chapter 29

Selena entered the room with her usual air of confidence, her heels clicking sharply against the polished marble floor. Scar Boss followed her inside, his expression neutral, but his mind already on high alert. He knew this woman well—knew the power she held over him, especially now.Selena wasted no time. She reached into her sleek leather bag and pulled out a stack of papers, laying them out carefully on the coffee table between them. Her eyes gleamed as she watched Scar Boss, knowing that she had him exactly where she wanted him.“You’ve been looking for these,” Selena said, her voice dripping with satisfaction. “And now, I have them.”Scar Boss’s eyes flicked down to the papers, but he didn’t make a move toward them. He knew what was at stake here. The papers were something he had been desperately trying to get his hands on—evidence that could either clear him or ruin him. But Selena wasn’t about to just hand them over. Not without a price.“What do you want?” Scar Boss asked, his voice cold and steady, though he was seething inside. He hated this. Hated that he was at her mercy.Selena’s smile widened, like a cat toying with its prey. She leaned back in her chair, crossing her legs casually. “I think you already know what I want.”Scar Boss’s jaw clenched. He knew exactly what this was about. Selena had always been after one thing—control. And now, she was going to make sure she got it.“I want to be your fiancée,” Selena said, her voice almost too sweet. “And for that, you’ll have to divorce Amaira. Once you do that, I’ll gladly give you back these papers. You’ll get everything you want, and you’ll finally be free of this mess.”For a moment, Scar Boss was silent, his eyes hard and unreadable. He had always known Selena wanted to be more than just a business partner. She had made it clear time and time again. But the fact that she was now using something so important, something so critical to his life, to leverage her claim over him—it made his blood boil.“I won’t divorce Amaira,” Scar Boss said, his voice low and final. His eyes darkened, a dangerous edge creeping into his tone. “And I will not be blackmailed into making you my fiancée.”Selena didn’t flinch. If anything, she only looked more amused. “You say that now, but you’ll come around. You’ve always been a man of logic, Nicolo. And logically, this is the best option for you. Think about it. You get the papers, you clear your name, and you get rid of Amaira’s contract. I’ll make sure you get everything you’ve been fighting for.”Scar Boss clenched his fists, the urge to lash out growing with each passing second. He had spent so much time and energy protecting his empire, and now this woman, this manipulative fiancée, was threatening to tear it all down with one simple demand.“I don’t care what you think, Selena,” Scar Boss said, his voice cutting through the tension like a blade. “I’m not making you my fiancée. And I’m certainly not divorcing Amaira.”Selena raised an eyebrow, clearly amused by his resistance. “We’ll see how long that stance lasts. You’ll do what’s best for you in the end.”She pushed the papers closer toward him, a smirk tugging at her lips. “Take them if you want them. But you’ll have to give me what I want first. Or I’ll walk away with them and leave you to your mess.”Scar Boss didn’t reach for the papers. He just stood there, staring at them for a long moment, weighing his options. His chest tightened with the pressure. He knew he couldn’t afford to let Selena control him like this. But he also couldn’t afford to lose those papers. Not now.“I’ll deal with this on my terms,” Scar Boss said, his voice cold and firm. He turned toward the door, his mind already racing with the consequences of this exchange.As he walked out, he barely spared Selena a second glance. The woman was dangerous. She always had been. But he would find a way to deal with her, just like he always had.**Back in the Living Room**Amaira was in the living room, sitting by the window, lost in thought. Her mind kept circling back to the growing tension with Scar Boss. She couldn’t understand what was happening between them, but something felt off. She hadn’t seen him in hours, and when she had, he’d barely acknowledged her presence. It was as if the distance between them had grown overnight.She heard the sound of the door opening and turned around, expecting Scar Boss to walk in. But it wasn’t him. It was her own uncertainty.The weight of the day—the tension with Selena, the unresolved issues with Scar Boss—sat heavily on her shoulders. She couldn’t keep doing this. She couldn’t keep pretending that everything was fine when it clearly wasn’t.When Scar Boss finally entered the room, his cold demeanor sent a chill through the air. He didn’t look at her, didn’t say anything. He just walked past her, his movements stiff and calculated.Amaira opened her mouth to speak, but the words caught in her throat. The tension between them was palpable. She didn’t understand what had changed, but she knew one thing for sure: something had shifted.And she had no idea how to fix it.