The morning air in the estate was crisp, but Zane's chest carried a weight. Amara had changed. Drastically. And while everything in him wanted to believe the woman in his bed was the same woman he married, something gnawed at his instincts. Her laugh reached his ears more easily these days, her touch lingered longer, her eyes glowed like they once did. But beneath that warmth was something cold, something unreadable.
He stared at her now from across the breakfast table. She was radiant, smiling as she fed him bites of mango from her fork. Her fingers brushed his lips, slow and teasing. She looked like a dream — the Amara he had wished for so many nights when she lay beside him yet felt galaxies away.
He wanted this. God, he wanted her. But a quiet voice whispered: Why now? Why all of a sudden?
Her sudden interest in him, the way she clung to him on the vacation, the way she touched him like she was trying to remember something she once lost. It was as if someone had pressed a switch. The woman who used to recoil from his affection now sought it out like a lifeline.
Zane tilted his head slightly, observing her.
"What?" Amara giggled, flicking a crumb off his beard.
He forced a smile. "Just thinking how lucky I am."
Her gaze softened. But for a fraction of a second, something passed through her eyes — guilt? Or sadness?
Zane leaned back, biting into the fruit she offered. He wouldn't push. Not yet. But his gut told him the truth lay just beyond the veil of her new affection.
---
Selene crossed her legs elegantly in the back of the black sedan, her lips stained with lipstick, her eyes hidden behind tinted sunglasses. She tapped the glass window twice, and the driver locked the car.
Across from her sat Camilla, twenty-three, buxom and naive, with too much mascara She chewed her gum like a cow in a field.
Selene tried not to sneer.
"You remember what I told you?"
Camilla nodded. "Yeah. Be hot, be forward, and get the boss to at least flirt back."
Selene leaned forward, her tone sweet and poisoned. "Not flirt, darling. Seduce. You're to fall into his arms. Make it seem like he initiated everything. If you can manage a kiss, better. If you can get his shirt off—"
"I get a bonus?" Camilla smiled with glittering teeth.
Selene laughed. "Of course. A generous one."
Zane's secretary had been paid to take an early lunch. The stage was set. All Camilla had to do was play her role.
Selene watched her step out of the car, hips swaying like a siren. And as she disappeared into the high-rise office building, Selene's smile twisted.
Amara was changing. She wasn't stupid anymore. That made her dangerous.
But if she and Darian could fracture her trust in Zane... then the rest would crumble like dust.
---
Zane's Office,
Zane was deep in quarterly reports and acquisition proposals when a soft knock tapped at the door.
He looked up, expecting Natalie, his assistant. "Come in."
But it wasn't Natalie
The woman who entered wore a tight white blouse, an indecently short skirt, and confidence that reeked of performance. Her long dark curls bounced as she stepped closer, hips rolling like she was modeling
Zane blinked, confused. "Can I help you?"
"Mr. Morreti," she purred. "I'm Camilla. I represent a new luxury fashion label looking to partner with Moretti Enterprises."
Zane's eyes narrowed slightly, though he masked it with politeness. "We usually don't entertain unsolicited visits without appointments, Miss Camilla."
She giggled, brushing invisible lint from his desk as she leaned forward. "Well, I'm not a fan of the traditional route."
Zane stood up abruptly. "I'm a married man, Miss , Let's not pretend this is about fashion.
She paused for only a second before her tone shifted. "You're quite the loyal husband. Shame your wife isn't the same."
Zane's jaw tensed. "Get out."
Camilla straightened slowly, smoothing down her dress. "You're going to regret this.
"Now."
She walked out, but not before dropping her card
The door shut.
Zane stared at the card for a long second, but didn't touch it. His fingers curled into fists as a low rage simmered under his calm. This wasn't random. This was planted. Someone was testing his resolve. Someone wanted him compromised.
He buzzed Natalie. "Find out everything you can about the woman who just left."
"Yes, sir."
---
Elsewhere, in the hidden corners of the estate, Selene paced her room like a predator denied a meal.
"She didn't bite," Darian said, lounging shirtless on her bed with a glass of scotch. "The little slut couldn't get him to even sit down. He kicked her out before she could unzip anything."
Selene's eyes narrowed to slits. "He's too clean. She's gotten to him."
"He's obsessed with her," Darian muttered, sipping. "And now she's playing perfect little wife.
Selene sat beside him and yanked the glass from his hand. He's suspicious. I can see it in his eyes. And if he starts digging..."
"Then what?" he snapped. "What's he going to find? That we're sleeping together? That we plotted to push Amara out of the picture so I could take his position at the company?"
She slammed the glass on the side table. "He'll find something. Or worse— Amara is not the fool she used to be."
Darian studied her, then smirked. "Are you... scared?"
Selene shoved him off the bed. "We can't afford a single misstep. You're the one who said we had this under control.
"Yes."
"Then why does it feel like she's winning?"
---
Later that night, Zane sat in bed, pretending to read while Amara emerged from the bathroom, wrapped in a satin robe, her damp hair clinging to her shoulders. She smiled softly and slid into bed beside him, curling against his chest.
"You've been quiet today," she murmured.
"Just tired," he lied.
She looked up at him, her eyes soft, tender. "You're thinking again."
He kissed her forehead but said nothing.
Amara closed her eyes, feeling the rise and fall of his chest beneath her cheek. She could feel the storm brewing inside him. He was pulling back again, little by little. Zane had always been perceptive. And though she tried to protect him from the weight of the truth, she wondered if it was already too late.
---
Meanwhile, Selene stared at the monitor in her room—the hidden surveillance footage of the estate blinking silently. Her fingers tapped anxiously on her thigh. Her plan with Camilla had failed. And Darian was beginning to slip into distraction, entertaining little trysts when their entire future was at stake.
Her fingers moved over the laptop as she pulled up archived messages, encrypted emails, hidden documents.
She needed something stronger. Something Amara couldn't come back from.
And next time, it wouldn't be seduction.
It would be war.