Chapter 5 Champagne and Cracks

The car was quiet on the way home.

Not awkward quiet-just... soft. Like neither of them wanted to be the first to break the spell that had started on that ballroom floor.

Alina sat back against the leather seat of her sleek black Maybach, eyes half-lidded, heels off, legs curled under her. Jesse watched the city lights dance across her face like gold confetti.

"You did well tonight," she said finally, her voice low, almost thoughtful. "Better than expected."

Jesse gave a small smile. "So I passed your little billionaire test?"

She didn't answer right away. "You didn't embarrass me. That's more than most men in tuxedos can say."

He laughed quietly, his voice more genuine than she'd heard it all night. "You know, you're different when you're not wearing your armor."

She looked over at him, caught off guard. "Armor?"

"Yeah," he said, turning to face her. "That steel tone, the way you walk like you own every room. Don't get me wrong-it's hot. But I see past it."

Her lips parted slightly.

"I see a woman who's scared of needing anyone," Jesse added, softer now. "Because people let her down."

The air between them shifted.

No one had ever said that to her. Not even the people who'd known her for years. She swallowed, not quite ready to admit he was right.

But then she did something she rarely did-she leaned toward him, just a little.

"Maybe I am scared," she murmured. "But you're not supposed to see that."

"And yet," Jesse said with a slow grin, "here we are."

The car turned into the estate's gates, and for one insane second, Alina thought about leaning in. About closing that distance. About maybe-maybe-forgetting the contract.

But then Marcus, the house manager, was at the front steps. Waiting. Pale.

"Miss Sterling," he said as the car door opened. "You need to see this. Right now."

Alina's heart dropped. "What is it?"

He handed her a sleek black tablet.

A news article was on the screen.

"Fake Fiancé? Jesse Kane's Troubled Past Exposed – Fraud Charges, Eviction Records, and a Mysterious Disappearance."

Jesse leaned over and saw the headline just as her expression went cold.

Her voice, when it came, was steel again. "Is this true?"

Jesse opened his mouth-but nothing came out fast enough.

And just like that, the glass slipper shattered.