CHAPTER 5

ALYANA POV

Julian didn't let me go back by myself. He walked a few steps behind me, and I could hear his footsteps on the floor. Every time I tried to walk faster, he kept up with me. He didn't say anything until we reached the big wooden doors of the bedroom in the East Wing.

Instead of letting me go into my own room, he grabbed the handle of the main bedroom door and pushed it open.

"Inside," he said.

"Julian, it’s late. I just want to sleep," I said, my voice shaking.

"Inside, Alyana."

​I walked into his room. It was bigger than mine and colder. It just smelled like him and the rain hitting the windows. He closed the door and leaned against it with his arms crossed. His mask covered half his face, but I could feel him watching me.

"You think he’s different," Julian said. It wasn't a question.

"He’s my friend," I said, turning to face him. I was tired of being watched every time I walked down the hall in this house. "He’s the only one here who treats me like a person instead of just something you own”

Julian let out a short laugh. He walked toward me, and I stepped back until the backs of my knees hit the edge of the bed. He didn’t stop until he was standing right in front of me.

"He looks at you and sees some old fantasy," Julian said quietly. "I look at you and see my wife."

He reached up, his gloved thumb brushing along my jaw. I tried to pull back, but he hels me still, not too hard.

"Do you really think Leo understands what this is?" he continued. "Do you think he’d still be talking about London if he knew the debt I cleared for your father wasn’t just money? If he knew what I had to fix to keep your family out of trouble?"

"What are you talking about?" I whispered, my heart racing.

"It doesn't matter," Julian said, his eyes dropping to my lips. "What matters is that you aren't going anywhere. Leo likes to play the hero because it's easy when you have nothing to lose. But I’ve paid for you, Alyana. Every cent. Every sacrifice. I don't give up what I’ve bought."

"You talk about me like I’m some kind of property. Like I’m an asset you can just lock away."

"In this world, you are," he said. He stepped even closer, and I could feel the heat coming off him through my thin robe. "And my brother is a thief who likes to take what I’ve built. He’s been doing it since we were kids. My toys, my father’s attention, my place in this family. But he's not taking you."

"You can't stop me from talking to him."

"I can do much more than that." Julian let go of my jaw and stepped back, pacing along the edge of the bed. "Father was right about one thing tonight. The board is restless. They see my 'instability.' They see a brother waiting in the wings who looks better on a magazine cover. They want to know the Vance legacy is secure."

A chill ran through me. "What does that have to do with Leo?"

Julian stopped pacing and looked at me. The coldness was gone, but the way he was watching me made it hard to breathe.

"Leo thinks he can take you away because our marriage is just a piece of paper. He thinks that if he waits long enough, I’ll get bored—or you’ll run. He’s counting on this being a 'nominal' arrangement."

Julian walked back to me, slow and steady. He took both of my hands in his. The leather of his gloves was cold, but I could feel the heat of his skin underneath.

"I’m changing the terms of the deal, Alyana."

"You can't just change a contract," I said, my voice shaking.

"I’m the one who wrote it. I can do whatever I want." He leaned down, his face inches from mine. "I'm going to make sure Leo never looks at you as an escape again. I'm going to make sure the board never looks at him as an alternative. I'm going to give them what they really want."

I shook my head, trying to catch my breath. "Julian… no."

"We’re going to have a child," he said, his voice flat and steady. "An heir. Once you’re carrying my child, Leo will back off. He won’t risk touching his brother’s wife. And the board? They’ll fall in line the moment they know a new Vance is coming.”

"You’re insane," I whispered, tears blurring my vision. "You said this wasn’t a real marriage. You said you didn’t want a wife."

"I lied," Julian said. He cupped my face, his thumb brushing away a tear. His touch was almost tender, which made his words even more terrifying. "I didn't know you’d be so... defiant. I didn't know you’d make me want to keep you this much.”

I tried to push him away, but he didn’t move. He just stayed there, towering over me.

"I’m not a breeder, Julian. You can’t force me."

"I won’t have to force you," he murmured, his voice low and steady. "You’ll figure out soon enough that Leo can’t protect you. He’ll fold the moment I cut his funding. Our father will turn on you the second you become inconvenient. I’m the only one here who actually has a reason to keep you safe."

He leaned in, his forehead resting against mine. The mask shifted slightly with his breath, and I caught the flash of his blue eye—wide, intense, and locked on me in a way that had nothing to do with business.

"If you think he can save you, you're wrong," Julian whispered, his lips brushing my ear. A jolt ran through me—fear, and something darker I couldn’t name. "He’s just a boy playing at love. I’m the one who keeps what’s mine safe."

His hand slid from my face to the back of my neck, fingers threading through my hair, tilting my head back just enough so I had to meet his gaze.

"You are going to bear my heir, Alyana," he breathed against my skin. "And then, no one will ever try to take you from me again."