Chapter 1: The Lion’s Den

Cole's pov 

Swapping places with my twin sister just to live with her husband? This has to be one of the craziest things I've ever done. I had to be going completely out of my mind. What on earth was I thinking? Just because of a car... sure, it was a very special, limited-edition hypercar, but still!

I stood in the middle of a massive, unfamiliar living room, shifting my weight back and forth in a heavy red gown. I winced as the fake bra dug directly into my ribcage. Is this what women actually deal with every single day? It was beyond annoying, and I tugged at the stiff fabric uselessly, trying to get an ounce of relief.

"Here is your heart monitor, Clara."

A sharp voice rang out from behind me, and my heart instantly skipped a beat. I silently prayed to every god in existence that Xavier wouldn't figure out the swap. If the man discovered the trick, there was no telling what he would do to me. Xavier Sterling was rumored to be the unpredictably ruthless, cold, and ridiculously handsome CEO of Sterling Tech Global.

"Clara," Xavier’s voice came again, closer this time from the staircase.

A violent shiver ran straight down my spine. I turned around slowly to face him, forcing a soft, delicate smile onto my face while consciously raising my voice to sound as feminine as possible.

"Yes? Sorry, I zoned out for a second."

I took a cautious step toward Xavier, who was standing a few steps up the grand staircase. He was holding out a sleek black wristwatch. The heart monitor. Clara had specifically warned me about this exact little device, the marriage counselors gave it to them, and they…we had to wear it continuously throughout the ninety days of their court-ordered cooling-off period before the divorce could be finalized. It is meant to track the heartbeats, location, arousal and health of the wearer. 

Clara had said they were told to wear it to make sure the decision to divorce was not rash and to understand if they just needed more time together and the heartbeat and arousal tracker was to know how they feel towards each other.

Ninety days. Just ninety days, I repeated in my head like a desperate prayer.

I reached out and took the wristwatch from his hand, offering another polite little smile. But my fingers shook involuntarily as they brushed near his. I couldn't tell if it was because of the intense, heavy way Xavier was staring down at me, or because I was a full-grown man wearing my twin sister's dress, standing right in front of her husband.

And the worst part? We had to stay together for at least twenty hours every single day.

I couldn't even avoid him if I wanted to. My mind raced as the reality settled in.

Xavier adjusted his cuffs, his cold gaze scanning me slowly from head to toe. "We don't need to make this harder than it already is. Let's just try to stay out of each other's way for the next ninety days. You will handle the cooking, and I will focus on my work."

I blinked, my fake smile freezing completely. "I don't know how to cook. Well... except for simple things like eggs or toast."

Xavier’s dark eyes raked over me again, one dark eyebrow rising slightly. "Is that so?" He paused, letting out a quiet, exasperated sigh. "I will handle the cooking then."

I nodded quickly, immensely relieved I wouldn't burn the kitchen down on night one. "That would be best. Thank you."

"Also," Xavier continued, his voice completely flat, "we have to sleep together..."

"What?!" I gasped out loud, my eyes widening in pure horror. "Sleep together?!"

Xavier shut his eyes, taking in a slow, deep breath to keep his patience in check. I gulped hard, my chest tightening as my legs prepared to bolt straight for the front door.

He opened his eyes, glaring down at me. "I haven't finished my sentence. We will be sleeping in the same bed. I am not interested in touching you. You can go inside the room now and do whatever you need to do. I will stay down here and come up in an hour."

Thank God, I thought, letting out a breath I didn't even realize I was holding.

I forced another quick nod. "Alright. Thank you."

I quickly gathered the heavy train of the red gown in my hands and started climbing the stairs, carefully squeezing past Xavier on the narrow step. I kept my head down, trying my absolute best not to breathe in the rich, expensive scent of his cologne.

I took three fast steps toward the top landing, feeling like I was about to make a clean escape.

"Clara."

Xavier's deep voice called out from behind me, echoing sharply in the quiet hallway.

I froze on the top step. My body went completely stiff, my hand gripping the wooden railing so hard my knuckles turned white. Slowly, terrifyingly, I turned my head to look back over my shoulder.

Xavier was still standing on the stairs, looking up at me with a strangely sharp, unreadable look in his dark eyes.

"You look..."