Left My Ex, Married The Billionaire CEO

The car ride passed in a blur of streetlights and shadows. I sat in the back seat, wrapped in someone's jacket that smelled of leather and faint lavender. My body still trembled with aftershocks of adrenaline. The man who'd saved me sat in the passenger seat, speaking in low tones to the driver.I caught fragments of their conversation. "Clean extraction." "No casualties on our end." "The others scattered like rats.""Good," my rescuer said,. "Make sure they don't come back. Send word to their employer that the Whiter girl is under Black Herd’s protection now."Black Herd. I'd heard that name before, whispered in the circles my family moved in. They were the people you called when you needed something done and didn't ask questions about how. Fixers. Problem solvers. Dangerous people who operated in the shadows of Notch City's glittering facade.And apparently, they'd decided I was worth saving.I wanted to ask questions—who he was, why they'd come, how they'd known where to find me. B

The Whiter estate looked exactly as I’d left it twenty-four hours ago—imposing gates, manicured gardens, the sprawling mansion. Everything was perfect on the surface, just like always.The front door opened before I reached it. My stepmother, Victoria Whiter, stood there, flawless as ever.“Maddison,” she said, voice dripping with false concern. “Thank God you’re alive. We were so worried.”Liar. If she’d been worried, she’d have called the police or organized a search.“Where’s Father?” I asked, moving past her into the marble foyer.“In his study. He’s been... upset. Jude came by this morning. He told us everything.”I wondered if he mentioned how quickly he’d chosen Cassidy over me.“I need to talk to Father,” I said.“Maddison, wait—” Victoria reached for my arm, but I pulled away. She flinched. Good. Let her wonder what happened to me.I found my father in his study, hunched over a tumbler of whiskey despite it being noon. Harrison Whiter had once been formidable, but years of Vi

William turned slowly, and the look in his eyes nearly undid her. Heat and hunger and desperation, barely restrained."You don't know what you're saying.""Don't I?" Maddison closed the distance between them, her body moving of its own accord. "You said this marriage was about choice. About us choosing for ourselves instead of letting other people decide." She stopped inches from him, close enough to feel his heat. "So I'm choosing. I'm choosing you. Right now.""Maddison," Her name came out like a prayer and a curse. "You'll regret this tomorrow.""Maybe." She lifted her hand to his chest, feeling his heart hammering beneath her palm. "But tonight, I don't want to think about tomorrow. I don't want to think about contracts or terms or what we're supposed to be to each other." She looked up at him, this man who'd saved her life, who'd married her to give her freedom, who was fighting himself right now to protect her from a choice she was trying to make. "Tonight, I just want to feel s

The room went silent."You what?" William's voice was dangerously quiet."Jude texted me last night. He wanted to talk. I went." Maddison lifted her chin. "And before you lecture me about safety, I'm fine. It was a public place, broad daylight. He had information I needed.""What information?"She glanced at the others in the room. "Can we discuss this privately?"William nodded curtly to the three guests. "Give us a moment."They filed out, the woman giving Maddison a sympathetic look as she passed.Once they were alone, William turned to her. "Talk."Maddison told him everything, Jude's text, the meeting, the revelation about the kidnapping being a targeted hit. William's expression grew darker with each word."You should have told me," he said when she finished. "Last night. This morning. Before you walked into a meeting with a man who abandoned you to die.""I know. I'm sorry. I thought," She stopped. "I thought I could handle it myself.""Maddison." William's hands clenched at hi

Her phone buzzed. Another text, this time from Lily: Welcome to the family! Can't wait for dinner tomorrow. Warning: Grace is already planning your "real" wedding. Hide. -LMaddison laughed and showed William the message."My family is insane," he said."My family tried to sell me to a predator. Yours just wants to throw me parties. I'll take it.""You say that now. Wait until Grace starts asking about grandchildren.""Grandchildren?" Maddison's eyes widened."She's been pestering me for years. Now that I'm actually married, she's going to be relentless." He looked down at her. "Fair warning, she'll probably start leaving baby name books around the house.""We've been married for two days!""Welcome to the Chen family. Subtlety is not our strong suit."Despite everything, Maddison found herself laughing. Really laughing, for the first time in days.And William laughed with her, the sound rusty but genuine.The next morning, Maddison woke to an empty bed and the smell of coffee. For a