Sofia woke up the next morning with a strange tightness in her chest—like she had crossed a threshold she couldn't return from. She lay still for a moment, staring at her ceiling, trying to convince herself that yesterday had been nothing more than a dream. A contract. A signature. A marriage proposal wrapped in obligation.
But reality settled over her like a heavy blanket.
She was going to marry Derek Harrington.
A man she barely knew.
A man who had looked at her with unreadable eyes.
A man whose world was far louder, richer, colder, and more dangerous than hers.
Sofia pushed herself out of bed and walked to the window. The world outside was normal—quiet streets, slow cars, the morning sun climbing through the sky. But inside her, nothing felt normal anymore.
She had barely touched her breakfast when her phone buzzed.
DEREK HARRINGTON — 8:03 a.m.
I'll pick you up at nine. We need to prepare for the announcement.
The announcement.
Right. The public engagement.
Her heart clenched.
Sofia typed back, Okay, then quickly deleted it. Too plain. Too cold. She typed, Sure. I'll be ready, and pressed send.
She immediately regretted adding the period. It made her seem stiff. Then again, what was she supposed to be? Warm? Romantic? They weren't that kind of couple—at least not yet.
At 9:00 sharp, her doorbell rang.
When she stepped outside, Derek stood by a sleek black car, dressed in another perfectly tailored suit. He looked like he had stepped out of a luxury magazine shoot—handsome, composed, and devastatingly distant.
"Sofia," he greeted with a small nod.
"Derek," she replied.
He opened the car door for her. She hesitated—just a moment—but he noticed.
"Something wrong?" His voice was low, steady.
"No. I'm fine." She got in before she embarrassed herself.
When he joined her inside the car, the driver pulled smoothly onto the road. For several minutes, they sat in silence. Sofia's fingers twisted nervously around each other. Derek's gaze drifted to her hands.
"You're tense," he observed.
She nearly choked. "I'm getting engaged today. Publicly. To a man I barely know. Why wouldn't I be tense?"
His jaw tightened. She wondered if she had gone too far—but Derek surprised her.
"That's fair," he said quietly.
The response felt unexpectedly human. Sofia's heartbeat steadied.
"This isn't easy for me either," he added after a moment. "I'm used to controlling my environment. People. Outcomes. But this—" He paused, his eyes on the window. "This is different."
Sofia blinked. Was this the closest he had come to vulnerability?
"What exactly will the announcement be like?" she asked.
"We'll hold a press statement outside the company headquarters. Photos. Interviews. Nothing too invasive."
"Invasive?" she repeated. "The press always gets invasive."
A ghost of a smile touched his lips. "You're not wrong. But I'll make sure you're protected."
The words settled warm in her chest. "Thank you."
For a moment, they looked at each other—really looked—and something unspoken passed between them.
Then the car slowed.
Harriton Corporate Tower rose ahead of them—glass, steel, and impossibly tall. A small crowd had already gathered outside, cameras in hand, voices buzzing.
Sofia swallowed hard. Derek noticed.
"Stay close to me," he said softly.
When they stepped out together, the crowd erupted.
"Derek!"
"Is this your fiancée?"
"When's the wedding?"
"Is it true she's from a smaller company your firm acquired?"
The questions fired like bullets. Sofia froze. Derek stepped closer, subtly placing his hand on the small of her back—a gesture that felt protective, intimate, grounding.
"She's with me," he said firmly to the reporters. His voice held authority that silenced the crowd almost instantly. "We'll begin shortly."
Inside the lobby, Sofia finally breathed again.
"You okay?" Derek asked.
She nodded, though her voice betrayed her. "It's… overwhelming."
"You handled it better than most." He hesitated. "You handled it better than some people who have been in my life for years."
Her cheeks warmed. What did that mean? Before she could ask, Derek signaled her to follow him to a private waiting area.
"Before we go out," he said, "there's something you need to know."
Sofia tensed.
"There will be rumors," he continued. "People will speculate. They'll say you're with me because of my wealth. Or that I proposed for strategic reasons." He paused. "Part of that is true."
Her chest tightened painfully. "Which part?"
"The strategic reasons." His voice was sincere. "But not the part about you using me. I know you didn't choose this for money. I know you agreed because your father needed help."
She stared at him, stunned.
"You… know?"
"I do." Derek's expression softened. "You're not the type to manipulate someone, Sofia."
Her breath caught. For the first time, his words felt like a real compliment.
Before she could respond, an assistant knocked.
"They're ready," the woman said.
Derek offered his arm. "Shall we?"
Sofia hesitated—but then she slipped her hand into the crook of his arm. His warmth surprised her. His steady presence calmed her.
And together, they walked outside.
The crowd hushed. Cameras flashed. Derek cleared his throat.
"Thank you all for being here," he began, voice strong and commanding. "I'd like to introduce the woman I will be spending my life with—Sofia Martinez."
Gasps rippled through the crowd. Whispers rose. Sofia felt her legs shake—but Derek's hand gently closed around hers, anchoring her.
"We're happy to announce our engagement," he continued. "And we look forward to the future ahead."
Then he did something completely unexpected.
He turned to her, lifted her hand, and pressed a soft, deliberate kiss to her fingers.
The crowd exploded. Flashes blinded her. Reporters shouted questions.
But all Sofia felt was the warmth of Derek's lips on her skin.
A spark.
Small but undeniable.
When the conference ended, they walked back inside. Sofia tried to hide her racing heart. Derek's expression was unreadable again—but she didn't miss the slight flush on his neck.
"You kissed my hand," she blurted before she could stop herself.
He blinked. "It made the announcement look authentic."
"Oh." She tried not to sound disappointed. "Right. Of course."
"But," he added suddenly, "it wasn't entirely for the cameras."
Sofia froze. "What does that mean?"
"It means," Derek said quietly, "that sometimes I act on instinct."
Their eyes held each other for a long, heated moment—until someone cleared their throat nearby.
Derek stepped back slightly, professionalism snapping into place. "We should head to the car."
Sofia followed, heart pounding.
As they drove away, the world outside blurred into streaks of color. The weight of the day pressed against her—but so did a new, confusing sensation.
She was starting to feel something for Derek.
Something dangerous.
Something real.
And she had no idea what he felt in return.
But as Derek glanced at her reflection in the window—soft, thoughtful, almost gentle—Sofia sensed one truth:
He was beginning to feel something too.
He just didn't know it yet.