Femme Fatale: The King's Deadly Temptress 200 Park Family's Secre

If Damien wanted to have a prenup agreement, she would be happy to sign it — it wasn't as if she was after his money. Wanting to voice out her thoughts, Katherine placed a hand over Damien's to calm him down but before she could even say anything, Frederick Park started, "You know very well why there is a need for that. This family needs protection from outsiders. I am only looking out for everyone's safety—"

"Katherine is not an outsider," Damien responded, his voice was cold and low. Katherine had never seen him so angry like this. "She is going to be my wife soon whether you like it or not. If anything, she's the one who needs protection from this… dysfunctional family."

Katherine was surprised. She shifted her gaze to Frederick's wife who just lowered her head as if she was minding her own business — as if this family wasn't her business. Her face was expressionless and Katherine wondered if it was because she was just good at bringing out her poker face or because she had too much filler in her face that she was incapable of moving her muscles. Dorothy was close to sixty years old and had botox written all over her face.

She then looked at Nana who was also quiet and when their eyes met, the latter only smiled at her before focusing on her plate again.

"Katherine… Has Damien told you about the history of our family? I have a feeling that he hasn't yet. I don't mind giving you a tour of this house." William raised his glass goblet to her, an amused smirk plastered on his face as though he was challenging his cousin Damien.

Dragging her gaze to Damien, Katherine saw his jaw clenched as he glared at William. He turned towards her and asked, "Are you done?"

She was nowhere near the end of her food but the look on Damien's face said that he couldn't stand being in the same room as them any longer. "Yes, I'm done," she answered, squeezing his hand as if she was giving him courage.

"If you'll excuse me, Nana. I'll just bring Katherine upstairs and show her my old bedroom." Damien got up from his chair and kissed his grandmother on the forehead before leading Katherine away from the dining room.

"You already showed me your old bedroom the last time we came here." She held his hand as they walk through the long hallway.

"I just want to get out of there."

"I know…" She tiptoed and kissed his cheek, walking with him until they arrived in his room on the other side of the mansion. "Have you ever gotten lost in this house before? The doors and halls all look the same to me."

"We used to play hide and seek a lot in this house when we were young." 

"I like it here. It feels cozy," she said, looking around and seeing some of his old stuff. The room was mostly covered in black and grey furniture — it was sleek and masculine. "It must have been really fun." 

Damien silently chuckled, closing the door behind him and ushering her towards the balcony. He took off his coat and placed it around her shoulders before hugging her from behind, watching the dark sky in front of them.

Katherine leaned against his chest. It seemed as though he was comforting her but it was the other way around. Seeing his uncle always upset him and tonight at dinner just made him mad. She spun around in his arms and touched his cheek with her thumb, "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Honestly?" He looked at Katherine in the eye. "No." Lowering his forehead to hers, he breathed deeply. "But I think I need to. It's not fair that I would keep something from you. You deserve to know a part of… me."

She felt that it was somehow serious and she didn't want him to feel insecure. Grabbing his hand, she pulled him back inside the room and they sat on his bed. She waited for him to speak and saw how uneasy he was, running his hand over his mouth and jaw.

"The men in this family were raised like they were in the military. The fathers were always strict with their sons while their daughters were practically raised to just be… in the upper-class society – parties, charities, everything that would showcase how prim and proper they are — though it didn't work well with Alianna's mother's rebellion. 

"The Park Family is old money — a small country could substantially live off of its wealth. People outside the family think it's impressive." He loosened his tie and sighed.

"Is it not?"

Damien turned to face Katherine. He almost didn't want to look at her but it was the only way he could tell her the truth, "Not all of it came from… hard work. The reason why my uncle is so against you is because he doesn't trust anyone outside the family who doesn't know our secret. He likes being in control. It's the only way he can make sure that no traitors can get inside. Apart from that, he's also probably afraid that when we get married, my shares in Park Group could fall into your hands." 

"You're telling me that your uncle is in some shady business? Also… you do know that I'm marrying you because I love you and not because I want your money, right?" Katherine had a worried look on her face.

A small smile appeared on his face as he cupped her chin. "Of course, I know that. But he doesn't. It's more than some shady business… It's a mess. Something that I don't want you to be part of. It's something that I don't want to be a part of."

"Is that why you left?"

Damien turned away, his elbows on his knees and his head hung low, nodding and sighing. "It's why I left this place." He felt her hand stroking his back. 

"I hate this family, Katherine… The only one I love here is Nana. Ever since I was young, I was made to do things I didn't want and there wasn't anything I could do then because my dad always told me that it has always been this way. All I could do was follow his orders.

"And when my dad died, Uncle Fred was the one who replaced his position and I had to follow his orders. Though unlike dad, he was okay with me not doing the things that I didn't want to do. However, he still kept me on a tight leash. I had wanted to leave this estate earlier and cut ties with this family but William stood by me... until he betrayed me. Then I left."

"You did very well on your own, Damien. I'm sure your father must be proud of you wherever he may be." Katherine pressed her lips on his cheek. 

"I don't know about that…" He softly chuckled. "No matter how much money I would make, I'm sure he would have preferred that I stayed within the family business." 

"You can trust me, Damien. My lips are sealed. Despite hating your uncle, I won't do anything against him… if I can help it," she joked.

Laughing, he took her hand in his and squeezed it. "I don't want us to be in this… mess, Katherine. We are going to stay as far away as we could from them. We don't even have to see them during the holidays. We'll pick up Nana and celebrate Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year in our home—"

"Hey… You had me at 'I don't want us'." She smiled. "I'm marrying you. Not your outlaw Uncle and his family." Leaning in, she kissed him deeply as though she wanted to consume all his worries away. "Take me home…" she whispered.

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