“I PRETENDED TO BE ‘DEAD’ TO TEST THE LOYALTY OF MY SHY HOUSEHELP — BUT WHAT I DISCOVERED… WAS DEEPER THAN MY HEART COULD HANDLE.”

Sophie’s eyes were wet, but her voice sharpened.

“Why?” she asked. “Why would you do that to me?”

Damian’s rehearsed logic collapsed.

“I wanted to know if you were real,” he admitted.

Sophie let out a small, broken laugh with no humor in it.

“I am real,” she said quietly. “I’m human. I get scared. I get hurt.”

She swallowed, her throat tight.

“And yes,” she added, voice trembling, “I have feelings.”

Damian stepped closer, then stopped, unsure if his presence would comfort or injure.

“What feelings?” he asked softly.

Sophie closed her eyes, as if bracing herself.

“The feeling,” she whispered, “that I don’t want to lose you.”

The sentence landed like a collapse inside Damian’s chest.

He stared at her, stunned by the honesty he had forced out through cruelty.