The line went dead.Celia stood frozen.She stared at her phone, the screen now dark after her mother’s abrupt call ended. Her heart sank, a heavy weight settling in her chest. She stood frozen. Damon noticed the shift in her expression immediately, his brows knitting together with concern. “Celia, who was that?” he asked, his voice soft but steady. She hesitated, her fingers tightening around the phone. “It was… my mom,” she said quietly, her voice barely above a whisper. “She wants me to come home. Right now.” Damon tilted his head, studying her. “Is everything okay?” Celia shook her head, her lips pressing into a thin line. “No. Not really.” She paused, glancing around to make sure no one was listening. “They… my parents… they’ve set up another blind date for me. Some rich guy. They think he’s going to fix all our problems.” Damon’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Another blind date? You’ve dealt with this before?” “Yeah,” Celia admitted, her voice heavy. “This isn’t the first time

Celia looked straight at her mother, her voice steady despite the chaos around her."You think that if I marry him, his family will help us out of debt. You want me to sacrifice my happiness just so you can save the business. You never cared about me."Mrs. Greene's face went red. "How can you say that? Everything I do is for you!""No, Mom. Everything you do is for you," Celia said firmly. Mrs. Greene's anger exploded. "You ungrateful little brat! Do you have any idea what we've done for you? What we've sacrificed?""Martha!" Mr. Greene tried to step in, but his wife was too far gone."No, Robert! She’s completely lost it—she needs to snap out of it!" Mrs. Greene turned back to Celia, her voice shaking with rage. "You're being disrespectful and selfish! And for what? For him?" She pointed at Damon with disgust. "He's worthless! A complete deadbeat with no job and no future!"Celia stepped forward, her eyes blazing. "Don't talk about Damon like that!"Mrs. Greene laughed bitterly. "L

Everyone was stunned. No one could believe that someone as seemingly insignificant as Damon had actually helped Celia secure a deal with Vespera Corporation.Mrs. Greene gaped at her. “What did you just say?”“I said the contract went through,” Celia repeated. “Thanks to Damon.”Nathaniel shook his head. “That’s impossible. He couldn’t have pulled off something like that.”“But he did,” Celia replied, firm and clear.Mrs. Greene glanced between the two, her expression twisted in confusion. “How? How could he possibly help with a company like Vespera?”Mr. Greene stepped forward, voice low with disbelief. “Celia, are you sure?”“I’m certain, Dad. The contract is signed. It’s done.”Nathaniel’s face turned red, his voice rising. “That doesn’t make sense! He’s unemployed! He has no status, no network! How could someone like him possibly get involved with Vespera?”“Someone like me?” Damon asked coldly.“Yes! You have no job, no money, no background. Vespera is one of the biggest corporat

Celia's face went red with anger as she listened to her parents attack Damon. She couldn't take it anymore."Stop it!" Celia shouted, her voice shaking with emotion. Everyone turned to look at her in surprise."Damon is telling the truth! You can't believe it because you don't want to believe it!" Celia said, her voice getting louder. "You've already made up your minds about him!"Nathaniel stepped forward with a smug smile. "Celia, he's obviously fooled you with his lies.""Shut up! He hasn't fooled me!" Celia snapped. "I know exactly what happened! I was there!""Then you're being naive," Mrs. Greene said coldly."I'm not naive! I'm standing by my boyfriend!"Damon, who had been watching calmly, couldn’t help the slightest smile that escaped his lips when he heard Celia call him her boyfriend. Even though it was just an act, it stirred feelings he knew he shouldn’t be feeling right now.Mrs. Greene's face twisted with anger. "Your boyfriend? That man is not worthy of being called y

Mrs. Greene was certain Damon couldn’t afford such a sum and only wanted to use this to humiliate him.Nathaniel's eyes lit up with understanding. He could see exactly what Mrs. Greene was doing."That's brilliant," Nathaniel said with a grin. "Let's see if he can actually back up all his big talk."Mrs. Greene nodded, her confidence growing."Exactly," she said. "No more stories about knowing important people. No more claims about helping with contracts. Just action."She crossed her arms and stared at Damon."Five million dollars," she said again. "Right now. If you really love Celia, then prove it.""Mom, stop," Celia said, her voice full of embarrassment."No!" Mrs. Greene snapped. "I'm tired of listening to empty talk and made-up stories!""He's been acting like some kind of hero like he's so important and powerful," she continued. "Well, now it's time to see if any of it is true."Nathaniel was practically glowing with excitement."This is perfect," he said. "Either he admits he