LOGIN"The invitation to the boardroom should have made me proud, but the moment I saw my name on it, I wondered whether they wanted me there or wanted to test me."I stood by my desk, turning the heavy cardstock over in my fingers as Ethan walked into my office. He stopped a few paces away, his sharp gaze instantly picking up on the rigid tension in my shoulders."I saw the notice," Ethan said, his voice level and steady. "The board wants to discuss the new corporate development project."I looked up, narrowing my eyes slightly as a wave of skepticism washed over me. "And why is my name attached to it, Ethan? Is this because of my work, or is this because everyone in this building knows who I am to you?"Ethan’s expression didn't flicker, nor did he offer an easy reassurance. "It has nothing to do with our relationship, Aria. The board specifically requested you because of your role in uncovering the recent financial manipulation within the logistics division. They saw the audit report y
"You don't have to answer tonight, Aria," Ethan murmured, his dark eyes reading every flicker of hesitation on my face as his thumb brushed my cheek."It's just..." I swallowed hard, my fingers twisting tightly into the fabric of my skirt. "Marriage is enormous, Ethan. Our lives are entirely different. You walk in a world of power and influence that I spent my whole life standing outside of. When you talk about forever, it feels like stepping off an edge without knowing if there is solid ground."He dropped his hand from my face back to the steering wheel, turning slightly toward me so he had my full attention. "I'm not asking for an immediate answer. I just need you to know where my head is. I see a future with you. Not an assistant, not a temporary distraction, but you."Hearing him say those words sent a sharp shiver down my spine, filling my chest with a fierce, blinding happiness right alongside a cold wave of absolute terror. I met his steady gaze through the dim cabin light.
"You cannot seriously expect me to walk into a room with your grandmother and pretend I belong there," I said, my voice rising over the steady, nerve-wracking hum of the car engine as Ethan kept his eyes fixed strictly on the road ahead.He didn't even flinch, only tightening his grip on the wheel with one hand while reaching across the console with the other to wrap his fingers firmly around my trembling hand. "You aren't pretending anything, Aria," he replied, his tone entirely too calm, too collected for someone who had just detonated a bomb in the middle of our afternoon. "She asked to meet you.""Your grandmother is Evelyn Blackwood," I shot back, wrenching my gaze away from the passing blur of the city to glare at him, my heart hammering a frantic, violent rhythm against my ribs. "The Blackwood name carries weight in rooms we have no business stepping into. Why on earth would she want to look at me? What if she sees right through me?""She already does," Ethan interrupted smooth
"The votes have been verified and certified," the chairman announced, his voice carrying clearly across the quiet hall.My heart hammered hard against my ribs, a wild, breathless rhythm as I stared straight ahead at the podium. Beside me, Ethan did not flinch, his shoulders remaining square and his expression locked in a calm, impenetrable mask of absolute focus. Across the aisle, Victor’s lead attorney smirked openly, leaning in to whisper something smug to his associate as if the victory belonged to them.The silence in the auditorium stretched out, heavy and suffocating, waiting for the single sentence that would dictate our entire future. My thoughts raced back to the cold, distant billionaire who had first demanded a contract for my life months ago, a man who saw warmth as a weakness and emotion as a liability. Looking at the profile of his face now, etched with strength and hard-won resilience, I felt a deep, fierce shift inside my chest. I wasn't afraid of what the outcome m
Ethan had survived Victor’s trap, but surviving wasn’t enough. We still had to stop him from taking everything Ethan had built. The executive suite felt like a war zone, lit only by the glare of multiple computer monitors and the pale morning sun cutting through the floor-to-ceiling glass windows. Ethan sat at the head of the polished conference table, his posture rigid, sleeves rolled up over forearms still bruised from the previous night's ordeal. Across from him, his elite legal team huddled over a thick stack of printed legal briefs, rapidly turning pages as they reviewed the hostile filing Victor had submitted just minutes before our arrival."He’s relying entirely on the disputed shareholder transfers executed through the offshore shell companies," lead counsel murmured, pushing his glasses up his nose as he slid a highlighted document toward Ethan. "If the board accepts these proxy assignments as valid before we can present our injunctions, Victor effectively holds forty-one
Victor wanted me frightened, but the moment I saw Ethan behind that locked door, fear stopped being the strongest thing inside me. I planted my feet firmly against the concrete floor, my back pressed against the cold steel of the cell door, and stared straight into Victor’s cold eyes. He took a slow, deliberate step forward, his expensive leather shoes clicking loudly against the grime."Hand over the tracker, Aria," Victor demanded, holding out an open palm with a harsh, impatient scowl. "You triggered the signal the moment you walked past the checkpoint. Do you honestly think a handful of corporate security guards can take down a perimeter I spent six months securing?""I'm not giving you anything, Victor," I snapped, keeping my voice level and sharp. "You lost the moment you decided to use physical force instead of boardrooms. It means your entire scheme is falling apart."Victor’s face twisted with ugly malice. He gestured toward the locked room behind me, his voice dropping into







