damien and Evelyn stepped out of the sleek black car, its polished surface gleaming like obsidian under the daylight.

The morning air buzzed with anticipation, and as the couple ascended the steps of Lancaster Corp’s towering headquarters, it was as though the world itself paused to look.

Inside, the building was alive with movement—heels clicking on marble floors, the hum of coffee machines, elevator chimes, papers being shuffled. Yet all of that subtle, everyday noise seemed to fade when Damien Lancaster and his wife walked in together.

The effect was immediate. Heads turned. Conversations halted mid-sentence. Even the hum of the lobby seemed to dip into a stunned silence before whispers swelled like ripples after a stone hits the water.

“They arrived together again…”

“Wasn’t last night’s gala their first public appearance as a couple?”

“I mean, they’re married. This was inevitable, right?”