Signed into his trap
Dark RomanceCEOLove after MarriageLove-Triangle
Valeria Cole has spent years sacrificing everything to keep her younger brother alive. But when his condition suddenly deteriorates, she is given an impossible ultimatum; raise an astronomical sum of money in seven days or lose him forever.
Valeria accepts a contract marriage proposal from Julius Sterling, the billionaire CEO of Sterling Holdings, as a result of desperation. The agreement appears simple. She will be his wife for one year in exchange for enough money to save her brother's life. But nothing about Julius Sterling seemed simple.
As Valeria adjusts to a world of wealth, power, and carefully guarded secrets, she begins to uncover disturbing inconsistencies surrounding her marriage. The deeper she digs, the more she realizes that the contract was never just a business arrangement.
The greatest betrayal comes from the one person she trusted most—her best friend, Victoria Whitmore.
Unknown to Valeria, Victoria played a crucial role in bringing her and Julius together as part of a hidden corporate project designed to manipulate human behavior and control outcomes. What Valeria believed was a lifeline was, in reality, a carefully orchestrated trap.
Caught between a powerful man who knows more than he admits and a friend whose loyalty was never what it seemed, Valeria must decide whether she will remain a pawn in someone else's game or fight for her freedom.
When secrets unravel and loyalties shatter, she discovers a terrifying truth: she was never chosen to be wife.
She was chosen to be a test.
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Chapter: The First LieThe problem with doubt was that once it appeared, it rarely stayed in one place.It spread.Quietly.Patiently.Like a crack beneath paint.At first, Valeria had dismissed the recent mistakes as unfortunate coincidences.People forgot things.Schedules changed.Emails disappeared.Administrative errors happened.Especially in organizations as large as Sterling Holdings.But eventually even coincidence starts demanding too much faith.And lately, faith felt expensive.The realization followed her into the hospital.Ethan had been discharged from intensive monitoring two days earlier.A milestone everyone seemed eager to celebrate.Including Ethan himself.The doctors remained cautious, but hopeful.Hopeful was a word Valeria had once been afraid to trust.Now she held onto it carefully.Like something fragile.Something precious.She sat beside his bed while he flipped through television channels."The nurses miss me already."Valeria rolled her eyes."They're celebrating.""Rude.""Ac
最終更新日: 2026-06-14
Chapter: JealousyVictoria barely stayed five minutes after witnessing the kiss.She offered some excuse about an early meeting.Nobody challenged it.Nobody stopped her.And nobody mentioned what had happened in the library.Not that there was much to say.The moment Victoria disappeared, an uncomfortable silence settled over the room.Valeria became painfully aware of everything.The fire.The rain.The distance between her and Julius.Most of all, the kiss itself.It had happened.There was no pretending otherwise.No rational explanation.No convenient misunderstanding.It had happened.And judging from Julius's expression, he was thinking the exact same thing.Neither of them looked at each other.For almost a full minute.Finally, Julius cleared his throat."This complicates things."Valeria stared at the fireplace."That's one way to put it."Another silence followed.Long.Awkward.Embarrassing.Then Julius did something unexpected.He apologized.Not dramatically.Not emotionally.Simply."I'm
最終更新日: 2026-06-14
Chapter: A Dangerous KissThe problem wasn't the kiss.The problem was everything that happened before it.At least, that's what Valeria told herself later.Because kisses didn't happen in isolation.They happened because of conversations.Because of glances.Because of moments that accumulated quietly until neither person could pretend they meant nothing.The trouble was that she and Julius had accumulated far too many moments.And neither of them had noticed how dangerous that had become.Or perhaps they had.Perhaps they had simply ignored it.Three days after discovering the missing file, the atmosphere inside Sterling Manor felt strained.Valeria was still angry.The kind of anger that settled beneath the surface and refused to leave.Julius hadn't offered any explanations.Rebecca had become impossible to corner.Victoria was acting increasingly distracted.And Margaret had somehow become even more careful about what she said.Every answer led to another question.Every question led nowhere.By Thursday
最終更新日: 2026-06-14
Chapter: The Charity GalaThe invitation arrived on a Monday morning.Not that Valeria had any say in the matter.Rebecca informed her about it during breakfast with the same tone someone might use to announce the weather."The Sterling Foundation Gala is this Friday."Valeria looked up from her coffee."The what?""The Sterling Foundation Gala."Rebecca turned a page in her folder."Hundreds of guests. Business leaders, investors, politicians, donors, media representatives."Valeria slowly lowered her cup."That sounds terrible."Across the table, Julius didn't look up from the financial report he was reading."It isn't.""It absolutely is.""It lasts four hours.""You're not helping."For the first time that morning, the corner of Julius's mouth moved.Not quite a smile.But close.Valeria immediately pointed at him."See? That expression right there.""What expression?""The one where you're secretly enjoying my suffering.""I have no idea what you're talking about."Rebecca continued reading from her sched
最終更新日: 2026-06-14
Chapter: Candidate Number FourThe phrase followed Valeria for three days.You weren't the first candidate.No matter what she was doing, it resurfaced.While having breakfast.While visiting Ethan.While pretending to pay attention during another charity event.The words lingered at the edge of every thought.Candidate.Not wife.Not partner.Not spouse.Candidate.The language bothered her more than she cared to admit.Because candidates applied for jobs.Candidates were interviewed.Evaluated.Selected.Rejected.The word stripped away the illusion that any part of this arrangement had been personal.Not that she'd ever believed it was romantic.But hearing it framed that way made her feel like an item on a shortlist.A choice among options.A solution to a problem.The realization stung.More than it should have.By the fourth day, curiosity overwhelmed caution.She decided she needed answers.And the most obvious place to start was Margaret.Unfortunately, Margaret had become remarkably difficult to find.When
最終更新日: 2026-06-14
Chapter: An Unexpected AllyThe silence after the creaking floorboard lasted less than two seconds.To Valeria, it felt much longer.Her pulse hammered against her ribs.The corridor suddenly seemed too narrow.Too quiet. Too exposed.On the other side of the corner, neither Julius nor Victoria spoke.The conversation had died instantly.Valeria stood frozen. Part of her wanted to leave. Another part wanted to walk around the corner and demand answers.What exactly wasn't she supposed to find out?Why were they discussing her as if she were a problem to manage?And why had Victoria sounded worried?The questions collided inside her head.Before she could decide what to do, footsteps approached.Valeria reacted immediately.She turned and walked away as naturally as possible.Not too fast. Not too slow.By the time she reached the library, her heart was still racing.She sat down. Opened a random book.Stared at the same page for ten minutes without reading a single word.Something was wrong. She could feel it.T
最終更新日: 2026-06-14
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