After being betrayed by her half-sister, Elena, a young woman with a broken heart, decided to leave her country to escape the machinations of her family. Three years later, she returns with the firm intention of rebuilding her life, but finds herself trapped in an arranged marriage to ensure the well-being of her sick grandmother and, secretly, with the aim of taking revenge on those who hurt her. To her great surprise, the billionaire she is to marry is not Alex, the businessman who caused her so much pain and with whom her half-sister had ridiculed her. Instead, she meets a mysterious and seductive man, a billionaire she has never met, whose magnetic charm and self-confidence disconcert her. What happened to Alex? Why did this stranger become her fiancé? Elena discovers that her half-sister and stepmother have discovered that Alex is nothing more than a usurper with no legitimacy within their family fortune. They orchestrated this marriage to find the rightful heir, thinking they would use Elena for their own ends. But they do not know that the billionaire they have chosen is much more influential and formidable than Alex, being the true owner of an immense fortune. This enigmatic man, Maximilien, has returned after a long absence to claim his inheritance and establish his authority. In this arranged marriage, Elena finds herself involved in a complex game of power, between family loyalty, forbidden passion and corporate secrets. She must juggle her desire for revenge with the irresistible attraction she feels for this man she should hate. Will Elena be able to unravel the mysteries surrounding her family and decide where her allegiance and feelings really lie?
Chapter 1 Chapitre 1
Elena stood there, in the entrance to the huge house that had been her childhood home. The light autumn breeze blew through the high windows, bringing with it a strange scent, somewhere between the scent of damp earth and that of forgotten memories. Three years had passed since her flight, three years since she had left this place, her heart broken, her body bruised, her soul torn apart. But today she was back.
She slowly passed her gaze over the large residence, an imposing building, with gray stones and white shutters, which stood proudly before her like a monument to the glory of a family which, just like the house, seemed untouchable and solid. Yet beneath the surface, everything was in ruins. Elena knew it. She had seen the truth when he left, and she had never forgotten it.
The door opened before her with an almost solemn slowness, as if the house itself was hesitant to accept her again. She entered the entrance hall, where the smell of polished wood mingled with that of the fresh air coming in through the open door. Everything seemed unchanged, but Elena knew everything was different. The walls, the furniture, the portraits of the ancestors hanging on the wall – it was all still there, but there was something in the atmosphere that disturbed her.
"Elena," a weak, broken voice called from the living room.
She turned around, her heart beating a little faster. It was his grandmother, the one who had always been the only person to bring him some warmth in this icy house. She moved forward, fighting against the memories that overwhelmed her. The old woman was lying on a sofa, a woolen blanket draped over her frail legs. His face, marked by time and illness, seemed almost translucent.
"Grandma," Elena whispered, approaching her.
The old woman raised tired eyes and looked at her with a tenderness that melted Elena's heart. "You came back," she said under her breath, as if it were a miracle.
Elena knelt down next to the couch and took her grandmother's hand, squeezing it gently. "I'm sorry I didn't come sooner," she confessed, her voice cracking with emotion.
The grandmother slowly shook her head, a faint smile playing on her lips. "It's never too late," she said, her voice growing firmer. "You need to do something for the family. »
Elena looked up, surprised by the turn of the conversation. "What do you mean? »
The grandmother sighed, and her eyes darkened slightly. "My health is failing rapidly," she said with a frankness that made Elena's heart clench. "The family needs you. There is a solution. »
Elena felt a ball of confusion forming in her stomach. "What do you mean? » she asked, worried.
The grandmother closed her eyes for a moment, as if searching for words. Then she opened them again, fixing Elena with a penetrating gaze. "You need to get married. »
Elena's blood froze in her veins. "Get married? With whom ? » she asked, unable to understand.
The grandmother looked at her with a new gravity. "It's an arranged marriage," she replied in a calm, but firm voice. "It must take place to save our name, our legacy. And also... for me. »
Elena felt a cold shiver run through her. An arranged marriage? After everything she had been through? After everything we had put him through? She wanted to escape, to escape again, but a feeling of obligation kept her there. The family... her grandmother's illness... The betrayal, however, was eating away at her.
"But why? Why Arranged Marriage? » she asked, her voice betraying a touch of anger and incomprehension.
"Because you're the only one who can," the grandmother replied soothingly. "The family needs you to get back on their feet. And there's something important you need to understand..."
Elena stared at her intently. " What ? »
The grandmother looked at her with a mysterious look. "Marriage is not what it seems. The future husband is not who you think. There are things you have to discover for yourself. »
The grandmother's words played in Elena's mind like an impossible riddle. "I don't understand," she said, shaking her head.
"You will understand, my dear," the grandmother replied, closing her eyes. "You have everything you need to navigate this world. You just have to trust your instincts. »
Elena stood up slowly, her arms outstretched, trembling. She felt like she was on a path she hadn't chosen, but one she couldn't escape. "But... who is he? My future husband? » she asked, although the answer made no difference to her situation.
The grandmother gave him an enigmatic smile. "He's waiting for you. You will meet him soon. »
Elena spent the rest of the day wandering around the house, unable to concentrate on anything. Arranged marriage... The very idea revolted her. But at the same time, she knew her grandmother was right. The family was in danger. Their name, their fortune... everything was at stake. And because of that fortune, she had been betrayed. She had been driven to flee, to hide, to get lost in a distant world. But now there was no escape.
She sat in her room, looking out the window. The sun was slowly setting on the horizon, tinting the sky with warm, melancholic colors. She remembered the face of her half-sister, Elena saw herself again, as a teenager, being publicly humiliated because of the betrayal of the one she had considered her sister. Alex, the man she had loved, was just a pawn in her family's game. A usurper, as his grandmother had said. A man without honor, without soul.
She stood up abruptly. She was going to get revenge. She was going to destroy them. The men, the women, everyone who had played with his life. But first of all, there was this upcoming wedding. She wondered if fate, by sending her in this direction, had not pushed her towards something greater, something unexpected.
The sound of an engine in the distance pulled her from her thoughts. A vehicle had just arrived. She stood up quickly, heading towards the entrance of the house. It was him. The mysterious husband that had been chosen for her. She took a deep breath, bracing herself for the unknown.
The doors opened. A man entered the hall, imposing, with a presence that made time go back in Elena's mind. He was tall, dressed in a perfectly tailored suit, with a figure that seemed to come from another world. A magnetic man, whose gaze pierced the air, and Elena knew, instantly, that her life had just changed.
She looked at him, feeling both trapped and fascinated by him. He was the embodiment of power, but there was something about him that exuded an even deeper mystery. Why was it chosen? Why him?
The man stopped a few steps from her, and his eyes met hers. A shiver of incomprehension ran through Elena, but also a strange feeling of... curiosity. A smile touched his lips. "Elena," he said, his voice low, commanding, but at the same time strangely gentle. "We have a lot to discuss. »
And in that suspended moment, Elena knew that her future was now in the hands of this man.
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