Chapter 1: The Anniversary Lesson

**Leylie’s POV **

"I warned you, Leylie. Why do you keep disobeying me?" His words didn't just echo in the room; they stole every bit of air from my lungs,

"What do you mean, Finn?" I whispered. "I... I haven't disobeyed you. I swear I haven't."

"Really?" He turned toward me slowly, his hazel eyes unreadable. I desperately searched my mind for any mistake I might have made. I replayed every moment of my day, the quiet hours alone in this massive house, and every second of the past week, but nothing stood out, nothing that could explain the anger building in him.

"Finn, please," I pleaded, my voice breaking. "It's our fourth wedding anniversary. Can't we just... put this aside for one night?" I reached out, my fingers brushing his arm, longing to connect with the man I once knew, the one who had swept me off my feet and promised me the world.

With a snarl, he flung my hand away like it was trash. The force sent me stumbling backward, my heels snagging on the edge of the small rug beside our bed. I hit the floor hard, a sharp pain exploding through my elbow as it took the impact.

He didn't even move to help me up. Instead, he towered over me. "I clearly told you to stop talking to Grace, didn't I? She's been filling that tiny, pathetic brain of yours with all sorts of nonsense, turning you against me."

I shook my head, my hair tumbling into my eyes, now filled with tears. "No, Finn! I haven't spoken to her at all, I promise. I did exactly what you asked, just like always."

He narrowed his eyes. "So, you're not just disobedient now. You're a liar, too?" His voice grew louder. "Is that what you've become? You think you can fool me?"

"I'm telling the truth!" I sobbed, clutching my throbbing elbow to my chest. "Please, baby. Don't do this. Not today. Not on our anniversary."

"Then what the hell is this?" He whipped his phone from his pocket and thrust the screen right in front of my face, so close my blurred vision struggled to focus. But there it was, clear as day: my call log, showing a fifteen-minute conversation with Grace from just yesterday.

The air left my lungs. “What? Did… did you hack my phone?”

He let out a short, bitter laugh that sent chills down my spine. "Of course I did. I have to protect you from yourself, Leylie. You lie straight to my face while I provide everything you could ever need. Who's to say you aren't out there, opening your legs for someone else behind my back?"

"I could never cheat on you, Finn! You're my whole world." My words tumbled out, laced with fear that had become my constant companion.

He crouched down, bringing his face close to mine, and for a fleeting second, his expression softened into something almost like sympathy. "How am I supposed to believe you? Tell me how, when lying comes so naturally to you?"

"I… please forgive me," I choked out, the weight of my dependence on him crushing me. "I was just lonely. I… I needed to hear a friendly voice.”

His eyes widened in shock, his nostrils flaring as rage took over. "Lonely? Are you saying I make you feel lonely? That being married to me is some kind of burden now?"

I started to shake my head, denial forming on my lips.

"After all I’ve done for you!" he screamed, the sound echoing off the walls. "I saved you from that filthy stripper pole, from grinding away your dignity for tips. I pulled you out of the dirt, scrubbed you clean, and gave you this life — a mansion and luxury you could never have dreamed of! I paid every last cent of your mother's hospital bills when no one else would, and I'm putting your worthless sister through school so she doesn't end up as you did. And this is how you repay me? By whining that you're lonely?"

​“Baby, no… I didn’t mean it like that.” I scrambled to my knees, reaching for his legs. “I love being your wife more than anything. I love you. Please, I’m—!”

The kick came without warning, his shoe slamming into my stomach, knocking the air from me. I let out a strangled scream and curled into a ball on the cold, hard tiles.

"You need to be taught a lesson," his voice dropped to that eerily calm tone that terrified me. "You're starting to grow wings, Leylie, thinking you have the right to feel things on your own. Next, you’ll feel horny and take this body, the one I bought and paid for, and give it to someone else."

Tears streamed down my face, blurring my vision.

“I’m going to punish you for thinking you have the right to feel anything I haven’t permitted,” he snapped. "I own every damn inch of you, inside and out. By the time I'm done tonight, you'll remember exactly where you belong, beneath me, grateful for whatever I give you."

