Chapter 8 #2
He extended his hand. When she tentatively placed her smaller hand in his, he didn’t just shake it.
He bowed his head slightly, pressing a warm, deliberate kiss to the back of her hand, letting his lips linger against her soft skin for much longer than polite etiquette required. He felt her pulse jump under his mouth.
Instead of stepping back, Sean used his grip on her hand to smoothly pull her into a half-embrace. He leaned down, his mouth hovering just a fraction of an inch from her ear, breathing in the intoxicating scent of her expensive perfume.
“You are beautiful,” he whispered, his voice a low, dark rumble meant only for her. “The most elegant woman in this entire hall.”
When he pulled back, a soft, genuine smile had broken through the tension on Rosália’s face, a delicate flush rising to her cheeks.
Beside her, David cleared his throat. It was a harsh, grating sound.
Sean slowly shifted his gaze. David was glaring at him, a deep, territorial scowl marring his perfectly curated features. With a possessive jerk, David reached out, wrapping his hand around Rosália’s waist to pull her flush against his side and assert his dominance.
Sean watched, a dark smirk playing on his lips, as Rosália reacted instantly.
She didn’t make a scene, but her rejection was absolute. She quickly and smoothly shifted her weight, stepping out of David’s hold and creating a cold, deliberate foot of empty space between them.
David blinked, his hand falling uselessly to his side. He looked down at his wife, entirely confused by the sudden, freezing distance, his brow furrowing in irritation. He opened his mouth to say something, but before he could speak, a flash of sparkling gold caught Sean’s eye.
Katherine arrived, practically bouncing to a stop beside Sean, her face plastered with a wide, breathless smile.
“David! Rosália! You made it!” she chirped brightly.
For a split second, Sean’s chest tightened.
He watched Rosália carefully. After the devastating video on the terrace, he wouldn’t have blamed her if she slapped Katherine across the face or simply burst into tears.
He wondered if she would be able to hide the absolute disgust churning in her stomach.
But Rosália showed him exactly how incredibly strong she was.
Her spine straightened like a rod of steel. The polite, flawless mask of the gallery director slid perfectly into place. She looked at the woman who was sleeping with her husband and offered a warm, gracious smile.
“Katherine,” Rosália said, her voice dripping with her usual friendliness and absolute kindness. “You look lovely tonight. Thank you so much for having us.”
It was a masterclass in composure. Sean felt a surge of profound, fierce admiration for the woman in red.
For the next few minutes, they stood in a suffocatingly tight circle of four, exchanging pleasantries.
The dynamic was completely severed. Sean actively and entirely ignored Katherine, refusing to even look in her direction, keeping his attention locked on Rosália.
And Rosália, in turn, completely ignored David, refusing to meet her husband’s confused, irritated glances.
Finally, knowing he needed to circulate to keep up appearances, Sean stepped back. He reached out and took Rosália’s hand one last time, pressing a quick, parting kiss to her knuckles.
“Make yourself comfortable tonight, Rosália,” he commanded softly, holding her gaze with a heavy, unspoken promise. “Enjoy the champagne. And if you need absolutely anything... you just have to ask.”
“I will,” Rosália smiled, her eyes flashing with a shared, secret understanding. “Thank you, Sean.”
Sean turned and walked away, melting back into the crowd of wealthy guests.
Predictably, he didn’t even make it ten yards before he heard the rapid clicking of heels behind him. Katherine rushed to catch up, grabbing his bicep to pull him to a stop near one of the massive ice sculptures.
“Sean,” she whispered fiercely, looking up at him with a deep pout. “You’re acting so strange today.”
Sean arched an eyebrow, looking down at her with cool detachment. “Strange how?”
“You’ve barely spoken two words to me all night,” Katherine complained, her fingers digging into his jacket. “And we’re not even greeting the guests together. Everyone is asking where you are. I look like I’m here alone.”
Sean fought back a dark, cruel smirk. He smoothly detached her hand from his arm.
“It’s a massive hall, Katherine,” he lied flawlessly, his tone entirely reasonable. “There are over two hundred people here. By splitting up, we can talk to more guests and cover more ground. It’s basic networking.”
Katherine blinked, her pout softening as she processed the excuse. She let out a small, appeased sigh. “Oh. Really? I guess... I guess that makes sense.”
Sean turned back toward the crowd, leaving her standing by the ice sculpture. As he walked away, a cold, ruthless thought echoed in his mind.
He honestly couldn’t tell if she had always been this incredibly gullible, or if she was just so arrogant that she believed she was simply too clever to ever be caught. Either way, she was about to learn a very hard lesson.