Rival's Daughter: 6. The Choice

The room still hummed with the echo of her father’s furious words.

Her hands shook as she braced them against the edge of the mahogany table, knuckles white, heart thundering in her chest. The storm between father and daughter had broken open in the last chapter, and standing in the middle of it was Damien—unruffled, calm, as though he’d been born to thrive in chaos.

Her father’s voice was still ragged when he spat,

“You’ll ruin yourself, Lila. He’s poison. He does not really have any feelings for you, surely you must know that.”

Damien’s lips curved into that infuriating, dangerous smile.

“Funny. Poison is only deadly if you don’t know how to use it.”

His eyes shifted to her, piercing, commanding. “And she knows exactly what she’s doing, believe me.” His tone implying something sinful.

Lila’s father slammed his fist against the table, but she was barely listening. Her world was narrowing down to Damien—his broad shoulders relaxed, his suit