Chapter 415

[ 1,012 words ]

Delia’s POV

Julian had taught me how to survive a man who did not want me.

Noah would learn that I already knew the lesson.

I opened the run-of-show document and began checking every line again. Timing. Entrances. Media positions. My name listed beside the greeting protocol. Mrs. Noah Vesper. The words looked strange and solid at the same time.

I worked until the sky outside the window turned dark. I sent the final file to Noah’s desk without a message. Then I sat back and looked at the ring one more time.

It was not affection. It was not rescue. It was a door. And I had already stepped through it.

I arrived at the Grand Meridian in a black car Noah’s office had sent. The dress I chose was deep emerald, structured, expensive, and cut to remind every person in the room that I still belonged in places like this. The Vesper ring sat plain and heavy on my finger. I kept adjusting it on the ride over, as if moving it around might make it look like it meant something more than a signature on a contract.

The steps outside the ballroom were already crowded with cameras and early guests. I stepped out of the car and felt the first flash go off. I lifted my chin and smiled the way I used to when the last name on my arm still opened every door.

Inside, the ballroom looked exactly as I had planned it. Black and gold. Tall florals. Soft light that made jewelry flash. Staff moved in clean lines. For a moment I felt a thin thread of control return. This room still answered to me, even if the man who had married me that morning could barely stand to look at me.

Noah was already there.

He stood near the entrance with Adrian, speaking in a low voice. When he saw me, he gave a short nod, nothing more. No hand on my back. No glance at the dress. No acknowledgment that I was supposed to be his wife in front of these people. He looked past me toward the doors as if checking for someone more important.

“You’re late,” he said when I reached him.

“I’m exactly on time p>

“Stand at the entrance. Smile. Greet the primary guests as they arrive. Do not create a problem p>

He walked off before I could answer. The dismissal was clean and public enough for anyone standing close to notice. Heat crawled up my neck, but I kept the smile in place. I had survived worse indifference. I could survive this.

I took my position near the main doors as instructed. Guests began to flow in. I shook hands, kissed cheeks, accepted compliments on the room, and watched every reaction to the ring on my finger. Some people stared. A few whispered. Good. Let them whisper. By the end of the night, the name Vesper would sit next to mine in every important conversation.

Then the air at the entrance changed.

Julian and Katia arrived.

Julian looked the same as always. Dark suit, unreadable face, the quiet authority that still made rooms adjust around him. But Katia was the one who stopped my breath for half a second.

Her dress was silver. Not the safe kind of silver. The kind that caught every light in the room and threw it back harder. It fit her like it had been made on her body that morning, simple in cut but impossible to ignore. Her hair was up. Her makeup was clean. She looked expensive without trying and calm without effort. Standing next to her, my emerald dress suddenly felt like I was trying too hard.

Jealousy hit sharp and immediately. I forced my smile wider and stepped forward exactly as Noah had ordered.

“Mr. Windsor. Mrs. Windsor. Welcome p>

Katia’s eyes moved over me once, from the ring on my finger to my face. There was no shock in her expression. Only a mild, almost bored assessment.

“Delia,” she said. Her voice was pleasant and distant. “The room looks lovely p>

Julian gave a short nod. Nothing else. His gaze had already moved past me into the ballroom, scanning, measuring, the same way he used to look at balance sheets.

I kept the smile in place even though it hurt my cheeks.

“Please, allow me to show you to your table p>

I walked them toward the main table, hyperaware of every step Katia took beside me. The silver dress moved like liquid. People turned to look at her. Not at me. At her. The same people who used to watch me when I walked into rooms on Julian’s arm were now tracking my sister instead. The realization sat bitter under my tongue.

At the table I pulled out Katia’s chair myself. Pettiness made me do it with extra care, as if perfect manners could erase the fact that she outshone me without even glancing in a mirror.

“Enjoy your evening,” I said.

Katia looked up at me. For a second something almost like pity crossed her face. Then it vanished.

“Thank you,” she said.

Julian was already seated, speaking quietly to a man I didn’t recognize. He did not look at me again.

I walked away with my spine straight and my hands curled into fists at my sides. The jealousy sat hot and messy in my chest. Of course she would show up looking like that. Of course she would make my carefully chosen dress feel like a consolation prize. She had taken the man. She had taken the public story. Now she was taking the oxygen in the room too.

Noah appeared at my shoulder without warning.

“You look tense,” he said under his breath.

“I’m fine p>

“Fix your face. People are watching p>

He moved away again, leaving the order behind him like a stain. I smoothed my expression and returned to the entrance to greet the remaining guests. Every compliment I received bounced off me. Every curious glance at my ring felt thinner than it had ten minutes earlier.

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