Rose took a tense breath before she caught herself. Her fingers twitched around her glass, the stem shaking just enough for the closest guests to notice. In her eyes reflected a new fear.
Rose wasn't afraid of me — she was afraid of losing the life she built from the pieces of mine.
Everyone in the room was looking at her—waiting, hungry—to see how she, the newly crowned darling of high society, would react to my sudden appearance. Conversations died instantly. Even the orchestra faltered for a beat as if the entire ballroom forgot how to breathe.
It was almost funny. Rose had fought so hard to stand where she was now, and yet a single look from me had shaken her enough to freeze the entire room.
A few people exchanged nervous looks as if they were witnessing a royal fall from grace in real time.
But letting this play out slowly would only give her and Karl time to recover and build a defensible excuse.
So before they could regain their footing, I tugged Damian's arm.
He understood instantly.
Damian didn't hesitate. He guided me directly toward the center of the room—toward them. Each sharp click of my heels echoed like a countdown.
With every step forward, the crowd parted faster, retreating as though physical contact with me would curse their reputations.
"Oi—! Should we stop her?"
"Are you insane? She came with Damian Black. Touch her and you'll lose your job…or your head."
"Miss Rose will handle it. She has to. This is a disaster if she doesn't."
Whispers turned frantic, spreading like fire — panic and excitement blending into something dangerous.
The security didn't even move. It should've been their job to intervene, and yet they practically bowed out of the way.
One guard visibly broke into a sweat as we passed, eyes glued to the floor rather than my face.
'So the security really has gone downhill. Good—that just makes things easier.'
We reached the center of the room without resistance. My ex-family stared at me with horrified eyes—like I was a corpse that crawled out of its grave just to ruin them. Someone let out a sharp gasp. Another covered her mouth, tears forming like she'd seen a ghost.
Damian stopped. We waited.
And waited.
Rose and Karl stood frozen—no words, no smiles, no excuses. Karl's throat bobbed with a hard swallow, and Rose's knuckles turned white around her glass.
So I started the conversation myself.
"Damian, won't you introduce me to these lovely people once more?"
My voice was soft, melodic—her voice. The one they buried. The one they thought they would never hear again. There was a subtly hidden jab behind my words, but no one caught it.
Even then, several people flinched.
It was glorious. Someone near the front visibly shivered, making the entire row tense like dominoes.
"Y-You—! A-Ahmm… Mr Black, who is your lovely partner? Where did you find her?"
My stepmother recovered first, though her stare trembled. Even with that polished smile, there was desperation in her eyes—like she was waiting to see whether the world would burn or not.
The corner of her smile jerked uncontrollably, betraying just how terrified she was.
Rose tried to mimic the same calm. But panic twitched at the corners of her eyes. Her chest rose and fell too fast, the beginning of hyperventilation she couldn't hide.
Karl though? Karl was the weakest link. He kept looking at me—then away—then at me again. Guilty. Cornered. Afraid. His pupils were blown wide, and sweat gathered at his temples despite the cool room.
Damian followed my gaze and struck exactly where I wanted.
"My partner is Jenna… Jenna Lorance. Mr Hanson, are you alright? You look rather shaken."
Karl coughed violently, shoulders lurching. The moment he heard Jenna, his soul practically left his body. Only the different surname steadied him—barely.
But it was too late. Gasps rippled through the reporters. Cameras flashed like lightning. Multiple microphones were raised in unison. Questions overlapped before words even formed — chaos surged.
Rose tried her best to maintain her facade, but it had started to crumble. Her smile twitched, terrified that the cameras might catch the real her underneath
'Perfect. I'll have to bribe a few of them later, but this alone is enough to start a fire.'
"Y-You're Jenna Lorance… not Jenna Harvour? T-Thank god. For a second I thought—"
Rose stomped on Karl's foot so hard he nearly yelped.
Too late.
Everyone saw it. Everyone heard it. Everyone would talk.A stunned silence fell — the terrifying kind where everyone was recording with their eyes and their phones.
Rose and Karl's image—built so perfectly over the last month—now had its first crack.
I would have let things end there. But Damian saw an opportunity and tightened his grip around my waist.
"Oh? What is with that reaction, Mr Hanson? Your response to my partner is… suspicious. Perhaps you still have lingering feelings for your former fiancée and can't move on. Or maybe it's because… you have something you desperately want to hide."
His voice was casual, but the room froze.
The reporters surged forward like bloodhounds chasing a fresh scent.Flashes burst in rapid fire. People rushed closer. Someone actually screamed, "Get closer! Get it on camera!"
Karl stumbled over his words, face chalk-white.
"I… I… that is—"
"Karl, stop it! You're embarrassing me."
Rose's voice cracked on the last syllable, and tears pooled in her eyes — not from sadness, but rage.
Rose hissed under her breath, her nails digging into his arm. She wasn't composed anymore—she was panicking. She glanced around wildly, like a trapped animal preparing to bite.
Before she could recover, I decided to intercept the conversation.
"Oh my-! So you are Mr. Karl Hanson I have heard so much about? You seem rather handsome in person. You must be proud. Most people never get this far without any real talent. It makes me wonder what your secret is…"
Cough.
Not only did Karl flinch, but he choked as well. Karl couldn't look at me without flinching, like he expected me to speak his crime out loud.
"I…had…well have a wonderful partner who makes me shine. Welcome you and your partner to this party held in honor of my partner. I hope you have… a fun time here."
His voice broke midway, turning the polite greeting into a public confession of fear. His hands were trembling and shaking more and more every second.
My parents hovered behind them—silent, stiff, terrified. They didn't dare speak. Not to me. Not when the world was watching. My father's lips moved without sound — praying or swearing, I couldn't tell.
Damian looked at me, eyes gleaming—Your turn.
So I finished it.
"Thank you for the warm welcome, Mr Hanson. I'm sure my partner and I will thrive from now on. I wish you the same…if you can."
Damian's hand tightened around my shoulder. I leaned into him—the perfect couple, unbothered and untouchable.
Karl's face twisted. His eyes darted between Damian and me, his composure fracturing with every passing second. Every look at me seemed to stab him, and every look at Damian seemed to crush him.
Finally, Karl grabbed Rose and yanked her toward the back rooms. She didn't fight him—she fled with him.Rose didn't look back once — as if looking at me again might finish her on the spot.
Reporters snapped photos of their retreat like wolves tearing into prey. The room roared with questions — no one cared about etiquette anymore.
I could already imagine the headlines.
The Ex-Fiancée Returns??? — Rose Harvour's Perfect Engagement in Jeopardy?
Karl Hanson's Terrified Reaction Sparks Cheating Rumors!
Is the Harvour Heiress Hiding a Scandal?
For the first time in a long time, my heart felt light.
This was only the beginning.
And I couldn't wait to burn everything they'd built. And judging by the way the ballroom burned with curiosity and dread, the audience couldn't wait either.