Entering the Lion's Den

Scarlett's POV

The mansion's front door was solid oak and twice as tall as me. My reflection stared back from its polished surface - a woman in a blood-red dress who looked like she belonged in a horror movie.

"You ready for this?" Luna squeezed my hand through the car window.

"No." My voice came out like a croak. "What if I can't do it? What if I'm not mean enough?"

"You survived Hollywood for ten years. You can survive six weeks of reality TV."

A production assistant knocked on my window. "Miss Rose? We're ready for your entrance."

I stepped out of the car on shaking legs. The red dress clung to me like a second skin, and the heels were so high I felt like I was walking on stilts.

"Remember," the assistant said, clipping a microphone to my dress, "big entrance, lots of confidence. You're here to steal hearts and break couples."

The cameras were already rolling. Three of them, following my every step toward the front door. I could hear voices and laughter from inside - people having fun, people who didn't know their lives were about to get complicated.

I pushed open the door and stepped into chaos.

The living room was full of beautiful people in expensive clothes, all talking and laughing like they were at the world's most glamorous party. Crystal glasses clinked. Someone was playing piano in the corner. It looked like a movie set, all golden light and perfect angles.

"Hello, everyone!" I called out, my voice cutting through the chatter like a knife.

The room fell silent. Every head turned toward me. I could see the exact moment they took in my appearance - the tight red dress, the confident smile, the way I walked like I owned the place.

Madison Brooks sat in the center of it all like a queen holding court. She was even more beautiful in person, with skin that glowed and hair that caught the light like spun gold. Four men surrounded her chair, all competing for her attention.

"I'm Scarlett," I said, walking straight toward her. "And I'm here to find love."

One of the men - Ryan, the athlete from the photos - looked me up and down like I was a prize he wanted to win.

"Another contestant?" He grinned and stood up. "This just got interesting."

Madison's smile was warm and genuine, which somehow made everything worse. "Welcome! I'm Madison. We're so excited to have you here."

She stood up to hug me, and I caught her perfume - something light and floral that probably cost more than my rent. When she pulled back, her eyes were bright with curiosity.

"You're stunning," she said, and I could tell she meant it. "That dress is incredible."

"Thank you." I perched on the edge of the couch like a cat ready to pounce. "You're even prettier than your photos. I can see why these men are fighting over you."

The four guys around Madison shifted uncomfortably. I could already see the seeds of doubt I'd planted taking root.

"Oh, they're not fighting," Madison laughed. "We're all just getting to know each other."

"Of course." I smiled sweetly. "But surely you must have favorites by now? Someone who's caught your eye?"

Madison's cheeks turned pink. "It's still early days."

"Come on," I pressed gently. "You can tell me. Girl to girl?"

The cameras circled us like vultures. I could see Jake Morrison standing behind one of them, nodding with approval.

"Well," Madison said quietly, "there is someone who's been really sweet."

Ryan leaned forward. "Yeah? Who?"

"I don't want to say yet," Madison said, looking embarrassed.

"Why not?" I asked, tilting my head. "Unless you're worried about hurting someone's feelings?"

The question hung in the air like poison gas. Suddenly, all four men were looking at each other suspiciously. Who was Madison interested in? Who was she trying not to hurt?

Marcus, the quiet accountant, looked devastated. David, the artist, stared down at his hands. Even Ryan's cocky smile faltered.

Perfect. I'd been in the house for five minutes and already had them questioning everything.

"Maybe we should play a game," I suggested. "Get to know each other better?"

"What kind of game?" Madison asked, though she looked nervous now.

"Truth or dare? It's a classic."

The group agreed reluctantly. We arranged ourselves in a circle on the plush white carpet, and I made sure to sit directly across from Madison where I could watch her face.

"I'll start," I said, turning to David. "Truth or dare?"

"Truth," he said quietly.

"What's the worst thing you've ever done to get a girl's attention?"

David went pale. "I... I don't really want to answer that."

