The charity event was like a visit to another world, one in which I did not belong and everyone was aware of it.

The air was heavy with designer fragrances and the quiet confidence that came from born privilege.

I stood over to one side of the ballroom in my red strapless evening dress, wearing expert makeup, and still feeling like a imposter. These people moved differently across the floor than I did, spoke differently, even breathed differently.

"Remember," Kaius breathed against my ear as camera crews moved in, "you're dementedly in love with me. Can't keep your hands on me. Can barely get close enough."

His arm clamped tighter around my waist, pulling me to the side of him. The touch sent an unwelcome shiver through me that was not at all due to the air conditioning.

"How's this?" I asked, gazing up at him in what I hoped looked like adoration instead of barely contained panic.

"Perfect." But there was a strained edge to his voice. "Almost too perfect."

In an instant the cameras all went off, momentarily blinding me. I had never been photographed for real before, never had to smile and be someone other than myself. My cheeks were already aching from keeping the smile.

We navigated through the throng with ease. People parted to let us through, the conversation dying mid-sentence as we brushed past them. I saw familiar faces from the newspapers and celebrity magazines; politicians whose scandals made headline news, tycoons who had more money under their belts than some nations, socialites who'd never had an honest day's work in their lives.

They were all gazing at me.

"Mrs. Marchetti," a silver-haired man stepped forward with his wife, both of them smiling but not in their eyes. "How great to finally meet you."

Mrs. Marchetti. The title tasted strange on my lips.

"Judge Morrison," Kaius answered suavely. "Let me introduce my fiancée, Danielle."

The introductions dragged on and on. I found myself having trouble memorizing each name but there were too many. Don't let them know how afraid you are, I told myself. Smile. Nod. Pretend like you belong.

"You're doing well," Kaius leaned over and whispered during a break in the action when we had the table to ourselves. "They're all wondering how I managed to find such a great woman."

I nearly choked on my champagne. "They're wondering why anything is wrong with me that I'd want you."

His smile was actually amused, and for a fleeting moment, his eyes went soft with something that looked almost fond. "That too."

The evening's events began with speeches about charitable giving and the importance of giving to children's health. I tried my best to listen to the words, to look appropriately moved by the stories of sick children and medical breakthroughs, but I was hyper-aware of every shift in the hall, every face in the crowd of people that could do me harm.

Gemma was out there somewhere, watching.

"Ladies and gentlemen," said the master of ceremonies, "we welcome our largest benefactor this year, Mr. Kaius Marchetti."

There was clapping in the ballroom as Kaius made his way to the podium. He was heart-stoppingly gorgeous in his tuxedo black, attracting gazes without effort. But more than that, he looked. noble. Like someone who genuinely cared about the cause he was giving to.

"Thank you all for coming tonight," he began, his voice resonating through the hall. "As many of you might realize, children's healthcare is a cause close to my heart. Having lost my own mother at a young age, I understand the importance of ensuring that all children have access to the best medical care available."

My chest tightened in shock. This was the first time in all the years I'd known him that I'd ever heard him refer to his mother's death, and the rigorously repressed pain in his voice was unmistakable. Despite all his coldness, his analytical cruelty, there was real emotion there.

"Why I'm pleased to give a ten-million-dollar donation to establish the Maria Marchetti Memorial Wing at Children's Hospital."

Maria. His mother was named Maria, the same as my mom. The coincidence struck me, taking my breath away.

Was it truly a coincidence? Or had it made him decide to assist us, to give me this devil's bargain?

The crowd applauded, but I barely heard it. I was too busy trying to figure out the man who had brutally killed someone in front of me and the man who had just donated ten million dollars in the name of his dead mother.

When Kaius returned to my side, I saw a face familiar in the crowd. Gemma, with an outraged look on her face.

My stomach dropped to about my ankles.

"She's here," I whispered to Kaius, struggling to hear the words myself amidst the still-intense applause.

"I saw. She's been watching us all night." His fingers brushed against mine under the table, a gentle squeeze, and I found myself holding on to the contact more than I should have expected. "Ready for round two?"

Before I could get a word out, Gemma was already coming towards us with a shuffling gait. "Kaius, honey, that was such an emotional speech," she was saying. "Your mother would be so proud."

The way she referred to his dead mother so flippantly caused me to clench my fists together under the table.

"Gemma." He gestured to her, his tone courteous, but I could feel the tension coming from him.

"And Danielle, you do look lovely. That dress is lovely. Although I must say, I do hope you don't like it too much."

Confusion and fear in my heart. "Why would I like a dress?"

"Oh, no reason. Except that silk stains so readily." Her laugh sent a chill down my spine. "Red wine, blood, they stain so badly."

I looked at Kaius, and we both understood the threat in this sentence. But no one had a chance to do anything about it before a commotion near the door. High-end-suited men were shoving their way into the crowd with stern faces.

"Viktor's arrived," Gemma said with evident satisfaction. "I did tell you he was eager to meet you."

