Chapter 26

• The days leading up to the charity gala passed in a blur of quiet anticipation and nervous energy. Danielle tried to keep herself busy—playing with Theo, helping in Alexander's sleek, glass-walled kitchen, sneaking away to the guest room to check emails—but beneath it all, the upcoming event loomed like a thundercloud she couldn’t ignore.
• It wasn’t just the idea of dressing up or being seen with Alexander. It was the questions that would come. The speculations. The whispers from people who already lived in a world Danielle had spent years trying to avoid.
• And yet… a part of her wanted to go. To stand beside him. To stop hiding.