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I THINK I'VE BEEN SPOILED , Sarah realized over at dinner that evening. Josiah and Naomi had just made their grand entrance, and while Sarah joined the rest of the guests in getting to their feet and clapping, part of her mind remained busy (over) analyzing Damian's present behavior.

He had never ignored me before, Sarah thought uneasily. He avoided being with her, yes, but the moment they were in the same room, he had always been attentive to her needs and never failed to make her feel special. That was how it had always been...until now.

The thought had Sarah searching the ballroom for the billionaire, and she eventually found him seated at a table with his peers, all of whom were unmarried like him.

She waited for him to look her way, like he usually did, but this time the billionaire's attention remained fixed on their parents, who were now descending the ballroom's sweeping staircase like American royalty.

Was this him being jealous over something Colton said or did?

Or was he truly mad at her for some other reason?

She couldn't stop obsessing over the reason behind his indifference, and she couldn't stop her gaze from continuously darting to his table, just to see if he'd finally look her way. But he never did, and even worse—-

A woman had approached Damian, and as she bent down to talk to the billionaire, Sarah didn't miss the way the other woman's breasts had threatened to swallow Damian's face whole. The bitch!

Sarah sharply turned away to glare down at her salad while a mass of emotions churned inside of her. She was furious and stupidly jealous, but she was also hurt and afraid. This weekend was supposed to be about proving herself she was over Damian, so why was she acting like this?

She took her phone out in an effort to distract herself, and Sarah did end up forgetting about the billionaire when she saw the number of calls she had missed from Colton.

As she typed a quick text, asking what was wrong, her phone rang again, and Sarah immediately excused herself when she saw the name that had popped up on her screen.

After stepping out of the ballroom, she walked several meters away before answering the call. "Hey, Hardy."

Unbeknownst to Sarah, Damian had gone after her the moment he saw her leave, and as he came closer, he heard her speaking in a voice that could only be described as affectionate.

"No, I haven't told them about you yet, sorry...I'm just waiting for the right time."

Damien could feel his face whitening as he listened to Sarah's words.

"Trust me, it will work out. Okay? So stop worrying and stressing yourself. Can you promise me that?"

Damian's fists clenched at the tender look on Sarah's face.

"I love you, too, Hardy. Good night." Sarah ended the call with a sigh of relief.

Thank God she been able to talk Hardy out of doing something crazy.

Turning around to head back to the ballroom, she had only taken a few steps back when she saw Damian standing in front of her, and she let out a startled squeak.

"Damian?"

"I never thought Moore was telling me the truth."

She stared at him in genuine bewilderment. "What are you talking about?"

"There's no need to pretend," Damian snapped. "Moore told me enough."

"I really have no idea—-"

" Hardy ," Damian nearly spat the name out in his rage. "The one you just finished speaking to and said I love you to, dammit. That's the man I'm talking about."

Sarah froze.

"And the reason why you haven't told any of us about him is because he's married," Damian condemned harshly. "Isn't it?"

"W-What?" But her mind was already working overtime, and when she saw Damian start towards her, she didn't even hesitate. She took her heels off and ran away without looking back.

"Goddammit, Sarah. Don't make me go after you."

But this only made Sarah run faster, and she picked her skirts up as she climbed the steps leading up to the suites. Think, Sarah! She needed to make the most out of her headstart before the billionaire caught up with her, which she knew was only a matter of time.

Damian mentioned about Moore telling him something.

Was that why Colton had been trying to get a hold of her?

And then there was the way he had been spitting mad when talking about Hardy.

Understandable, considering his dog-in-the-manger attitude and hearing her say 'I love you' over the phone.

But what was that about the married bit?

Was he insinuating that she was having an affair with Hardy of all people?

If he was, and she said no, he might want to know more, and what if—-

Fingers cupped her elbow.

Time's up, Sarah thought with a gulp.

And then she was being spun around, and her back fell against the balustrade as she stared up at Damian's icy expression.

"No more lies, Sarah," he snarled. "Are you having an affair with a married man or not?"

Sarah mentally crossed her fingers.

And then she heard herself say, "Yes."

