Library

Home / The Fiancée Who Built His Empire / Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

All Chapters of The Fiancée Who Built His Empire: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

11 Chapters

Chapter 1

The night Julian Mercer proposed to me, fireworks lit up the sky above the bay until dawn.A diamond ring worth ten million dollars glittered on my finger as cheers and congratulations erupted around us.I looked at the man kneeling before me and told him my father’s only condition.“If you’re willing to put fifty million dollars into a marital fidelity trust, I’ll marry you.”The crowd went silent.The smile slowly disappeared from Julian’s face.The Castellano Family was the most powerful crime family in the city. Its legitimate empire, Castellano Holdings, controlled vast shipping and financial networks.As the Don’s only daughter, I had been kept out of the public eye since childhood.My father feared that men would approach me because of the Castellano name, so he had created this test.The fifty million would not go to my family or into my personal account. The principal would remain Julian’s. Only if he betrayed our marriage would the money be paid to me as compensation.I had p

Chapter 2

Julian remained silent.That was answer enough.I did not wait any longer. I took off the ring and went home alone.He had made his choice. There was no reason for this relationship to continue.Sometime after midnight, Celeste posted an update on social media.The photo showed a table covered with an elaborate dinner.[Someone went to all this trouble. Lucky me.]I recognized the dinnerware.Every dish on the table was one of my favorites.It was the celebratory dinner Julian had prepared for after I accepted his proposal.I had suffered from stomach problems since childhood, so Julian had hired a nutritionist specifically for me. My meals were planned around my work schedule.He had even learned to cook my favorite dishes himself.In the five years we had been together, he had never allowed another woman inside his private home.Yet on the very first night after his proposal fell apart, he let Celeste sit in the place that had been meant for me.I could have left Mercer Holdings imme

Chapter 3

The prenuptial agreement lay across my lap where Julian had tossed it.Every asset acquired before or during the marriage would remain separate property. No matter how long the marriage lasted, if we divorced, I would waive any claim to property division, spousal support, or financial compensation.He even reserved the right to take back anything he gave me during the marriage.I turned through the pages one by one, finding the entire thing absurd.In the five years Julian and I had been together, the additional credit card he had given me had remained buried at the back of a drawer.I had used it only once. Julian had developed a high fever late one night, and in my rush to buy him medicine, I accidentally grabbed the wrong card.As for the jewelry, clothes, and designer watches he had given me, I had never simply accepted them without giving anything in return. For every birthday and anniversary, I bought him gifts of equal value.After joining Mercer Holdings, I had always received

Chapter 4

I looked at Julian and suddenly felt as though I were staring at a stranger.When I was a child, I had been kidnapped because I was a Castellano. After that, my father had me take my mother’s last name and ordered the Family’s lawyers to build an entire identity around it.That identity had been created to protect me.Now Julian was treating it as proof that I had been plotting against him.“So you would rather believe Celeste’s suspicions than the woman who spent five years building this company beside you?”“She based her conclusions on facts.”“Public records don’t lie.”“But people do.”Julian raised his hand and brushed the moisture from the corner of my eye the way he used to. His voice was almost gentle.“Ari, people shouldn’t be greedy.”“Do you have any idea how many women in New York would do anything to become Mrs. Mercer? I’m still willing to marry you. I’m already giving you another chance.”My gaze shifted to the small Saint Jude medal hanging from his rearview mirror.We

Chapter 5

The next morning, one of my coworkers called me in a panic.“Director Bennett, you need to see what’s online. Is the woman in Ms. Morgan’s post supposed to be you?”I opened social media and discovered that Celeste had published a long post.She described me as a calculating gold digger who had hidden her past and deliberately targeted Julian.According to her, I had used my relationship with him to secure a position at Mercer Holdings. Then I had refused early equity so I could present myself as the loyal woman who had helped Julian build his company from nothing.Now that Mercer Holdings’ valuation had soared, I had finally revealed my true intentions and demanded fifty million dollars. When Julian refused, I had become furious and threatened him with a breakup to force him into giving in.Celeste never used my name.But she mentioned the Strategic Investments department, one of the company’s earliest employees, and the fireworks over New York Harbor.That was more than enough for pe

