I didn't get out of my room until the afternoon. I had spent the whole night tossing and turning in bed, clutching my sore arm, replaying Adrian's words and the blaze in his eyes when he had pulled me in. "You're my wife… You can't leave me. Not this time."

Not this time.

What did he mean by it?

I had been too afraid to ask. Too afraid of what I would learn. So I huddled in until the silence in the house gave me reason to believe he had gone to work.

My throat was dry, my stomach growling in discontent hunger by the time I finally opened the door. I hadn't realized I hadn't eaten since yesterday. I was hoping one of the household help would have left something.

But when I went down the stairs, something odd hung in the air. Rich, meaty, so delicious. My eyebrows knitted. That was not the scent of the cook's meal. It was different.

When I walked into the kitchen, my feet stopped.

Adrian.

He stood there with his sleeves rolled up, a spatula in one hand and a pan sizzling on the stove. He turned his head slightly at the sound of my footsteps, his eyes glinting as they met mine.

“Ah,” he said with a crooked smile. “You’re finally awake.”

My first instinct was to turn back. My hand went flying out at my waist as I tried to sneak away, but before I could step forward, his voice froze me.

"Don't run away." His voice was gentler than the harsh tone of last night, but still authoritative. "Stay."

I froze in my tracks. My throat closed over and I said nothing. I couldn't trust myself to.

Adrian set the spatula aside and walked into the kitchen. I backed away, but he covered the ground too quickly, his arms wrapping around me before I could escape.

My chest locked up. His scent, dark spice and a whiff of smoke, wrapped around me as tightly as his arms. I stiffened, hardly breathing.

"I'm sorry," he breathed into my ear. "I didn't know I was hurting you. And you were right, you can speak to anyone you want. But…" His arms clasped me a bit more tightly. ".you have to be careful around Lucas."

When he finally released me, I inhaled a huge breath of air, staggering back nearly. I had felt like I was choking beneath his arms, although a part of me hadn't wanted to breathe again.

Adrian chuckled softly at my reaction, his eyes warm. "You're so cute when you do that," he taunted, reaching out to brush a lock of hair back behind my ear.

My heart leaped, but I hardened my face into wickedness to hide it. "You're going to forgive me like that?" I scoffed and tossed up my chin. "Only if your cooking is good."

His lips curled up into a smug smile. "Of course. I'm a beast in the kitchen."

I rolled my eyes, but when he scooped the food onto a plate and pushed it toward me, I hesitated for only a fraction of a moment before I took a bite. The moment the taste hit my tongue, I was stunned.

"Oh my God," I blurted out before I could stop myself. "This is… this is amazing."

Adrian's grin grew broader. "Told you."

I resented the warmth in my chest as he approved. However, I went on eating. Bite by bite, until I was about to consume the meal. He sat across from me, watching as if memorizing every glance that crossed my face.

I sat down with him, laughter inserted among the bites when he bragged about his secret ingredients and I joked that he was playing some sort of celebrity chef. For the first time since we'd been married, I came close to forgetting the contract, the blackmail, the cage the marriage had imposed on me.

Almost.

Once the plates were empty, I stood up. "I'll wash the dishes."

But before I could go get something, Adrian stood up and blocked my path. "No. Sit down. I'll do it."

I frowned. "You. wash the dishes?"

His lip twisted in a smile. "Do you think I've never washed a plate in my life?"

"Yes," I said brusquely.

He laughed, the harsh sound but genuine. "Go sit, Aria. I mean it.".

I sat back in the chair, trying to hide the strange fluttering in my chest as I watched him wash dishes, sleeves rolled up, veins straining along his forearms. He looked. normal. Too normal for the man who'd threatened my loved ones.

"Isn't not going to work today going to get you in trouble?" I ventured to ask cautiously, trying to break the tension.

He moved his head across his shoulder, smiling. "I'll be CEO in no time, remember? If I have to step out to take care of my wife, they'll figure it out."

My stomach flipped over. He sounded so casual, but something about the way his eyes slid off mine when he said it made butterflies erupt in my chest. I did not like it. I did not like how easy it was for him to make me do that.

I glided in a rapid motion, my gaze flickering to the counter where his phone sat forgotten. For a crazy instant, I snatched for it, my hand hovering over the screen. But it was locked.

My heart was racing. Do I attempt it?

Before I could decide, the phone beeped in my hand, a call showing up on the screen. I panicked and placed it back on the counter as Adrian swung round, drying his hands.

He picked up, pressing the phone to his ear. His expression darkened almost instantly. “Okay,” he said after a long silence. His jaw tightened. “I’ll be there.”

He hung up.

I bit my lip. “What happened?”

Adrian’s gaze flicked to me, unreadable. “I’m needed at the office.”

I frowned, something in my chest twisting. “Just like that?”

He came closer, tracing his knuckles down my cheek. The gesture was so soft that I forgot to breathe. "Don't worry about it."

