Chapter 1

I took the fall and went to prison for the woman I loved—my girlfriend.

She'd just turned twenty-two then. Life's golden girl, finally hitting her first real setback. She looked wrecked—thin, hollow, barely herself.

She held my hand. "Luke... could you take the fall for me? I know you love me. I promise—when you get out, we'll get married. We'll build a life together."

Marriage.

Sweet word. Poison center.

I knew prison would be hell—and life after might be even worse.

Still, I believed her.

Five years.

I went in a reckless kid.

I came out thirty.

The second I stepped out of the prison gates, sunlight slammed into me. Blinding. I could barely keep my eyes open.

I lifted a hand to block the glare.

Through the haze, I saw Selene Quinn.

She looked even better than five years ago. The old innocence was gone, the softness too. In its place—sharp edges. The kind you get from surviving the business world.

My chest tightened. Heat crept up my face.

This woman was mine.

She was going to marry me.

Holding onto that, I started toward her.

Selene stood about three feet away, frowning. "What the hell happened to you? How'd you get so skinny? You look like a damn twig. It's disgusting."

I'd been about to pull her into a hug.

"Damn twig" stopped me cold.

I glanced down. The clothes I'd walked into prison with five years ago now looked straight-up pathetic.

My hair was shaved into a stiff buzz cut. Next to Selene's perfectly styled curls, it felt like a bad joke.

She seemed to realize how harsh that sounded. A flicker of guilt crossed her face.

"Get in the car first. We'll talk at home."

She slid her sunglasses down a little lower—like she didn't want anyone snapping a picture.

I kept my head down and said nothing as I walked to the car.

I opened the passenger door—

—and froze.

The guy inside looked about fifty percent like a younger version of me. Except his eyes held open defiance.

I instinctively stepped back.

Selene didn't even notice.

"Luke, this is my assistant. Sit in the back. We'll talk when we get home."

Something clamped around my chest.

Even breathing started to hurt.

The assistant looked barely twenty. Lean, toned.

The second I got in, a faint pomegranate scent hit me. My fingers curled before I could stop them.

That was Selene's favorite.

She used to say it smelled like nature. Clean. Fresh.

Back then, I used that body wash every day. Selene would bury her face in my chest, breathe in deep, and smile.

"Luke, you smell so good. This scent belongs to me."

And now—even that wasn't mine anymore?

I sat in the back like a stranger. The awkward third wheel wedged between them.

Selene—my girlfriend I hadn't seen in five years—sat up front with her assistant, calmly talking about the company's next moves like I didn't exist.

Nothing intimate. Just business.

Still, I felt stripped bare. A lump lodged in my throat.

Because I couldn't understand a single word they were saying.

Five years ago, I'd been a rising star in business.

The guy people envied.