The rehearsal dinner was held at Le Ciel Noir, the kind of restaurant where reservations were booked six months in advance and the wine list was extremely expensive.Crystal chandeliers dripped light over white tablecloths, and every server moved with the precision of someone who knew one wrong step could cost them their career.
I arrived exactly twenty minutes late.
Not enough to seem rude because Rowan hated tardiness but enough to make heads turn when the maître d' escorted me through the private room. The chatter reduced, then swelled again, like a tide noticing something dangerous in the water.
I wore a black velvet coat over my outfit. It was floor-length, high-necked,with long sleeves that ended over my knuckles. No jewelry except the thin platinum band my father had given me on my eighteenth birthday,the one Rowan had once called "sentimental clutter." Tonight it felt like armor.
Heads turned as I walked. Whispers followed. Good. Let them look.
Rowan stood the moment he saw me, smile flashing like a billboard. He was handsome in that effortless way that made people forgive him anything, his dark hair was swept back, jaw sharp enough to cut glass, eyes the color of expensive whiskey. He crossed the room in three strides, arms open.
"Ariana, darling. You're stunning." His voice carried just far enough for the table to hear the affection in it.
I let him kiss my cheek. His lips lingered a second too long, the way they always did when he wanted witnesses.
"You're late," he murmured against my skin, the words wrapped in velvet.
"Traffic," I lied smoothly. "I had to take a call."
His brow lifted a bit. "Work?"
"Always." I stepped back before he could press, letting my gaze sweep the table. Thirty people, mostly his side investors, board members he'd been courting, a few socialites who owed him favors. Liora sat at the head opposite where I would be placed, wearing cream silk that made her look like vanilla ice cream someone had left out too long. She beamed when our eyes met.
"Ari! Finally!" She rose, arms wide, as if we were still the inseparable girls from boarding school.
I crossed to her slowly, let her air-kiss both cheeks. Up close, her perfume was the same one I'd bought her last Christmas,the one she'd claimed made her feel "powerful." I wondered if she still used it to cover the scent of guilt.
"You look radiant," I said. My voice was warm like honey. "That dress is perfect for you."
Her smile faltered for half a heartbeat. "Thank you. I wasn't sure about the color, but Rowan said it suited me."
"Of course he did." I tilted my head. "He has excellent taste."
Rowan's hand settled on the small of my back as he steered me to my seat beside him. The touch made my skin crawl, but I didn't flinch. Instead, I leaned into it just enough to sell the picture of devotion.
Dinner began with stories of how Rowan and I "met" at the university gala where he'd supposedly swept me off my feet. I smiled through every lie, nodding at the right moments, laughing softly when expected. Inside, I cataloged faces: who looked at Rowan with admiration, who glanced at Liora with envy, who avoided my eyes entirely.
Halfway through the main course of seared scallops that tasted like nothing,my phone vibrated once against my thigh. A single buzz. Moreau's team.
I excused myself to the rest room.
The hallway was quiet, carpet muffling my steps. I slipped into the marble restroom, locked the door behind me, and checked the encrypted app.
A single message:
Surveillance active.
Kane met Voss at 14:47 today. Private suite, Meridian Hotel. Key phrases captured:
"Seven days. After the gala, we move on the shares."
"She suspects nothing."
"Once the ring's on, the board will fall in line."
"Black name still carries weight. Use it."
Attached were grainy shots from a hallway camera. Rowan's hand on Liora's waist. Her head tilted back, laughing. My engagement ring glinted on her finger in one shot,she must have tried it on.
I stared at the images until my vision blurred at the edges.
Seven days.
They were counting down the same clock I was.
I deleted the message, wiped the cache, then washed my hands slowly, watching the water swirl down the drain like blood I hadn't spilled yet.
When I returned to the table, Rowan was mid-story, gesturing animatedly about some merger he'd closed last quarter. Everyone laughed on cue. I slid into my seat, picked up my wineglass, and took a slow sip.
He leaned close. "Everything all right?"
"Perfect," I murmured. "Just needed a moment to breathe."
His thumb brushed my wrist. "You seem… different tonight."
"Do I?" I met his eyes. "Maybe I'm finally waking up."
He chuckled, thinking it a joke. "About time. You've been so quiet lately."
I smiled. "Quiet people are usually planning."
Liora caught my gaze across the table. Her smile was bright, brittle. "Ari, tell them about the honeymoon! Rowan said Maldives, a private island, right?"
I set my glass down. "Actually, I've been rethinking the honeymoon."
"Oh?" Liora's laugh was too high. "Cold feet already?"
"Not cold feet." I looked straight at Rowan. "Just… priorities. There's so much happening with the company right now. I don't want to disappear for two weeks when decisions need to be made."
His jaw tightened almost immediately. "We discussed this. The board can handle—"
"The board answers to shareholders," I said softly. "And I'm still the largest one."
Silence dropped like a curtain. A few people shifted in their seats. Rowan recovered quickly, flashing that disarming grin.
"Of course, darling. We'll figure it out. Whatever makes you happy."
I inclined my head. "Thank you."
Under the table, my foot brushed his deliberately. He relaxed, thinking it affection. I was marking territory. Reminding him who still held the leash.
Dessert came and i excused myself again near the end, this time stepping onto the terrace for air.
The city glittered below while pulled out my phone and dialed a number I'd memorized from my first life but never used until now.
It rang once.
"Black Enterprises private line," a crisp female voice answered.
"Margaret," I said quietly. "It's Ariana."
Margaret was my father's former executive assistant,retired two years ago in my old timeline, but still on payroll as a consultant. She'd always liked me more than Rowan.
"Miss Black." Surprise warmed her tone. "This is unexpected."
"I need a meeting. Tomorrow morning. Boardroom, i need the full senior team. Tell them it's urgent."
"May I ask the agenda?"
"Shareholder rights."
Another pause. "I see. Shall I include Mr. Kane?"
"No." I watched the city lights blur. "Just the board. And Margaret?"
"Yes?"
"Bring the original documents."
She didn't ask why. "I'll have them ready."
I ended the call and slipped the phone back into my clutch.
When I returned inside, Rowan was laughing at something Liora said, his hand resting casually on the back of her chair. The sight used to twist my stomach. Now it only sharpened my focus.
I walked up behind him, placed a hand on his shoulder
"Darling," I said sweetly, "I think we should call it a night. Big day tomorrow."
He turned, eyes searching mine. "Everything okay?"
"Better than okay." I leaned down, lips brushing his ear. "I'm finally seeing clearly."
His smile flickered just for a second.
I straightened and addressed the table. "Thank you all for coming. It's been… illuminating."
Liora's smile was fixed. "See you at the gala, Ari?"
I looked at her, i really looked. The woman who'd held my hand through breakups, who'd cried at my parents' funeral, who'd then helped poison me.
"Wouldn't miss it," I said.
As we left, Rowan's arm around my waist, I felt the weight of eyes on us.
In the elevator down, he pulled me close. "You were different tonight."
I rested my head on his shoulder, the picture of contentment. "I'm just… excited for what's coming."
He kissed the top of my head. "Me too."
The doors opened to the lobby.
I stepped out first,my heels clicking on marble like countdowns.
Seven days.
Tomorrow I would begin dismantling the life he thought he'd already stolen.
And he would never see it coming.