Chapter 1

On their third anniversary, Lucia opened a drawer and found the same box of condoms she'd bought before the wedding—still sealed.

Not like they forgot protection. They just never had anything to protect. Three years, and Jared hadn't touched her once.

So that night, she got bold. New lingerie, three glasses of red, and she wrapped her arms around his neck the second he stepped out of the shower.

"Babe," she whispered. "Let's—"

He shoved her off.

"Seriously, Lucia? Have you no shame?" His voice was ice. "If you're that desperate, go hump a stick."

She froze, color draining from her face.

She couldn't wrap her head around it. She was reaching out to her husband, and he hit her with "no shame"?

Lucia didn't sleep a second.

Buried under the covers, she scrolled through a forum on her phone:

[The pain of a sexless marriage. What should I do if my husband's never touched me since we got married?]

Some replies hinted maybe he was into guys.

Others wondered if he just... couldn't.

Restless, she got up for water—and noticed the bed was empty.

The bathroom light was on. Weird sounds slipped through the cracked door.

She stepped closer. Peeked in.

And her blood ran cold.

Jared—the guy who acted like he didn't care for "anything" physical—was going at it.

To a photo of her "sister." Alice Lynch.

He really thought Lucia was out cold—eyes glazed, voice low,

"Alice... Alice..."

Lucia stumbled back to the bedroom, heart pounding. Jared's phone lit up on the nightstand. Her fingers shook as she picked it up.

She'd always known the passcode. Never used it—until now.

On his chat app, she opened a group thread with his buddies:

[Jared, 1000 days of celibacy today, right? You have to come out and celebrate!]

[No way. Three years married and still no action?]

[Lucia might be a bumpkin, but with that face and body? You've seriously held back?]

[Obviously. He made that vow to Alice—stay pure for her. Jared's never broken a promise to Alice.]

[Total legend. Lucia stole Alice's spot as the Lynch heiress, so Jared faked the whole marriage. His parents forced it, but it was all part of his plan.]

[Yeah, marry Lucia, wait it out, then dump her. Make her look used and tossed.]

[Now that Dawson Corp's yours, time to cut her loose?]

The chat paused.

Then Jared's reply, sent right before he hit the shower:

[Soon.]

Just one word.

Lucia went ghost white.

Lucia was an orphan raised overseas by her adoptive parents. Four years ago, she came back to Khelmark and found out she was actually the long-lost daughter of the Lynch family.

It hadn't been abandonment—someone had swapped the babies.

The Lynches brought her back, but couldn't let go of Alice, the fake daughter they'd raised. So they kept both girls.

There'd been a marriage pact between the Dawsons and Lynches for years. Jared was supposed to marry Alice. Then suddenly, it was Lucia.

She never wanted it.

But Jared? He chased her like crazy. Relentless.

When she couldn't stomach Khelmark's food, Jared flew in her favorites from Italvia on a private jet. When she couldn't sleep, he stayed on the phone all night.

Then came the kidnapping. The ransom call forced the family to pick one daughter to save.

They chose Alice.

But Jared? He stormed in alone and got Lucia out.

Bit by bit, she fell for him. Said yes to the wedding.

Then everything flipped.

He went cold. Distant. Never laid a hand on her.

She used to worry he was sick.

Now she knew better—he wasn't sick, and he wasn't asexual.

He was saving himself for someone else.

She didn't get it.

It wasn't her fault she'd gone missing. Wasn't her fault the Lynch family brought her back.

So why did Jared treat her like this?

Tears blurred her vision just as her phone buzzed.

Lucia stepped onto the balcony and picked up.

"Lucia."

It was Francesca—soft voice, calm as ever. The woman who raised her.

"My birthday's coming up. Will you come home to Italvia?" She paused. "Of course, if your birth parents don't approve... forget I asked."

Giovanni and Francesca Loredan had adopted Lucia legally. They couldn't have kids, but they loved her like she was theirs.

But in Khelmark, blood was everything. And because of Jared, Lucia had stayed behind for four long years.

Now...

The tears she'd been holding back finally broke free. Her voice cracked.

"Mom, I want to come back to Italvia."

Francesca's voice sharpened, panicked.

"Sweetheart, what happened? Did the Lynch family hurt you? Come home now! I swear, once you're in Italvia, no one will touch you!"

The Loredans were powerhouses—top of Italvia's business world, with reach all over Europe.

"I'll handle everything," Francesca rushed out. "I'll send the jet in three days. You're my daughter, and I won't let anyone hurt you."