He pulled his phone out again, his thumb sliding across the screen with casual ease, and pressed it to his ear. "Hey, Cass. Are you free right now?" He paused, a sly smirk curling his lips as he listened. "Perfect. Come over to the main house. Yes... the main house, not the guest wing."

I struggled to sit up, one hand pressed to my aching stomach and the other wiping my face. "Who... who's Cass?" I asked, though a sinking dread in my gut already whispered the answer.

Finnian reached down, his fingers digging into my chin with bruising force. "You'll find out soon enough, my dear. And trust me, it'll be educational."

He turned and strode out of the room without another glance, leaving me crumpled on the floor, alone with my thoughts. Somehow, I managed to crawl to the bed, my body protesting every movement as I stared numbly at the door, my mind a whirlwind of fear and regret.

This was my life now — four years bound to the most eligible bachelor in Los Angeles, a man whose wealth and charm hid a monster. What had started as a fairy tale had twisted into this beautiful, gilded nightmare.

"Leylie! Get down here!"

His voice boomed from downstairs, jolting me from my thoughts. I scrambled off the bed, biting back a whimper as pain flared in my ribs and elbow.

I reached the foyer just as he swung open the front door. There she stood — a stunning woman who could have stepped straight off a magazine cover, tall and blonde, her red dress clinging to her curves, barely covering her thighs. She threw her arms around him, pressing her body against his in a way that made my stomach churn. "Hi, baby," she purred.

He smiled at her, a warm smile that lit his face, the same one he'd once reserved for me back when I truly believed I was the luckiest woman alive. "Come on in," he said, lacing his fingers with hers. "Let's head upstairs."

I was trembling so hard I could barely stand. “Finn… what’s this? Who is she?”

The woman turned to me, her perfectly painted lips curling into a sneer. "Are you blind, honey, or just as stupid as he always says you are?"

In a flash, he whirled her around, his hand tightening on her arm until she winced. "Don't you ever speak to my wife that way in my house," he hissed. "Do you understand me?"

Her eyes widened in genuine fear. "I'm sorry, baby... I didn't think—"

"Don't think at all. Just move." He shoved her toward the stairs.

I watched them climb the stairs, a sickening feeling of dread settling in my chest as I stayed at the bottom, my feet rooted to the spot.

"What are you staring at?" he shouted from the landing, his patience snapping. "Don't you dare keep me waiting!"

I stumbled up the stairs after them, my head spinning with confusion. 

When I entered our bedroom, he had his arm draped around her waist, his eyes fixed on the door as if he'd been counting the seconds until I arrived. He pointed to a chair he'd dragged into the center of the room. "Sit," he commanded, his tone leaving no room for debate.

"Finn, please... talk to me. What's happening here?"

He crossed the room in two strides and grabbed my upper arm. "You know how much I hate questions, Leylie. Just obey me. For once in your life, do as you're told without making it harder." He forced me into the chair, and I sat there, paralyzed, as he pulled a length of rope from the nightstand. I didn't resist as he tied my wrists to the armrests.

Then he knelt between my knees, looking up at me. "You brought this on yourself, you know," he said, reaching up to brush a stray tear from my cheek. "I hate seeing you cry like this, but you need to learn to behave and be the wife I deserve."

He stood up, nodding to the woman in red. "Maybe you can pick up a few tips from her. She’s a pro at satisfying a man.”

“Finn, no!” I screamed, twisting against the rope. "Please don't do this! I'm so sorry. I'll do anything! Just please, not this!" I squeezed my eyes shut, unable to bear the sight, my heart breaking into pieces.

"Leylie!" His voice was a warning. "If I catch you with your eyes closed for even a second, you'll be sleeping in the guest bathroom for a week. And you know I don't bluff."

He was right; he doesn't bluff. Six months ago, I'd spent three nights on the cold, hard bathroom floor because a man at a gala had complimented me, and I'd been foolish enough to smile back politely.

So I forced my eyes open, tears streaming down as I watched them undress each other. I watched my husband, the man I'd given my heart, my body, and my soul to, have sex with another woman on our matrimonial bed on the night of our fourth anniversary.

But he was right.

It was my fault; I was disobedient. This was my punishment, and deep down, in the broken parts of my soul, I told myself I deserved it.