The media storm hadn't stopped.
After the kiss at the gala—hot enough to melt through diamond—May and Shane had become the obsession of every gossip site. But as the flames of their public passion spread, another fire had been quietly smoldering in the shadows.
A fire lit by Alexa Moreau.
The news dropped three days later.
A leaked Vegas marriage license.
SHANE KINGSTON MARRIED?
ALEXA MOREAU DROPS LEGAL BOMBSHELL!
May Anderson – The Mistress or the Mistake?
Shane stood in her office, the paper trembling in her hands. May sat on the edge of her desk, looking like sin in silk, a glass of wine forgotten in her palm.
"She forged this," Shane muttered, jaw locked. "She had to."
May leaned in slowly, eyes locked on Shane's. "Even if she didn't… it won't matter. We're going to bury her."
But Shane wasn't just pissed—she was shaken.
If the license was real—even from a drunken Vegas night three years ago—it meant Alexa could go after her assets, her name, maybe even her freedom to marry May.
And worst of all?
Shane couldn't remember the night clearly.
That week had been a blur. Champagne. Parties. Trying to forget something that had broken her. Alexa had been there. And now Shane was wondering—did she sign something? Had she been played from the start?
May stood and walked toward her, heels clicking like warnings. "I need to know everything. Now."
Shane closed her eyes. "It was after my father died. I disappeared. Vegas was my escape. Alexa followed me."
"You let her?"
"I didn't have the strength to stop her."
May's eyes softened, but only for a second. Then they blazed again. "You're stronger now. So we fight."
That Night
May didn't waste time.
She met up with her old friend Elio—a hacker who could dig through anything the world tried to bury. They met in a dim-lit club, bass thumping, secrets trading hands like drugs.
"Elio, I need everything on Alexa Moreau. Her history. Her secrets. Her lies."
He smirked. "You want blood, May? Or do you want the kind of dirt that ruins lives?"
"Give me both."
48 Hours Later – The Truth Arrives
May walked into Shane's office with a drive in hand and fire in her eyes.
"Found it," she said.
Shane looked up from the mess of contracts and chaos.
"Elio cracked her sealed files. Alexa changed her name five years ago. She was married before. Twice."
Shane blinked. "What?"
"She never divorced the first guy. Which means…"
May plugged in the drive.
"…her marriage to you would be invalid. Automatically void. Illegal."
Shane stood slowly. The air changed.
"But wait," May added, clicking open the next file. "It gets better."
Photos. Emails. Videos.
Alexa wasn't just manipulative—she was criminal. Fraud, blackmail, seduction scandals involving CEOs, men and women alike. Her entire rise had been one long con.
"And guess who funded her for years?" May said, eyes locked on Shane. "You."
Shane's stomach turned.
May stepped closer, placing a hand over Shane's chest. "She played you. Used your grief. Made you believe she was the only one who stayed when you were falling."
Shane's breath caught. The truth sliced deep. But it also set something inside her free.
"Not anymore," she whispered. "Now I burn her world down."
Later That Night
The world didn't sleep.
Shane's legal team filed for a public disavowal of the marriage claim.
May dropped the bombshell files anonymously to the media.
Alexa's name began to rot in the headlines.
Her fashion deals? Pulled. Her management dropped her. Her face was stripped off billboards overnight.
And Shane?
She stood at the window of her penthouse, staring out at the city she ruled—with May wrapped in her arms from behind.
"You okay?" May whispered.
Shane turned slowly, pushing May gently against the glass, lips brushing her neck. "I will be. As long as you're here."
May smiled through the darkness. "I'm not going anywhere."
They kissed—long, slow, burning.
But in the back of both their minds…
They knew this wasn't the end.
Because Alexa had disappeared.
And nothing was more dangerous than a wounded woman with nothing left to lose.