Chapter One
"ONE SIP…, Dan, ONE ... .SI..PPP" Kate whispered, venom lacing every syllable.
Her red lips barely moved, but the threat was as loud as a gunshot.
"That's all it takes. Either you marry me or your sister's fiance drinks this and dies."
The wine glass in Dan Alexander's hand trembled, he tried hiding his panic.
Across the marble counter, Kate stood like a queen scorned elegant, controlled, but radiating fury. The dark bottle between them seemed to hiss with silent menace.
Dan's jaw clenched so tightly it ached. A pulse ticked furiously at his neck.
"You wouldn't!!!"
Kate's smile was bitter.
"You thought I wouldn't fall in love????.... You thought I wouldn't find out?..... You thought I was your backup plan?....., your secret plaything????."
She stepped forward, her stiletto heels clicking against the polished floor like gunshots.
"Wrong!!!."
Through the glass doors leading to the penthouse balcony, Ava,Dan's younger sister was folded into a chair, weeping silently into her elbow.
Her engagement ring caught the dim light like a cruel reminder of the love at stake.
In another wing of the penthouse, Priestige echoed a faint laughter, unaware but floated like an insult.
Dan's heart felt like it was being pulled apart. His world had spiraled from control to chaos.
And it had all started six months ago.
Six Months Earlier
There were gentle lights on the rooftop, and soft jazz music was playing in the background.
You could hear the sound of glasses and ice clinking. The tall buildings of Manhattan sparkled above like a crown. It was the kind of fancy party only rich people could throw, and Kate felt like she didn't belong there at all.
But she didn't let it show. Her floor-length gown clung to her like it was designed for this very moment, her hair pinned in a perfect bun, her makeup flawless. Every step she took echoed confidence she didn't always feel. She was here for HIM.
Dan Alexander.
He stood on the other side of the rooftop, wearing a perfect black suit. He held a glass of champagne in one hand and laughed with a man in a dark blue suit. But then, as if he felt her staring, he turned around. Their eyes met.
And everything felt like it was happening in slow motion.
He crossed the floor silently and smoothly, never breaking eye contact.
"You came!" he murmured, lifting her hand and brushing his lips across her knuckles. His lips were warm. His look, warmer.
"You made it impossible not to," Kate replied, her throat tight with excitement and fear.
Dan chuckled. "Good☺️. I like IMPOSSIBLE things."
It was a simple line, charming but the way he said it made her feel chosen. Wanted. Special.
"As Fireworks exploded far away, they stood close together, feeling warm from being near each other even though the spring air was cold."
Kate's phone buzzed.
Prestige.
"Still hiding your man from me? Spill, babe!"
Kate locked the screen. Her thumb steved, hesitating. But instead of replying, she slipped the phone back into her grip and turned her attention back to Dan.
She believed some love stories were better when kept in shadows.
Prestige was light and fire and chaos.
Everyone loved her, both her teachers, strangers, men. She had that natural magnetism Kate had never quite mastered. They had grown up together, sharing everything from Barbie dolls to heartbreak. But somewhere along the way, Prestige had become the star and Kate, the shadow.
Still, they were sisters in soul if not in blood. Until that day.
It was a Thursday.
Kate walked into their apartment after her shift and found Prestige twirling in a satin cloth, barefoot, with the phone pressed to her ear and tulips on the counter.
"Girl, he's amazing. He makes me laugh so hard" Prestige gushed.
"And those eyes….God! Deep, dark, delicious…"
Kate froze while standing at the entrance door, Her breath snagged in her lungs.
Prestige's voice dropped. "I think he might be the one."
Kate already knew the answer, but she asked anyway.
"What's his name?"
Prestige slowly turned, her face lit like a child at Christmas. "Dan. Dan Alexander."
Kate didn't drop the keys in her hand, didn't scream. She didn't even blink. She nodded, painfully smiled.
Pretended her heart hadn't just been shattered by her words.
That night, while Prestige slept peacefully a room away, Kate sat at the edge of her bed, eyes glassy with anger and heartbreak💔.
How long has it been going on?
Had he known they were best friends?
Had he cared?
The pain slipped into something else. Something sharp.
She couldn't confront him. Not yet.
She would let this unfold let them believe she was clueless and ignorant of this happening, that she'd slink away like a wounded lamb.
But Kate had never been a lamb. Not really.
She started with Ava.
Dan's little sister was sweet and a No-problem individual, Kate almost pitied her. She met Ava at a charity gala supporting pediatric cancer. Kate had studied Ava's schedule for weeks before making her move.
It began when they laughed together while drinking mocktails.
Then, they started going to yoga classes.
Later, they had long brunch talks where Ava opened up about her fears and dreams.
She was in love with her fiancé, Dr. James, tall, charming, intelligent. But insecure about Prestige.
Within a month, Ava trusted Kate more than anyone else.
By the second month, Kate had offered to help her plan the wedding.
By the third, she had the perfect weapon🥺.
Present Day
Dan's knees hit the marble floor.
His face was pale. His lips,hands and legs trembled.
"Kate, please," he rasped.
"Ava is fragile. If you hurt her….if James drinks that"
He couldn't finish the sentence. The mere idea was suffocating.
Kate circled him like a predator,slow and deliberate and her heels a ticking clock.
"Did you think about me when you kissed her? When you called her by my name in your sleep?"
Dan swallowed hard. "I thought you didn't care. You never said anything. You kept us in the dark."
"You made me hide. You called me 'too intense.' You didn't want the world to see us because I wasn't Prestige."
Kate's voice cracked, just for a moment.
Then she picked up the glass, raised it to eye level, and twirled it in her fingers.
"I want you to feel what I felt. Betrayed. Powerless. Forgotten."
Dan's eyes flicked between her and the wine.
"You poisoned it?"
Kate tilted her head.
"Maybe. Maybe not. What's life without a little risk, Dan?"
The door opened slightly.
Prestige entered, radiant in a red gown, her smile faltering the moment she saw the scene.
"Dan?" she asked, stepping closer. "What's going on?"
Kate turned to her slowly. Her voice softened to a dangerous purr.
"Just reminiscing... about old times."
The air thickened with dread.
Ava stood outside, screaming through tears now, her voice muffled by the balcony glass. Prestige stepped closer to the counter.
"What's in the wine, Kate?"
Dan lunged forward, grabbing the glass. Kate didn't stop him.
He held it up, stared at it, then at Kate.
"Why are you doing all this?" he whispered.
Kate exhaled, slow and heavy.
"Because when a heart breaks, it doesn't just hurt but it wants to break something back."
The glass slipped f
rom his fingers and shattered on the floor.
Red pooled like blood.
But the poison wasn't in the wine. It never was….yet.
It was in the bitter truth.
And someone was still going to bleed🩸 and….