I wasn't supposed to be here.
Standing in a $10,000 silk wedding dress, marrying a man who looked at me like I was a stain on his expensive floor. The grand ballroom of the Reever Hotel was filled with the scent of lilies and the hushed whispers of the elite, but all I could hear was the frantic thumping of my own heart.
"Sign it."
His voice was cold, emotionless—like this marriage was a business merger he found slightly tedious.
My fingers trembled as I stared at the marriage papers. If I signed this… there was no going back. But I had no choice. Behind me, I could feel my father's desperate gaze. My family's survival, our legacy, our very name depended on me becoming Mrs. Adrian Blackwood.
I picked up the pen. The gold nib felt heavy, like a weapon.
And just before the tip touched the paper—he spoke again.
"Don't expect anything from me. No affection. No shared bed. You are a name on a document to save your father's skin. Nothing more."
I froze. Slowly, I looked up at him. His sharp eyes met mine… cold, distant… terrifyingly unfamiliar.
My breath hitched. He looked at me as if he had never touched me before. As if he didn't remember that night three years ago—the night he broke into my life and left nothing but ashes. The night he looked at me with a twisted, sadistic grin and told me he'd never let me go.
He doesn't remember, I realized. The man who destroyed my world was gone, replaced by this icy, professional shell.
I forced my hand to move, scrawling my name in ink that felt like blood.
The moment the pen left the paper, Adrian's expression shifted. It was so fast I almost missed it. He winced, clutching his temple for a fraction of a second, his eyes fluttering shut.
When he opened them again, the ice was gone. The coldness that had just insulted me vanished, replaced by a soft, heartbreaking warmth. He reached out, his thumb grazing my cheek with a tenderness that made me flinch.
"Are you okay?" he whispered, his voice suddenly thick with concern. "You look so pale, my love. Did I… did I startle you?"
I stared at him, my soul reeling. The man who just told me to expect nothing was now looking at me like I was his entire world.
The nightmare was just beginning. I hadn't just married my enemy. I had married a man who didn't even know who he was.