Chapter 5: The Art of War (a.k.k Living with Damon Sinclair)

If Ava thought being forced to marry Damon Sinclair was bad, living under the same roof with him was pure torture.

It had been exactly three days since she moved into the Sinclair mansion, and so far, Damon had:

Taken over the bathroom every morning, spending an obnoxious amount of time on his hair.

Stolen the last piece of toast at breakfast just to annoy her.

Put his feet on the coffee table while she was watching TV, completely ignoring her personal space.

Used her expensive shampoo (and admitted it smelled better than his).

Mocked her pink bunny pajamas every single night.

Ava was at her breaking point.

And today?

Today was about to get a thousand times worse.

---

Morning Chaos

Ava woke up to the most horrifying sound in existence.

Damon. Singing. In the shower.

Loudly.

And terribly.

She bolted upright, rubbing her ears. Was he actually torturing her on purpose?!

"OH BABY, BABY—HOW WAS I SUPPOSED TO KNOOOW—"

Ava grabbed a pillow and screamed into it.

Why is he like this?!

The water stopped running, and a few moments later, Damon strolled out of the bathroom, shirtless, towel around his neck, hair wet and messy.

Ava turned away immediately.

Nope. Not happening. Not today.

Damon smirked. "Morning, wifey."

Ava threw a pillow at him. "STOP CALLING ME THAT!"

Damon dodged easily, chuckling. "Aw, did my concert wake you up?"

Ava glared. "That was not a concert. That was a crime."

Damon tsked. "Jealous of my incredible voice?"

"Incredible?!" Ava threw another pillow. "My ears are bleeding!"

Damon laughed, grabbing a T-shirt from his closet. "You should be honored to wake up to my voice, Carter."

Ava grabbed another pillow, ready to end his whole existence.

But then—

The door burst open.

And in walked—

Mrs. Sinclair.

Ava froze.

Damon froze.

And then—

"OH MY GOD!" Ava grabbed a blanket and threw it at Damon.

Mrs. Sinclair raised an eyebrow. "Am I… interrupting something?"

Ava turned bright red. "N-NO!"

Damon, the absolute devil that he was, smirked. "Actually, Mom, we were just—"

Ava kicked him. Hard.

Damon coughed. "I mean—uh—nothing!"

Mrs. Sinclair gave them a very suspicious look.

Ava wanted to crawl into a hole and disappear.

Damon just looked entertained.

"Right," Mrs. Sinclair finally said. "Well, get dressed. We have wedding photos to take today."

Ava blinked.

Wedding photos?!

"Excuse me—WHAT?!"

Mrs. Sinclair smiled. "Oh, didn’t we tell you? You and Damon have a professional photoshoot today. We need proper pictures for the media."

Ava’s jaw dropped.

Damon just grinned.

"Oh," he said smoothly, "this is going to be fun."

Ava?

She wanted to DIE.

---

The Wedding Photoshoot from Hell

Ava stood in front of the full-length mirror, glaring at her reflection.

She was dressed in the most expensive white wedding gown she had ever seen, fitted perfectly to her body.

Her hair was styled in soft waves, makeup light and flawless.

She looked—

Beautiful.

And she absolutely hated it.

Because it meant Damon Sinclair would see her like this.

She groaned, throwing her head back. "Why is my life like this?!"

A soft knock came from the door.

"Are you done talking to yourself?" came Damon’s annoyingly amused voice.

Ava rolled her eyes. "Go away, Sinclair."

"No can do, Mrs. Sinclair."

Ava groaned louder.

"Open the door, Carter," Damon said. "I need to see my gorgeous wife before we take pictures."

Ava almost grabbed a shoe and threw it at the door.

But she took a deep breath.

Calm. Stay calm. You can survive this.

She swung the door open, preparing to insult him.

But then—

Damon froze.

His usual smirk disappeared.

His blue eyes widened.

And for the first time ever… he was speechless.

Ava raised an eyebrow. "What?"

Damon blinked. "You… actually look…"

Ava crossed her arms. "Say something stupid, and I will stab you with my hairpin."

Damon smirked slightly, regaining his composure. "I was going to say stunning, but sure. Hairpin stabbing sounds fun, too."

Ava blinked.

Had he—

Had he just called her stunning?!

She felt her cheeks heat up and immediately looked away. "Shut up, Sinclair. Let’s just get this over with."

Damon chuckled. "Whatever you say, wifey."

Ava kicked him again.

---

The Photoshoot

Ava had never suffered more in her entire life.

First, the photographer made them hold hands.

Then, he made them pose like a ‘romantic couple.’

And worst of all?

The almost-kiss shot.

"Alright, Mr. Sinclair, lean in a little closer," the photographer instructed.

Ava stood frozen as Damon tilted his head forward, their noses almost touching.

His breath was warm against her lips.

Her heart hammered.

Damon smirked. "Nervous, Carter?"

Ava scowled, trying to ignore the way her stomach flipped. "Shut up."

"Click!"

The photographer beamed. "Perfect shot! You two have amazing chemistry."

Ava felt like throwing up.

Damon?

He just laughed.

---

End of Chapter 5

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