Fake Fiancée, Real Feelings

h my name embossed in exquisite gold script. There is no return

ty coffee mug I'd been nursing throughout the

tate company competing for the gallery's space. But the reverse merely had a wax

umb beneath the seal, breaking it clea

s Amara

with Blackwood & Royce Barristers and Solicitors.

sinc

wood

ime, the words refusing to sett

on ear

ge in the rear barely audible above my racing heart. Why w

down my spine. The Gallery. Wa

Royce" into the search field. The first outcome was their website, a slick, black-and-white por

?" I wh

iddle of the city. Their clientele didn't include struggling gallery owners, and

oughts whirling. If this was about the g

ing Gideon Crosswell to come in with another ultimatum. Instead, there was Clara, my ch

ed, raising two paper ba

needed her the most, but I wasn't convin

r," I remarked wit

a of Thai curry permeating the atmosphere. Clara look

tered a ghost," she said, plunging

the table. She read it

she remarked, l

thi

it's about t

. "But I can't think of an

er lips forming a narrow li

a place like Blackwood & Royce wa

d ultimately. "If this is about the galler

ained distant as if she was

" I pr

ke that, individuals like them-they don't fol

jumbled mess of dark boardrooms and gilded invitations, wi

eck to appreciate the vastness of the building. Glass and steel ascended towards

he chilly air indoors sharply differ

Miss Si

eceptionist welcomed me, her refine

one steady even though

ere, pl

walls that showed my anxious expression. When the do

y embellished with contemporary art. At the of the table was a ma

Sinc

he receptionist welcomed me, her ref

one steady even though

this

walls that reflected my anxious look. When the doors

th floor, exposing a stylish hallway

cked once before pus

d women wearing tailored suits. At the head of the table sat a guy w

sing to meet me. "Thanks for co

o conceal my uneasiness. "What

n blank. "We will get to that. First, wh

ke a freight train. My fa

do with anything?" I i

e of his coworkers be

s more than just an art collector. "He was

pped. "I don't

a folder across the table. "Bu

my father, younger than I had ever noticed him, positioned in

ary line of text that sent

ACY IS

quickening as Charles

llery, Miss Sinclair," he added