LOGIN*Mira's POV*The thirty-second floor was a world away from the executive suites.It was busy, loud, and wonderfully normal. Cubicles stretched in neat rows. Phones rang. Printers hummed. People rushed past with coffee cups and folders, oblivious to the supernatural drama happening sixty floors above their heads.I loved it.Dana Whitfield was a no-nonsense woman in her fifties with short grey hair and reading glasses perched on her nose. She looked me up and down like a drill sergeant inspecting a new recruit."You're the new hire?" she asked, her voice clipped."Mira Carter," I said, extending my hand. "I –""Carter-Moretti," she interrupted, glancing at a file. "That's your name now, isn't it? The boss's wife."I stiffened. So much for keeping it quiet."Does everyone know?" I asked."Sweetheart, this is a corporate office. Gossip travels faster than email." She dropped the file on my desk, a small, cluttered workspace in the corner of the room. "But don't worry. I don't care who yo
*Mira's POV*I woke to the sound of knocking, it was a firm authoritative rap that echoed through the massive bedroom like a gunshot.I groaned, pulling the silk pillow over my head. I had finally fallen asleep around four in the morning, my mind too tangled in memories and fear to rest.The knocking continued."Mrs. Moretti?" a voice called. "It is six forty-five. Breakfast is served at seven."I groaned again, louder this time. I had slept for two and a half hours. My eyes felt like someone had poured sand into them, and my body ached from the tension I had been carrying since the wedding."I'm awake," I croaked."Very good, ma'am. Mr. Moretti requests your presence in the dining room at seven sharp. He does not appreciate lateness.”Of course he didn't.I dragged myself out of bed, wincing as my bare feet hit the cold marble floor. The room was beautiful in the morning light, golden sunbeams streaming through the arched windows, catching dust motes in the air. It looked like someth
*Mira's POV*Luca led me up a sweeping staircase and down a long hallway. The walls were lined with doors, each one made of heavy dark wood.He then stopped at the end of the hall, where there were two doors, side by side. He opened the one on the left slowly and signed inside it."This is your room." He said, eying me coldly.I peeked inside, and as I expected, it was massive. There was a four-posted bed drapped in white silk, a fireplace, a sitting area and a private bathroom. It was beautiful, and I would have been in awe if the situation wasn't obout me being forced into this marriage, to a total freak, that managed to hide his real identity from me when we were at school together. The I turned and looked at the door on the right."What about that one?" I asked in pure curiosity. "My room." Luca replied. He leaned against the doorframe, crossing his arms, as if he would rather be anywhere but here. "We may be married Mira, but I told you, I will not be faithful. I will not pret
*Mira’s POV*I was acting on my own wedding, that didn’t feel like a wedding at all. We were at the reception performing my act well, though I didn’t get to auction it before.For three hours, I had to smile until my face muscles ached, I shook hands with men I have never seen before in my entire life, and whose grips were firm like iron, and eyes that lingered for longer than my liking. I nodded politely to women in designer dresses. They looked at me as if I was a stain on their pristine world.I sipped my champagne as I tried to get on with this night, knowing well that I was going after the reception to the lion’s den.And all the time, Luca stood beside me, as if he was afraid I would say or do something wrong. His hand was on the small of my back, burning through the silk of my gown like a brand.He was as usual, flawless, charismatic, acting as the perfect groom. To The outside world we were the perfect couple. But I was the only one who knew what’s really happening behind thes
~ Mira’s POV ~Three days went by in a daze of silence.Various stylists arrived, putting me in corsets and fixing my hair until my head hurt. I felt like a doll getting dressed to be shown off. Every now and then, Nicolas would come by to check on me, giving me a sympathetic look.“Cheer up, Mira,” he would say the day before the ceremony. “This is not a funeral.”“Is it not?” I asked, looking at my image in the mirror. I looked like a zombie.“It’s a new beginning,” Nicolas tried to convince me. “Luca… He is complicated. But he is a fair person. Don’t push him too far.”Fair? How could he think I should be nice to the guy who blackmailed me?Nicolas gave me the wedding dress, stunning yet intimidating piece made of pure white lace and silk.I was standing by the window, looking outside at the cityscape I'd never be able to roam again. "Is he going to kill me after the wedding? That's the plan?"Nicolas exhaled and ran a hand through his shorter hair. “You’ve been watching way too ma
~ Mira’s POV ~The “holding suite” was located on the top floor of Moretti Enterprises.It was a huge room made of white marble with walls of glass overlooking Veridia sixty-five floors beneath, full of modern art worth probably more money than my entire family house.There was a huge kitchen that even I did not know how to work, a bedroom bigger than any tennis field, and a bathroom that had the same size and looked like a swimming pool.It was beautiful. It was luxurious.And it was a prison.Sitting on the huge bed inside the suite of the penthouse, I looked down at my finger. The ring felt so heavy, like it was weighing me down. An expensive diamond on the finger of a young girl who could barely pay her rent.Two hours passed.Nicolas had ordered me to do not touch the windows (though they were reinforced, he was sure I could try something stupid such as suicide attempt) and promised to bring some food up there. He left after giving me an unpleasant stare and I quickly tried the d







