It’s all that damn detective’s fault. Viv can pinpoint Damien’s mood going downhill to the exact moment they ran into the cop.

They’ve not talked during the drive back to the penthouse. She hadn’t noticed the change in Damien so much at the gala, with all those eyes on her, and the band playing, and the speeches. He’d sounded cheerful onstage, giving his keynote address and thanking all those who had forked out money for his charity. But now she realizes that he hasn’t even looked at her since they took their places at the top table.

“Why was he even there?” she asks, just as the sedan turns the corner into Damien’s street. “Did you really invite him?”

“Yes,” he snaps. “I told you.”

“Well, that was stupid,” she says, anger bubbling up inside her. “He ruined everything.”

She doesn’t look at Damien, but out of the corner of her eye Viv can tell he’s fighting with his self-control. She wishes he’d snap at her. It’s early in their relationship for their first fight, but this seems a good enough reason to start one.

The car stops, and Damien lets out a long breath. “I’m tired, Viv,” he says. “Can we not do this now?” He opens the door. “Thanks for the ride. I’ll see you soon, okay?”

And before she can say anything, or hold him back, the door slams shut.

Viv contemplates getting out and running after him. Her purple overnight bag sits by her feet; she expected to stay the night. But she does have her pride. Vivienne Aubert doesn’t run after men.

“Where to now, miss?” the driver asks, shaking Viv from her reverie.

“Home, of course,” she snaps. As the car peels away from the curb and turns at the next corner back into Manhattan’s night traffic, Viv bunches her dress more tightly in her lap and slides down in the seat, sulking. What a waste it was, to wear the Elie Saab tonight. And the four hundred dollars for hair, nails, makeup, and fitting also sting, like the sudden tears in the corners of her eyes.

But she won’t blame Damien. He invited her, after all. He told her she looked nice, introduced her to people when they got to the Bowery Hotel, and was his usual kind self—right up until Moretti spoiled it all.

Was it necessary to invite the guy to a high-profile event just because he had been kind? What does a cop care about a charity gala? And if Damien really needed help, why hadn’t he said so when she turned up last week? She’d come to New York to be with him; he had to know that. She can’t read minds. When will people learn that they need to speak up if they want something from her?

Viv worked hard for what she has achieved, yes, but she’s always asked for what she needed, when she needed it. Her mother made sure she learned that from the moment she could talk. Viv can still hear Mother’s voice. “Speak up, I can’t hear you. Tell me what you want. Things don’t just fall into your lap, Vivienne. You need to fight for them, and you need to speak up, so people can hear you.”

Mother always ignored her if she sat around and sulked, hoping to be cuddled or praised. Hard work and assertiveness. It’s really not that complicated. If a five-year-old can understand that, then a grown man shouldn’t need telling.

Viv wonders what Mother would think of Damien. She approves of Victor, because he’s become rich through hard work, and gets richer by the day. Victor always takes what he needs. When Annushka met him for the first time, she’d not been able to find a single thing to complain about to Viv afterward. Somehow, Viv doesn’t think the same would be true about Damien.

But that doesn’t matter. Mother no longer matters in her life. Viv hasn’t spoken to her since leaving LA, and she doesn’t plan to. Viv has no interest in seeing any of her New York relations. She has more important things to do.

As she gets out of the car in front of her building and strides into the lobby, ignoring the doorman on duty who holds open the door for her, Viv places a hand on her abdomen.

Nobody needs to approve of her choice, and it doesn’t even matter that Dark Core will be enveloped in scandal before it even opens. Damien is the right choice for her. He’s the only one who has ever given her what she really wants. And he’ll know soon enough.