The Wife He Tried to Forget
The silence stretched between them, thick and suffocating.
Kourtney paced in front of him, her heels clicking against the dusty floor of the abandoned villa. The contract lay untouched on the table, just inches from Travis’s restrained hands. Her plan had been reckless, but it was all she had left.
“I didn’t want to do this,” she murmured, voice shaking. “But you gave me no choice.”
Travis tilted his head. “You think tying me to a chair will change how I feel?”
“No. But it changes what you’re allowed to do,” she said, forcing a smirk that didn’t reach her eyes.
He didn’t flinch. “What happens after the wedding, Kourtney? When your father finds out? When Kim finds out?”
She looked away. “Then it’ll be too late. I’ll have what’s mine.”
“Money?” he asked. “Or revenge?”
That struck something in her.
Kourtney turned to him, face darkening. “You chose her. You loved her. But what about me, Travis? You never even gave me a chance.”
“You think forcing me into marriage will give you love?”
“No,” she whispered. “But it’ll give me power.”
Travis met her eyes. No fear. Just sadness.
“This isn’t you,” he said softly.
“You don’t know me anymore,” she replied, backing away. “Sign the contract, Travis. Or I swear, I’ll make sure you never walk free again.”
Travis looked down at the paper, then back at her. “You’ll lose yourself in this, Kourtney.”
She swallowed hard.
“Then maybe losing myself is the only way I survive.”