The lights dripped gold from the chandeliers. A string quartet played Vivaldi, but the applause belonged to the money in the room, not the music. Crystal glasses clinked like secrets being toasted in silence.
The Verano–Lagrimas merger gala was less a celebration and more a coronation — for Vivienne Lagrimas, the woman who never heard "no."And that made it the perfect battlefield.
Celeste Dela Peña stood just beyond the grand staircase, eyes fixed on her reflection in the floor-to-ceiling windows. The satin of her wine-colored gown shimmered like blood in moonlight, and her bare shoulders carried a history no one here remembered. She touched the gold locket at her throat — her mother's — and smiled at the image in the glass. Cool. Polished. A mask over fury.
Let them think you're here to network, she though.
Let them believe you're just another ambitious face trying to breathe in this gilded cage. That's how they fall.
She stepped into the room. Eyes turned. Whispers sparked, but she walked with the weightless precision of someone who belonged.
Vivienne, wrapped in white sequins and ego, noticed instantly.
Her lips curled. Threat. But not for the right reason.
Celeste returned a calm nod, like a wolf bowing politely to an aging lioness.
That's when she saw him. By the bar, his silhouette carved from obsidian and silver. Dark hair, immaculately swept. Crisp black suit. Cufflinks glinting like hidden blades. Adrian Verano didn't smile.
He studied the room like a strategist, like someone who'd been handed everything but still refused to be soft.
His eyes found hers.
Cold. Sharp. Intrigued. Celeste held his gaze like a dare. He didn't look away.
Instead, he stepped forward.
The crowd melted between them, and soon he was standing a breath away. Up close, Adrian was taller than she expected — but not overbearing. Just… still. Like he was used to making people nervous without ever raising his voice.
"You're not on the guest list," he said, voice quiet but even. "Not one I've seen, at least."
Celeste tilted her head. "Then maybe your list needs updating."
A flicker of a smirk touched his lips. Rare. Dangerous.
"Who are you?"
She extended her hand. "Celeste Dela Peña. I consult for Altura & Co. I'm part of the new brand integration team for the merger."
Adrian's hand met hers — firm, warm. Controlled.
"Ah. Vivienne's new acquisition," he said, gaze flicking to her locket before returning to her eyes.
"She's been bringing in consultants like chess pieces lately."
Celeste smiled. "Let's hope I'm a queen then."
He raised a brow. "And if I'm the king?"
"Then it depends who makes the first move."
Their eyes locked. For a second, the orchestra faded, the clinking, the noise — everything softened under the weight of what neither of them said.
He doesn't know who I am, she reminded herself.
He doesn't know what I'm here to destroy.
But something in his stare — precise, unreadable — made her chest betray her. A flicker, a pause.
Adrian leaned slightly closer.
"Be careful, Miss Dela Peña. In this room, every move is watched. Especially beautiful ones."And just like that, he turned and walked away. Leaving her standing alone. heart… not racing but awake.
Celeste inhaled sharply, keeping her face still.
From across the room, Vivienne watched. Her smile frozen, her glass trembling ever so slightly in her manicured hand.