Chapter 6

Julian set the empty wineglass down.His voice was ice-cold.“She’s not yours to put a price on.”The man’s face twisted with humiliation.“You’re willing to destroy our partnership over a woman who tried to scam you out of fifty million dollars?”“Mercer Holdings will no longer do business with you. Get out.”The man did not dare argue. He could only leave in disgrace.Julian turned to me.“Do you see now? Without my protection, anyone can walk all over you.”I almost laughed.“Aren’t you the one who put me in this position?”His expression darkened as he held out his hand.“Come home with me. Sign the prenup, and I’ll restore your position and return the project to you.”“Julian, we’re already over.”His hand froze in midair.“Do you really have to make a scene tonight?”He glanced impatiently at the time.“Lorenzo Castellano will be here any minute. Once I secure the port project, the terms won’t be this generous if you decide you want to come back.”At that moment, the sound of mea

Chapter 7

The private dining room fell deathly silent.Julian lowered his eyes to the file Lorenzo had thrown onto the table.Five years ago, when Mercer Holdings applied for its first overseas loan, the company had not owned enough fixed assets to offer as collateral. Several banks had rejected the application one after another.Two days before its cash flow was set to collapse, an overseas fund under Castellano Holdings had quietly stepped in to guarantee the loan without disclosing its connection to me.Julian had always believed his business plan had finally impressed the investors.Then he turned to the last page.Three words were printed clearly on the confidential internal authorization letter.Aria Castellano.His fingers went rigid.Lorenzo stared at him coldly.“At the time, Mercer Holdings couldn’t even afford the following month’s payroll. No financial institution was willing to take that risk.”“Ari pledged assets from her personal trust as collateral for the guarantee. That was the

Chapter 8

The following morning, Castellano Holdings released an official statement.It disclosed none of the Family’s private affairs and confirmed only three facts.First, Aria Bennett was the Castellano family’s only daughter. For security reasons, she had lived under her mother’s last name since childhood.Second, throughout my time at Mercer Holdings, I had received only the salary and bonuses appropriate for my position. I had never owned equity in the company or received additional compensation because of my relationship with Julian.Third, Celeste Morgan’s post contained potentially defamatory claims. The Castellano Family’s attorneys had already preserved all relevant evidence and would pursue legal action against her and every account involved in spreading those allegations.The statement also included the results of an independent third-party review of my five-year professional record.Mercer Holdings’ Series A valuation model, the risk assessments for three major acquisitions, and th

Chapter 9

I did not take the documents.“Julian, you still don’t understand.”His hand stopped in midair.“You think I left because the terms you offered weren’t good enough. So now you’ve added equity, established the trust, and offered me my position back because you believe that will make everything return to the way it was.”“But I will never return to a company where the CEO can erase all my work whenever his personal feelings change.”Julian swallowed hard.“I know I was wrong.”“You only know what your mistake has cost you.”I looked at the agreements in his hand and felt nothing.“If I were still nothing more than Aria Bennett, the daughter of an engineer and an accountant, would you have suspended Celeste?”“Would you have admitted those projects were mine?”“Would you be standing here with those shares, trying to apologize to me?”Julian parted his lips, but no answer came.His silence was as clear as it had been on the night he proposed.I pushed both sets of documents back toward him

Chapter 10

Two years earlier, I had represented Mercer Holdings in a European port acquisition involving the fund.The negotiations lasted four months. I had overseen every core proposal, from asset valuation to risk control.Once the fund learned that I had left Mercer Holdings, its executives contacted me directly.They offered me a position as Senior Investment Director in the European Infrastructure division, with independent responsibility for the following year’s port investment strategy.The hiring review lasted ten days.To avoid any potential conflict of interest, I voluntarily disclosed my connection to the Castellano Family.The fund made it clear that the offer had nothing to do with Castellano Holdings.They had chosen me because of the port acquisition we completed two years earlier—and because of the seventeen investment projects I had led over the past five years.The name printed on the contract was still Aria Bennett.That evening, my parents and Lorenzo held a small celebration

PREV

NEXT

SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP

DMCA.com Protection Status