Then, to my utter shock, he leaned in and kissed the crown of my head, a gentle caress.

My eyes grew wide, my body paralyzed.

And for kicks, he gave my cheek a light pinch and flashed me a skewed grin as his lips curled up. "Be good while I'm gone."

And so he turned and disappeared from my kitchen, leaving me sitting there, alone, my heart racing, my mind in disarray.

The mansion was too quiet after Adrian left.

His cologne lingered faintly in the dining room, but the warmth he'd brought with that soft forehead kiss was lost with the crash of the front doors.

I stood there for what felt like minutes, my heart still a confused mess. He'd just been so… kind. Playful, even. Nothing at all like the man who'd taken my arm so tightly the night before.

And yet, when his phone had sounded, when his face had grown dark and he'd stormed off leaving me with more questions than answers.

My feet took me upstairs nearly without thinking, to Adrian's study.

The massive oak doors groaned quietly as I pushed them open.

The room was thick with him. Sharp, upscale cologne mixed with leather and aged paper. A cold fireplace glared dark against the wall, a shelf of files, ledgers, and books I wouldn't have bet anyone but him had touched in years looming high.

I hesitated at the door.

"What am I looking for, even?" I muttered to myself.

But my curiosity had already taken over. I went inside.

His desk dominated the room, wide and shallow, with one laptop perched in the center. My hands trembled as I reached for it, offering a silent prayer that I would not be discovered.

The screen came on when I pressed the trackpad.

Locked, of course.

But my stomach flipped when I saw the lock screen.

Adrian.

And not just him, Adrian with a woman.

Her hair cascaded down her shoulders in gleaming waves, her smile radiant, her arm wrapped securely around his waist. He wasn't even scowling like he usually did. He looked… happy. Free. His smile was not forced, it was real.

My throat was dry. I didn't even know this could be done with him.

And the glance seared something hard into me.

Before I could talk myself into not doing so, I pulled out my phone from my pocket, snapped a quick photo of the screen, and sent it to the one person stupid enough to give me answers.

Lucas.

Know her? I wrote quickly.

His reply came faster than expected.

Want to know? Come on over. We'll discuss it in person.

My thumb hovered over the keyboard. Letting Lucas in the house at this time was probably a terrible idea.

But my heart raced with questions that I couldn't remain silent about.

Okay, I wrote out. Come on.

In no time, I heard the sound of the doorbell ringing through the mansion.

I scurried down, buzzing with nerves, and when I hurled open the door, Lucas was there, that infuriating smile plastered across his face. His jacket was wide open, his tie loose as if he had dressed up for style instead of business.

"Hi, sister-in-law," he drawled.

I expected him to push past me, but instead he bent toward me, too near, and tagged a kiss on my cheek, just inches from my lips.

I stiffened, eyes wide. Then I jerked back as though I'd touched fire.

"What the hell are you doing?" I snarled.

He simply grinned, his eyes glinting with amusement. "Relax, Aria. It's just a hello."

"That was not a hello," I bit out, gripping my phone more tightly. "It was inappropriate."

Lucas shrugged, not a care. "Depends who you ask."

I glared at him, but my heart refused to settle.

He was enjoying this. Torturing me.

"Why are you here?" I barked, finally stepping aside to let him in.

He strode past me as if he were home there, his gaze sweeping up and down the hallway as if counting it off for future reference. Then he grinned at me, cocking his head to one side.

"You wanted to know about the woman in the photograph," he said to me.

I bristled. "You do know her, then?"

"Ay, of course I do." He leaned back against the wall, his arms crossed. "Her name is Sarah."

The name hit me like a stone.

"Sarah?"

"Yes." He smiled wider, but there was no heat behind it. Only pleasure at extracting answers just out of reach. "Adrian's ex-fiancée."

My jaw fell, words frozen for a moment.

"Fiancée?" I repeated.

Lucas smiled, his eyes sparkling. "The mighty Adrian Blackwood, the untouchable… was once head over heels. Surprising, isn't it?"

I said nothing. My mind was racing, flashbacks of Adrian's smile in this picture confronting the guarded man who slept mere doors away from me every night now.

He had loved someone. Once.

And not me.

Lucas stepped closer, talking in a low voice. "They were flawless, at least on paper. Our parents adored her. Sophisticated, wealthy, from the type of family that fit right into the Blackwood line." He laughed derisively.

I flared, but caught myself from retreating. "What became of her?"

Lucas looked at me for a moment, then smiled. "Wouldn't you love to know."

My temper flared. "Stop playing games, Lucas. If you're here to tease me."

"Relax." He held up a hand, although the sarcasm did not leave his face. "All I will say is this: Sarah shattered his heart. Utterly. And Adrian has never recovered from that. The Adrian you married to now was born the day Sarah left."

I stepped back, my phone raised as a barrier. "You should leave.".