CHAPTER 2: THE PENTHOUSE

I didn’t sleep that night.

The small apartment felt even smaller after I got home. Lila was already in bed, but the light under her door was still on. I stood outside for a long moment before knocking.

“Come in,” she called.

She sat cross-legged on her bed with a textbook open, but her eyes were red. The moment she saw my face, she knew something was wrong.

“What happened?” she asked.

I sat on the edge of her bed and told her the truth. Not every detail is just enough. That a powerful man had offered to pay for Dad’s surgery and her remaining school fees in exchange for a temporary arrangement. I didn’t use the word “marriage.” Not yet.

Lila stared at me. “Ava… what did you agree to?”

“Something that will keep Dad alive and keep you in school.”

Her eyes filled with tears. “You always do this. You always carry everything alone.”

I pulled her into a hug so she wouldn’t see my own eyes stinging. “It’s only for a year. Then everything goes back to normal.”

She didn’t believe me. I didn’t believe me either.

I packed until three in the morning. Most of my clothes looked pathetic next to the life I was about to enter. I folded my best blouse carefully, as if that would make a difference. When I finally lay down, sleep refused to come. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Damien Voss’s cold gray stare.

At 8:45 a.m., the same black car was waiting downstairs. Lila stood with me on the sidewalk, arms wrapped tightly around herself.

“Call me every day,” she whispered.

“I will.”

The driver took my single suitcase and placed it in the trunk without a word. I slid into the back seat and watched my sister grow smaller in the rearview mirror until the car turned the corner.

The ride to Voss Tower felt longer than the night before. When we arrived, the driver led me not to the office floors, but to a private elevator that required a key card. The numbers climbed higher than I thought possible.

The doors opened directly into a penthouse that didn’t feel real.

Floor-to-ceiling windows stretched across an entire wall, showing the city like a living map. The living room was all clean lines, black leather, and polished marble. Everything looked expensive and untouched. There was no warmth here. No photographs. No soft edges.

A woman in a neat black uniform appeared. “Miss Reed. I am Rosa, the housekeeper. Mr. Voss instructed me to show you to your room.”

“My room?” I repeated.

She nodded. “This way.”

We walked down a wide hallway. She stopped at the second door on the right and opened it. The bedroom was larger than my entire apartment. A king-sized bed with white sheets. A walk-in closet. An attached bathroom with a bathtub I could almost swim in.

“Mr. Voss’s room is at the end of the hall,” Rosa said carefully. “Breakfast is served at seven. Dinner at eight when he is home. If you need anything, press the button beside the bed.”

She left me alone.

I stood in the middle of the room with my suitcase still in my hand, feeling like an intruder. This place didn’t belong to me. I didn’t belong here.

I unpacked slowly. My clothes looked lost inside the huge closet. When I finished, I sat on the edge of the bed and stared at the city below. Somewhere out there, Dad was still in that hospital bed. Somewhere, Lila was trying to focus on class while worrying about me.

A soft knock came at the door.

I opened it, expecting Rosa.

Damien Voss stood there instead.

He wore a dark gray suit today, the jacket unbuttoned, tie perfectly knotted. His presence filled the doorway. Those same cold eyes swept over me once, taking in my simple jeans and sweater.

“You’re early,” he said.

“You told me nine.”

“I expected you to be late.” He stepped past me into the room without waiting for an invitation. His gaze landed on my half-empty suitcase. “Is that everything?”

“Yes.”

He didn’t comment, but the slight tightening of his mouth said enough. He walked to the window and stood with his hands in his pockets.

“There are rules,” he said without turning around. “You will not enter my study or my bedroom without permission. You will not bring guests here. You will attend every event I schedule. When we are in public, you will act like a devoted wife. In private, you will stay out of my way.”

I crossed my arms. “Anything else?”

“Yes.” He turned to face me fully. “Do not mistake this arrangement for something it is not. I have no interest in your feelings, your past, or your future beyond the next twelve months. Understood?”

The words landed harder than I expected. I forced my voice to stay steady. “Crystal clear.”

He studied me for a moment longer, as if checking whether I would break. When I didn’t, he gave a short nod.

“Rosa will take you shopping this afternoon. You need a wardrobe that matches your new position. The card in the top drawer of the nightstand is yours. There is no limit.”

I blinked. “I don’t need”

“It is not a request.” His tone left no room for argument. “Be ready at two.”

He walked toward the door, then paused with his hand on the frame.

“One more thing, Miss Reed.”

“Ava,” I said before I could stop myself. “If I’m supposed to be your wife, you should at least use my first name.”

Something flickered in his eyes, surprise, maybe irritation. Then it vanished.

“Ava,” he said slowly, tasting the name. “Do not fall in love with me. It will only make the end of this contract more painful for you.”

He left without waiting for a reply.

The door clicked shut.

I stood there for a long time, heart beating too fast, staring at the empty hallway.

Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the city kept moving as if nothing had changed. But everything had.

I was now living in the coldest home I had ever entered…

with the coldest man I had ever met.

And somewhere deep in my chest, a quiet warning whispered that twelve months might not be long enough to survive him.