Chapter 4

Audrey's POV

Hepburn was my family name, and whoever this man standing in front of me was, he knew me far too well.

"You're seriously getting on my nerves right now!" My voice came out louder than I intended and I didn't care.

"I have had enough for one day. I caught my husband in my own living room getting a blowjob from my own cousin, I am mentally exhausted, and I cannot afford to play hide and seek with a stranger in a hotel room."

I stepped closer, finger pointed directly at his chest.

"Tell me who you are. Right now.”

He looked down at my finger, then back up at me with that same infuriating calm.

"You're so damn sexy when you're angry," he said.

I almost screamed.

"I swear to God—"

"Good to see you again, sister-in-law."

Everything inside me went completely still.

My breath hitched sharply as I stumbled back a step, my eyes widening as the truth slammed into me all at once.

“Logan?” My voice came out uneven, almost breaking under the weight of it.

“You’re… you’re supposed to be…”

“Dead?” he finished, that same small, almost mocking smile appearing again.

A chill ran through me as I stared at him like he was something impossible.

“Did I just…” I swallowed, my throat suddenly dry as my mind struggled to catch up. “Did I just have sex with a ghost?”

He laughed softly, shaking his head.

“I’ve never heard of any ghost that can make a woman come apart the way you just did,”

"I don't know what's worse," I said, pressing my fingers against my temple.

"The fact that you've apparently been dead for Sixyears and you're suddenly standing here, or the fact that I just slept with my brother-in-law."

"That's about to change," he said.

I frowned. "What does that mean?”

"It means I know everything that's been happening in that sham you call a marriage," he said quietly.

"I came back with one purpose, and that purpose includes making sure you're not collateral damage when everything falls apart.”

I folded my arms. "I don't remember asking for a guardian angel, and I certainly didn't ask you to monitor my life from whatever corner of the world you've been hiding in."

"I'm just using one stone to kill two birds," he said. "You get your freedom, I get my revenge on Matteo”

"Revenge on your brother…”

"Matteo is not my brother." The words came out sharp and final.

"No brother would arrange to have his own blood killed over inheritance. He knew our father's will gave me the greater share and he decided to remove me permanently.”

"I don't believe you."

"Yes you do," he said quietly. "You've lived with him for Sixyears, you know what he is capable of”

I hated that I couldn't immediately argue with that.

"Even if that's true, what does it have to do with me?”

"Because I need one thing from you to make this work."

"What thing?"

"Marry me."

I blinked. "I'm sorry?"

"A contract marriage, one year, fully on your terms. After twelve months you walk away with whatever you want."

I laughed, loud and slightly hysterical. "I'm married. To your brother."

"And that marriage," he said calmly, "was designed to keep you as a placeholder while your parents quietly built a future for Kylie. They've been embarrassed by you for years, Audrey, and they made a decision a long time ago about who they actually wanted carrying the family image forward.”

The laughter died instantly.

"You're lying."

"Months ago, your family approached a company to negotiate a major brand deal,"

"The company has an international modelling division and a luxury maternity and baby product line launching globally next year. Your family came with a full proposal, they wanted Kylie to be the face of both campaigns." He paused.

"They never mentioned your name once.”

My vision blurred slightly at the edges.

"And the reason they chose a maternity campaign specifically," he added, "is because Kylie is pregnant. She's carrying Matteo's child”

The room felt very small suddenly and my heart began to pound so hard I could feel it in my throat.

"This is insane," I whispered. "I don't… my parents wouldn't…how do you even know any of this?"

He reached into his jacket and placed a card on the dresser between us.

I looked down at it.

Logan A. Williams. Chief Executive Officer. Lowill Group.

My brain took several seconds to process what my eyes were reading.

My brother-in-law… was the secret CEO of the biggest company in the world.

"How…" I looked up at him slowly, completely lost for words. "How is this even possible? You've been gone for Sixyears."

"Sixyears is a lot of time for change,"he said simply.

"This is your chance, Audrey." He closed the space between us slowly, his voice dropping low.

"Everything that has been done to you, by Matteo, by your parents, by Kylie, you have the power to make every single one of them pay for it”

I swallowed hard. "And what exactly do I get out of this beyond revenge?”

He tilted his head slightly, something darkening in his eyes in a way that sent heat straight down my spine.

"Protection," he said. "Your inheritance and the chance to finally exist without apology”

He stepped closer, close enough that I could feel the warmth coming off his body.

"And me."

My breath hitched.

“Your body is sin itself and there are a lot of dirty things I want to do to you, you're going to get…365 days of raw sex, however and wherever you want it”

He paused, a sly grin tugging at his lips.

“I must warn you, though… don’t get too obsessed with me. I don’t want you falling in love.”

I arched an eyebrow, stepping closer, unafraid.

“Oh, trust me,” I said, my voice daring, “the one who’s going to fall… might just be you.”

“So,” he said finally, his gaze locking onto mine. “what do you say, Audrey? Deal?”