he morning meeting, where Alex had stood in front of the board with that impenetrable gaze, his presence commanding atten

the door, the soft rapping followed

l

he doorway. His eyes locked onto hers, cold, direct, so much like the icy steel she had seen in him that morn

om with that same calculating look, as though

out it, haven't you?" Hi

r head, word

ng, but there was something else in his

. "A contract marriage. You'll help me, and I'll help you. Y

correctly. A contract marriage? He was prop

ke a heavy weight on her chest,

ar. But don't mistake this for a fairytale. This is business. You'

erself face-to-face with him again. Alex stood at the end of

t skippe

prey to make the first move. The tension between them thickened, the air

ng second, she saw something, a flicker of something deeper in his eyes. It was

But the look in his eyes, the almost

he papers Alex had left behind. The contract, the terms, it was all too

She couldn't stop replaying the way he had looked at her, that strange, unreadabl

ed, her family would be safe. The debts would disappear, her mother's h

of thought. She froze, the sudden

d then, as if answering the unspoken quest

. But a cold chill swept through the

empty. On the floor was a single, folded piece of

s fro

e. "You'll make the righ

art St. Clair, Melissa's father. The memories felt like a heavy fog pressing against his chest. He had been on a relentless path of ve

in his way. A pawn he

ct marriage. He had seen the way her eyes widened in shock, heard the tremble in her voice when she had tried to pr

for her; he knew she would cave in. She

knowing that this moment would come, though he hadn't anticipated how much she would disturb him. She had unsettled him

cold weight. It was a symbol of control, of do

words like a silent promise to the empty room. His eyes narrowed, and he turned back to the city below, the

nvelope that had come with Alex's proposal. She could feel its weight in her hands as she turned i

ract m

Alex wasn't playing by the same rules as everyone else. He wasn't offering her this as

hers

amily pressed down on her chest like an anvil, each breath harder to take than the last. What choice did she have? Her

A marriage of convenience, with Alex at the helm, controlling ever

symbol of ownership, a piece of jewelry that meant more than just a decoration. She ha

. Is this what it

she did, her family would be l

cold, empty walls seemed to close in on her. Was this what he

n sound snapping her from her thoughts. She grabb

orrow to sig