"Come on," I pressed with a laugh. "It's just a game. We're all friends here."

But David shook his head, and I could see sweat forming on his forehead. Whatever his worst thing was, it was bad enough that he couldn't say it on camera.

"Fine," I said with a shrug. "Moving on. Madison, truth or dare?"

"Truth," she said bravely.

I smiled like a shark scenting blood. "Have you ever been cheated on?"

Madison's face crumpled. "Yes," she whispered.

"Want to tell us about it?"

"I... my ex-boyfriend... he was seeing someone else for six months before I found out." Tears gathered in her eyes. "I thought we were going to get married."

The room was dead silent. I'd hit a nerve, and everyone could see it.

"I'm so sorry," I said, my voice dripping with fake sympathy. "That must have been devastating. How did you find out?"

"His best friend told me," Madison said, wiping her eyes. "He said he couldn't watch me be made a fool of anymore."

"Wow." I shook my head sadly. "It's so hard to know who to trust, isn't it? Especially when people can be so good at lying."

I let my eyes drift around the circle, looking at each man meaningfully. "I mean, how do you ever really know if someone's being genuine?"

The poison was spreading. I could see it in their faces - the doubt, the suspicion, the fear that they might be the ones being deceived.

Ryan cleared his throat. "Maybe we should do something else. This is getting kind of heavy."

"Of course," I agreed quickly. "I didn't mean to upset anyone. Madison, you okay?"

Madison nodded, but her smile was shaky now. "I'm fine. Just... old wounds, you know?"

"I totally understand." I reached over and squeezed her hand. "But hey, that's why you're here, right? To find someone who would never hurt you like that?"

"Yes," Madison said, but she didn't sound as confident as before.

Mission accomplished. In less than an hour, I'd planted enough doubt to keep Madison questioning every man in the house.

The evening continued with dinner and more conversation. I played my part perfectly - asking innocent questions that weren't innocent at all, making comments that seemed supportive but were actually designed to create chaos.

By the time people started heading to bed, the atmosphere had completely shifted. The easy camaraderie from earlier was gone, replaced by tension and suspicion.

I was walking toward my assigned bedroom when I heard it.

Guitar music, drifting from the direction of the pool.

My blood turned to ice. I knew that melody. Knew it better than my own heartbeat.

"Brown Eyes and Broken Dreams." The song Kai had written about me when we were twenty-two and thought we had forever.

My feet moved without permission, carrying me toward the sound. Each note was like a step back in time, pulling me toward a memory I'd tried so hard to forget.

I stopped at the edge of the patio, hidden in the shadows where the cameras couldn't see me.

A figure sat by the pool, silhouetted against the underwater lights. Guitar in his hands, head bent in concentration as he played the melody that used to be ours.

Then he started singing, and my heart shattered all over again.

His voice was deeper now, richer than I remembered, but still the same voice that used to sing me to sleep. The lyrics were different though - sadder, angrier, full of questions I'd never answered.

"Where did you go, brown eyes? Why did you leave me here? All I have left are broken dreams and the ghost of what we were."

I pressed my hand to my mouth to keep from crying out. This was my punishment. Listening to the man I'd loved sing about the pain I'd caused him.

The song ended, and in the silence that followed, I heard footsteps behind me.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Jake Morrison appeared beside me like a snake in the garden. "He's been practicing that song all week. Wrote it last month, apparently."

"Turn off the cameras," I whispered.

"I'm afraid I can't do that. This is reality television gold."

The figure by the pool stood up, still holding his guitar. He stepped into the light, and my world tilted sideways.

Kai Sterling. Five years older, more confident, more successful than I'd ever dreamed he'd become. But still him. Still the boy I'd loved more than my own life.

Still the man I'd destroyed when I walked away.

He turned toward the house as if he could feel me watching him.

Our eyes met across the patio.

I heard the guitar music one more time before everything went quiet.

The melody I knew by heart, floating across the water like a ghost.