Chapter 2

2.

Mr. Harrison, the butler, shoved me out the door.

It was pouring rain outside, and I was ruthlessly pushed into the downpour.

Even Mr. Harrison, who had always been so respectful, was now as cold as Sierra.

"Mr. Vance, please leave immediately."

"You and Miss Langston never officially signed a marriage license, so there's no paperwork to handle."

"Don't ever show your face to her again, or you'll regret it."

He spoke quickly, as if he had memorized a script he'd used many times before.

I wondered if the nine men before me had gone through this exact same nightmare.

The thought made me shiver more than the cold rain.

I started thinking back to five years ago.

I had just graduated from college when my parents died in a freak accident.

The family business collapsed, leaving me buried under a mountain of debt.

Debt collectors were at my door every day, threatening to break my bones if I didn't pay.

Back then, I actually thought about ending it all.

Then, Sierra appeared out of nowhere.

It was a rainy day just like this one, and the collectors had cornered me in a dark alley.

She stood there holding a black umbrella, flanked by two rows of bodyguards.

She stared intensely into my eyes.

"Caspian Vance, are you willing to come with me?" she asked.

After I joined her, she treated me like royalty.

She gave me a high-paying job, cleared all my debts, and introduced me to powerful people to pave my way.

As time went on, I started hearing rumors.

I learned she had been through nine men before me, but none of them lasted long.

I was the only one who stayed, and a year into our relationship, she even gave me a massive wedding.

It was a lavish, high-society event.

The only catch was that we never went to the courthouse.

"I'm just not the type to sign a piece of paper," she had explained.

"I don't like being tied down, and I don't want the person I love to feel trapped either."