Viktor Petrov entered the ballroom, his appearance changing the very nature of the room. Chatter ceased in mid-sentence, people withdrew, and even the waiters seemed to carry themselves more warily.

He towered and broad-shouldered with hair as pale as the moon and chilly blue eyes that seemed to take stock of every person and potential threat in the ballroom. He moved like a man who'd never met a problem that couldn't be solved with violence, and when those blue eyes fixed on me in the ballroom, I felt preyed upon.

"This is not expected," Kaius growled, his hand sneaking towards his jacket.

"Meanwhile, it's exactly what I expected. You understand, dear, family is the most important. Viktor has got some very interesting facts about your little bride."

Facts about me? What does this guy know about my mundane life?

Viktor approached the table, holding out his hand to Kaius for a shake. He had a calculating smile. Kaius shook his outstretched hand.

"Kaius, my friend. Too long, it has been." His Russian accent was heavy. "And so this is the great Danielle of whom I have heard so much."

My mouth had suddenly become dry. Great? Famous? How in the world was I famous to anyone, much less a Russian crime lord?

"Mr. Petrov." I attempted to sound serene despite the terror eating away at my chest.

"Please, call me Viktor. We'll be such great friends anyway." He took my hand, kissed it in the old-fashioned way. "You know, you're reminding me of a person. Of a woman that I knew a long, long time ago."

"Oh?"

"Yes. She was called Elena Rossi. She was an extremely lovely woman, just like yourself. It's a pity what happened to her."

Color ran out of my face so fast that I thought I was going to faint. Elena. Aunt Elena, who had disappeared when I was a child. We'd assumed she'd just packed up and left, begun a new life somewhere. We'd never heard from her again.

"You knew my mother?" I gasped, even as I knew it wasn't what I ought to say.

"Your mother, lovely girl. Your father's sister. My dear Elena served me for a brief time before her premature. accident."

The ballroom started to spin around me. Aunt Elena hadn't disappeared. She'd been murdered by this man. This grinning monster.

"What in the world are you saying?" My voice cracked.

"Didn't you father ever teach you? My company employed Elena when she was in trouble. Unfortunately, she was. not very reliable. In my job, an unreliability is unacceptable."

I was just about to vomit. Here, before everyone, in my beautiful silk dress, I was going to puke all over the marble floor.

Kaius stepped guardedly forward but it couldn't stop the room tilting on its side.

"That's enough, Viktor," he threatened, his voice laced with menace that sent a few of the guests close by to nervously step back.

"Oh, no, not remotely. I am just getting started. The Rossi family have a history with my organization, you see, and I never forget debt."

The meaning behind his words struck me like a ton of bricks. My father hadn't abandoned us when my mother got sick. He'd been running away from something. Or someone.

"What do you want?" I spat, my pride that my voice didn't quiver when my entire body was shaking.

"Justice," Viktor stated in a factual manner, as though it was the most reasonable thing in the world. "The Rossi family owes me a vast amount. Interest has accrued for twenty-five years."

"I don't owe you anything."

He sparkled with malevolence. "Your father stole from me before he disappeared. It was a lot of money. And in my business, the trespasses of the father."

"Are demanded from the children," Gemma finished.

"How much?" Kaius said quietly, and I could sense the kill calm in his voice.

"Five million dollars, plus interest, plus the cost of Elena's. terminations package. Say twelve million overall."

Twelve million dollars. The number was so huge it didn't even seem real. I'd never had twelve million dollars, couldn't even think about what it might look like.

"She doesn't owe you anything, Viktor," Kaius cut in.

"You have twenty-four hours to decide," Viktor continued smiling. "The money, or the girl. Your choice, my friend."

He turned to leave, then paused as though he'd forgotten something crucial.

"Oh, and Kaius? If you're thinking of getting rid of the issue once and for all, don't forget I've got associates. Lots of associates. Kill me, and they'll find your little bride from the ends of the earth."

After Viktor and his group had left, there was a silence among the three of us that lingered. The remainder of the ballroom slowly began to buzz again, but I felt as though I were in a bubble where all sound was dampened except for Viktor's voice.

"Well," Gemma interjected, placing her bag on her arm, "this has been just utterly fabulous. See you soon, darlings."

As she turned away, I felt my knees go out. The marble floor was coming up to meet me, but Kaius caught me before I reached it.

"Breathe," he instructed softly, "Just breathe."

"He's going to kill me," I gasped.

"No." Kaius's voice hardened. "He's not. Because I won't let him."

"Twelve million dollars, Kaius. That's a lot of—

"I don't care if it's a hundred million." His arms wrapped around me, holding me against his chest. "You're mine now, Danielle. Settling all your debts was part of the agreement in the contract marriage."

I hugged him closer to me, feeling safe in his arms.

But as we left the gala under the watchful eye of his security personnel, I couldn't help but wonder that Viktor Petrov was only just starting.

And that my father's sins were going to be more than dollars and cents.

They were going to cost him everything.