Chapter 2

Wren POV: I stood in front of the carved wooden doors of the Vance family's VIP suite. My heart hammered against my ribs, but my hands were steady. Two men in black suits stepped in front of the door, blocking my path. "Mr. Rhett Kincaid is in a closed-door meeting with Mr. Gus Vance," the guard said, his voice devoid of emotion. "No interruptions." I looked him dead in the eye. I recited a specific sub-clause number. It was a highly classified emergency loophole regarding who would inherit the Vance family's ownership of the Chicago Wardens, a closely guarded secret I had overheard Preston drunkenly bragging about. The guard's jaw tightened. He pressed two fingers to his earpiece and whispered into his hidden microphone. Three seconds passed. A heavy mechanical click echoed from inside the wood. The door unlocked. The guards stepped aside. I walked into the dimly lit room. The air was thick with the sharp scent of black coffee and expensive cigar smoke. Rhett Kincaid, Preston's uncle and the captain of the Chicago Wardens, sat in a single leather armchair. His long legs were crossed. He was casually flipping through a thick stack of trade documents. Gus Vance sat opposite him. The old man's face was purple with rage. He already knew about his grandson's disgraceful exit. Rhett looked up. His deep, gray-blue eyes locked onto me. His gaze was an abyss, giving absolutely nothing away. Gus gripped his cane. "Are you here to cancel the ceremony, Wren? I am deeply sorry for what Preston did." I straightened my spine. I looked at the two most powerful men in the NHL and dropped the bomb. "The wedding proceeds as planned," I said clearly. "But the groom's name changes." Gus gasped. His knuckles turned white around his cane. "Are you insane? Do you want to drag a random groomsman to the altar?" I shifted my gaze. I looked directly at the silent man in the armchair. "I am marrying Rhett Kincaid." The room fell into a dead, suffocating silence. Gus sucked in a sharp breath, the kind of silence that only lands when the unthinkable becomes real. Rhett's fingers stopped turning the page. Rhett slowly closed the folder. He leaned forward. "Do you have any idea what you are saying right now?" "Every word of it," I said. "Preston walked out on me at the altar. His uncle can walk me down it instead." The bluntness of it hung in the air like a detonation. Gus made a strangled sound. Rhett's expression didn't shift by a single degree. I took a step closer. "The mutual benefit agreement we briefly discussed at the Wardens gala last year." I looked at him with absolute, unwavering certainty. "You need a wife to pacify the board and handle the family's pressure about who takes over the team. I need a fortress to survive the fallout of today. Your name is the only one strong enough to shield me, and I am the only woman in Chicago desperate enough to sign away my freedom without asking questions. It's a win-win." A dark, unreadable ripple crossed Rhett's eyes. He stood up. His massive frame instantly swallowed the light in the room, radiating pure dominance. He walked until he was inches from my face. He looked down, his voice a low rumble in his chest. "If you sign this contract, Wren, there is no backing out. Ever." I didn't flinch. I tilted my chin up. "I have nothing left to lose. I am not afraid of the dark." Gus suddenly stood up, his cane trembling. "Do it, Rhett! This saves the family's face. And it completely cuts that ungrateful bastard Preston out of the ownership succession!" "If you agree, Rhett," Gus breathed heavily, "I will have the lawyers change the documents and the cathedral screens immediately." Rhett stared into my unwavering eyes. The silence stretched for ten agonizing seconds. Finally, he gave a single, slow nod. He turned to his executive assistant standing by the wall. "Initiate Plan B. You have five minutes to replace all physical and digital materials." A sudden commotion erupted outside the door. Bianca shoved past the guards, stumbling into the room. She saw me standing dangerously close to Rhett. "What are you doing?" Bianca shrieked. "Are you trying to seduce your elder? You are disgusting!" I didn't say a word. I closed the distance between us, raised my hand, and delivered a brutal backhand across Bianca's face. The sharp crack echoed off the walls. Bianca crashed to the floor, clutching her stinging cheek, screaming in shock. Rhett didn't blink. He reached into his pocket, pulled out a silk handkerchief, and handed it to me. "Don't dirty your hands," Rhett said softly.