Chapter 3

Evelyn's POV.

Six months later.

The past six months didn’t change me. They remade me. I learned a different kind of power. I became a financial manager all thanks to Vincent’ insulting five dollars.

 The pain doesn’t vanish, sometimes it strikes without warning. 

I let my bag fall on the couch. It landed with a heavy thud, but Lina didn’t look up, her eyes locked on her phone screen.

“You’re going to strain your eyes,” I said, my voice tight. “Put that thing down.”

Finally, she glanced up, but her expression was relief, not annoyed. “Evie. Come here. Now.”

She reached out, her fingers wrapping around my wrist, and pulled me down beside her before I could resist.

“Look,” she said, her voice a mixture of urgency and triumph. She pushed her tablet into my hands, her own finger jabbing at the screen. “Just look.”

My eyes darted to her tablet, it was a grainy, long-lens photo of a man emerging from a black car. 

 Even in pixels, he commanded the space around him. He was tall,broad-shouldered, black hair and grey eyes. Lucien Alexander. The tabloids called him “The devil.” 

I looked back at Lina, and shrugged. 

“So?” I said, a teasing lilt in my voice. “You want to date him?” I gave an eyebrow waggle, knowing full well how ridiculous it was. 

Dating Lucien Alexander? Impossible.  

The rumors didn’t just say he was difficult, they said he was the devil’s own son. “Obviously,” I finished, the humor fading into simple fact. “That man is a no-go zone.”

I stood up and grabbed a bottle of water from the counter, twisting the cap off.

“I’m not the one dating him,” Lina said, her voice flat and clear. “You are.”

The water caught in my throat. I choked, a harsh, sputtering cough bending me at the waist. I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand, my eyes stinging, and darted back to her.

“You’re joking,” I gasped, the words raw. “Tell me you’re joking right now.”

She didn’t smile. She just shook her head slowly, letting her tablet drop onto the couch cushions. 

“My friend in his legal department told me something unique. His grandfather’s will. To inherit full control, he must be married. He needs a stable, respectable wife. A public shield to quiet the board’s doubts.” She leaned forward, her gaze locking onto mine. “He doesn’t want a romance, Evelyn. He wants a strategic partnership.”

I stared at her, the condensation from the water bottle cold against my palm. My mind raced, trying to connect the dots and coming up empty. 

A frown etched itself deeply between my brows.

“So?” I finally said, my voice quieter now, edged with confusion and a flicker of dread. “What does that have to do with me?” I asked, dropping the water as I sat beside her. 

“It’s a two-year term,” Lina said, shoving the tablets to me. “It would give you a position of power the Thornes could never touch. A name that would force them to open every door they’ve locked against you.”

I shoved the tablet back at her as if it had burned my hands. 

“No. Absolutely not. Have you lost your mind? You want me to marry a stranger? A man they call the devil?”

“I want you to win!” she shot back, her own temper flaring. “What’s your plan, Evie? To manage other people’s money forever? To just be… better than you were? He needs a wife. You need a weapon. It’s a transaction.”

“It’s selling myself!”

“You were already sold!” Lina’s words cut through the room, sharp and terrible. “Vincent bought you for five dollars after killing your baby, made you carry his own and threw you out when he was done with you. Your father sold you for a moment’s peace with his new wife. This isn’t selling yourself. This is setting your own damn price.”

I shook my head. “You're not getting me, I want revenge. But not this way?”

“Then through what way? She asked, staring at me hard. “You need power to pull your ex fiancee and family and that's what Lucien has.”

I turned away, my arms wrapped tight around my middle. The hollow feeling from six months ago threatened to reopen.

 “It’s insane. He’ll never pick me. Look at me, Lina.”

“I am looking!” She stepped in front of me, gripping my shoulders. “I’m looking at a woman who learned to break a hold in twelve weeks. Who turned an insult into an investment. Who walks into a room now and makes people nervous. He doesn’t want a debutante. He wants a soldier who knows how to wear a gown. That’s you.”

I shook my head, but the logic was a cold vine, twisting around my refusal. A name. Real power. Not just the quiet, behind-the-scenes kind. The kind that makes people step aside.

“How?” The word was a cracked whisper. “How would it even work?”

Relief flashed in Lina’s eyes. She moved quickly, picking up her tablet again.

 “He’s impossible to get a formal meeting with. But he’s predictable. Tonight, he’s at the Gemini Club. The upstairs lounge. He goes every Thursday to meet a contact.”

“So I just… show up?” I asked, confused .

“You pretend to bump into him.” She scrolled and showed me a picture of a dress. A simple, backless column of emerald green silk. “It’s already here. My size. It’ll fit you.”

“You’ve lost your mind,” I breathed, closing my eyes for a while, before snapping it open. 

“Maybe,” Lina smiled, but it was fierce. “But I’ve lost it on your behalf. The car is downstairs. The dress is in my room. Your hair is already perfect.”

---

The Gemini Club pulsed with a deep, expensive rhythm. My heart pounded as I stepped in.

This was a terrible decision. This is madness. What if he finds it insulting? What if he has me thrown out? What if he killed me? 

I kept my face a serene mask. But inside, I was unraveling.

And then I saw him.

Lucien Alexander.

A photograph did nothing. The devil was hotter in person.

It wasn’t just the sharp, brutal cut of his jaw I saw, or the way his dark hair fell in a careless sweep.

 It was the live-wire energy that vibrated across the space between us. His mouth held me.

Then his eyes found mine. That was the final blow.

 A knowing, smoky heat in his look traveled over my skin, and I felt every inch of its path. 

My breath hitched, a frantic pulse beat at my wrists.

He wasn’t just a man. He was a promise, and a threat.

What the hell have I gotten myself into?