Chapter 1

“Marry my son.”

The words slipped casually from Mrs. Sterling’s lips in the dining room of the grand family estate, shattering the silence that had felt unbearably heavy all evening.

Aria Thorne, who had just set down her teacup, froze. She stared at the middle-aged woman who had cared for her ever since her father passed away years ago, wondering if she had heard her correctly. But the seriousness etched across Mr. and Mrs. Sterling’s faces dispelled any doubt.

Marriage.

To their only son.

To Lucas Sterling.

“You must be joking, Mrs. Sterling,” Aria said, her voice restrained as she tried to bring some semblance of reason back into the room. “Lucas hates the idea of commitment. He even considers me a parasite living off this family.”

“Lucas doesn’t know what’s best for his future, Aria,” Mr. Sterling replied firmly, leaning back in his expensive teakwood chair. “And we need someone with integrity like you to stop him before that woman, Chloe, destroys his life.”

Aria slowly shook her head. She drew a deep breath and straightened her back with dignity. She did not want her life dragged into the turmoil of a billionaire family simply because of pity or a debt of gratitude.

“I’m sorry, but I refuse,” Aria said without hesitation. “I will never marry a man who doesn’t want me, and I refuse to turn my life into a tool for solving your family’s problems. I have a future of my own. I’m still finishing my architecture degree...”

“Refuse what?”

A deep, cold, authoritative voice cut through Aria’s words from the doorway.

The door swung wide open. Lucas Sterling stood there in a slightly disheveled work suit, his jaw clenched, his sharp gaze piercing into the room. He had just arrived, completely unaware that he was about to become the main subject of discussion that evening.

Lucas stepped inside, his dark eyes moving between his parents and the young woman standing beside the table.

“What’s going on?” Lucas asked impatiently.

Mrs. Sterling drew a long breath before answering her only son.

“We want you to marry Aria.”

The room suddenly went still.

Lucas fell silent. He froze in place. His gaze shifted from his mother to Aria, taking in the discomfort on her face before a mocking smirk slowly appeared on his lips.

“Marry?” Lucas’s voice was low, filled with disbelief and unmistakable contempt. “You must have lost your minds.”

Without wasting another second, Lucas flatly rejected the idea, his voice rising with anger. He refused to be forced into an old-fashioned arranged marriage, insisting that his life was not a game for his parents to play. But Mr. Sterling gave him no other choice.

With an uncompromising expression, his father slammed a legal document onto the table.

“This is not a request, Lucas,” Mr. Sterling said coldly. “Your grandfather’s will is very clear. You must be married before your thirtieth birthday, or the board of directors will take full control of Sterling Group. All your shares and your position as CEO will be taken from you.”

Lucas was stunned. His jaw tightened.

He knew all too well the consequences of that absurd clause. With the deadline approaching, losing control of the company was far too high a price to pay.

But marry Aria?

The woman he considered nothing more than a charity case his family had taken in?

“This is insane,” Lucas growled, shooting Aria a sharp look. “You want me to tie myself to someone else just to satisfy your fear of Chloe? I will never marry a woman you choose. My life belongs to me. I’ll get married, but the woman will be Chloe!”

Lucas’s shout echoed through the dining room.

A heated argument erupted immediately. Lucas fought desperately to defend his position, swearing that he would rather give up his position than submit to this family charade, while Mr. Sterling continued pressuring him with threats concerning his inheritance.

Amid the mounting tension, Mrs. Sterling suddenly clutched her chest.

The color drained from her face. Her breath came in short, ragged gasps, her eyes grew distant, and before anyone could react, her body collapsed to the floor with a heavy thud.

“Mom!” Lucas shouted, his voice echoing through the dining room.

The atmosphere instantly turned into a nightmare.

The arrogant man who had been shouting in anger moments earlier immediately dropped to his knees and rushed to his mother’s side, lifting her limp body with trembling hands. Panic seized the entire room. An ambulance was called at once, and that night, the Sterling residence descended into chaos.

At the emergency department of the finest hospital in Manhattan, a doctor emerged with a grim expression.

The diagnosis struck Lucas like a blow.

A sudden heart attack, triggered by extreme stress and overwhelming emotional pressure.

His mother’s condition was critical.

At the doorway of the ICU, beneath the pale glow of the hospital lights, Mrs. Sterling lay weakly in bed with oxygen tubes surrounding her.

With trembling hands, she called Lucas and Aria inside. Her voice was painfully hoarse, barely more than a whisper, as though it were the last breath she had left in this world.

“Lucas... my son...” Mrs. Sterling whispered, tears slipping from the corners of her eyes. “Please... don’t argue with me anymore. Before I close my eyes... I want to see you marry Aria. That’s all... it’s my only wish.”

Lucas froze.

It felt as though the world had collapsed beneath his feet.

The threat of losing his grandfather’s inheritance was nothing compared to the overwhelming fear of losing his mother. Guilt struck his chest like a heavy hammer. He stared at his helpless mother lying in the hospital bed, then turned toward Aria, who stood stiffly in the corner of the room.

There was no longer any room for refusal.

With his jaw clenched and his eyes reddened from the turmoil of emotions inside him, Lucas finally lowered his head, clasped his mother’s cold hand, and whispered hoarsely,

“All right, Mom. I’ll marry her. Please... hold on.”

Mrs. Sterling gave him a weak smile and slowly closed her eyes, as though the heavy burden weighing on her chest had finally been lifted.

A few minutes later, after the doctor confirmed that the patient was stable and ordered them to leave so they could rest, Lucas trudged out of the ICU.

He found Aria standing in the hospital corridor, her expression filled with conflicting emotions.

Without wasting any time, Lucas approached her and looked at her coldly, making it clear that being forced into this marriage had not increased his respect for her in the slightest.

“You heard my mother’s request yourself,” Lucas hissed, his voice barely above a whisper. “We’re getting married. But don’t ever dream that this will be a real marriage. This is nothing more than an emergency contract to save my mother’s life.”

Aria stared at the man before her, her heart pounding violently in her chest.

“What did you say? We’re getting married?”

To be continued...