"Goddammit, Sarah. Are you fucking serious?" Damian raked down at her. "Even Moore would be a better deal than that asshole, dammit." And when Sarah only continued looking up at him, he couldn't stop himself from gripping her shoulders to give her a good, hard shake. "Say something, dammit!"

Sarah swallowed hard. "I'm...sorry?"

"Enough to get rid of him?"

"I..."

Damian looked as if he was about to strangle her. "What the fuck is there for you to hesitate for? Do you really love him that much?"

Sarah didn't dare let herself speak. Damian knew her all too well, after all, and if she wasn't careful, he'd end up tripping her into telling the truth like he always did.

"Give me his name—-"

"Damian? Sarah? What the hell are you two doing up there?"

The sound of Josiah's puzzled voice distracted Damian, and Sarah didn't waste time in seizing the chance to escape. Shoving him off, she quickly ran down the steps to join her stepfather in the landing.

"Sorry for going MIA," she apologized quickly. "Damian and I just had a bit of an argument, and we thought it would be better to keep it from the public eye."

Josiah glanced at his son, who was coming down the steps with a shuttered exprssion, and then back at his stepdaughter, who had just finished sliding her tiny feet back into her glittery heels. "Is it something I should meddle with?"

"Yes."

"No."

The two had answered at the same time, but what stunned Josiah was who had said what, and Damian, who normally asked him to mind his own business, was now suddenly singing a different tune and wanting him to get involved.

In times like this, it was best to side with the woman, and so Josiah simply said, "Let's head back before Naomi reports us missing."

"I agree," Sarah said quickly, and because she had yet to ask Damian not to say anything about Hardy to anyone, she held back to wait for Damian and curved her arm around the billionaire's as soon as he reached her side.

"It's best to present a united front tonight of all nights, don't you think, big brother ? "

The subtle warning wasn't lost on him, and Damian's lips curved in a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Quite right, little sister. " But the moment Josiah turned and started walking ahead of them, he said under his breath, "Don't even fucking think this is over."

"Just please don't tell Josiah or Mom about this," she please. And as all eyes turned to them as they followed Josiah up the ballroom stage, she whispered, "Please, Damian. This is my problem to solve—-"

"Just give me his name," Damian murmured as they took position, "and he'll cease to be a problem."

He means he wants Hardy to cease existing at all, Sarah thought, but this she could only keep to herself as the live orchestra had already started playing and it was time for both Damian and her to join their parents in tonight's opening waltz.

Unlike Sarah, whose attention was focused intensely on not missing any steps, Damian hadn't any problems multitasking, and the billionaire continued to brood over Sarah's surprising show of stubbornness towards the other man.

That it was possible for Sarah to actually have fallen in love with another man, Damian refused to consider at all.

Sarah was his, dammit . Always had been, always would be, and no other fucking man, a married douchebag least of all, would change that.

When the music finally ended, a plan had already formed in the billionaire's mind, and no time was wasted in executing it.

As soon as they finished making their bows to the stage and the curtains fell behind them, Damian drew Sarah close, and ignoring their parents' curious looks, took her with him to one of the rooms backstage.

The hallway backstage was dimly lit, and Sarah's heart started beating harder and faster for no reason.

Damian opened the first door to their right and flipped the light switch open, saying, "We'll talk here."

Since it was to her advantage that neither of their parents accidentally hear anything about Hardy, Sarah forced herself to nod and followed the billionaire inside the empty dressing room.

She watched nervously as he closed the door shut, but as soon as he turned to her, anxiety simply got the better of her, and she blurted out, "I mean it about Hardy.

If you tell Josiah or Mom about him, I will never forgive you. "

The tremor in her voice told Damian how serious she was, and it was exactly what he didn't want...but needed to see.

"I can give you my word that I won't say a word to our parents under one condition."

For some reason, Sarah suddenly felt like she was about to enter into a bargain with the Devil, but a quick, wary glance at his features achieved nothing. His handsome face was a completely expressionless mask, and it left her no choice but to say slowly, "Alright. What do you want in return?"

"Something quite simple—-"

"I doubt that—-"

"Marry me."