The High Price Of Father's Freedom

Chapter 7 No.7

Word Count: 689 | Released on: 04/02/2026

was one massive room, walled in glass. The lights of Manhattan spr

y, afraid to step onto the pristi

stripped off his jacket and tossed it to

," Armond said, unbuttoning his cuffs. "Get h

othes," Abbey said

bar. He poured a finger

t to s

he bottle," Armond said, his bac

I'm Abbey Wynn now. I'm a broke la

, watching her over the rim. "Kidnapped i

s debt, Armond. That's... t

et purchase." He set the glass down. He walk

ring near her cheek. Abbey fl

d his fingers into a fist and

e tight. "Don't try to leave. The elevator r

ound the room-it was bigger than her entire a

ood, sliding down to the

ght my

as tr

waterfall of hot water. She stood under it for twenty minutes, scrubbing her

ush robe she found hanging on a hook,

milk. A tube o

had hit the velvet rope earlier that night.

d not

e sheets smelled of lavender. She rubbed the

be. He was fattening he

ldn't help but remember Paris. The way he used to bring her

? Or was he just a m

he silence of the pen

e room. She crept down the hallway,

ut by the floor-to-ceiling

y. The glowing tip of a cigarette moved in the dark. He

incredib

s just a man in a glass cage, looking

nted to go to him. She wanted to ask him wh

in. But this time, the lock felt less like it was keeping him o

Chapter End

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The High Price Of Father's Freedom

Edik Brandwein Romance

“I was at a high-end law school mixer, hiding behind a pillar and eyeing the shrimp buffet because my bank account was empty and my fridge contained nothing but expired milk. My father's name was a national headline for all the wrong reasons, and my only goal was to survive law school without being recognized. That's when the room went silent for the arrival of Armond Woodward, the billionaire COO of a global media empire. I froze, because seven years ago in Paris, he was Armond Chevalier, the sweet art student I'd shared a life with. Now, he was a cold-eyed predator in a bespoke suit, and he was staring directly at me like I was a missing asset he'd finally located. I tried to escape, but the walls were closing in. My tuition payment was forty-eight hours late, and my father was facing a new indictment that would keep him in prison for the rest of his life. While a rich classmate named Miles tried to "save" me by parading me around like a trophy, Armond was working in the shadows. He didn't just offer help; he bought my student loans and my father's legal liens, effectively making himself my sole creditor. The realization hit me like a physical blow when Armond cornered me in his private elevator. He knew about my broken apartment lock, my ramen-noodle dinners, and every cent I owed. He hadn't just found me by accident; he had been watching me drown for years, waiting for the exact moment I became desperate enough to be useful. "I've been waiting for you to hit bottom, Rose," he whispered, using the private name from our past as he trapped me in the back of his black SUV. With the threat of a two-million-dollar restitution fee hanging over my father's head and the prosecutors closing in, Armond laid out his final terms. He didn't want an apology or a second chance at love; he needed a wife to secure his family trust and defeat a hostile takeover, and I was the only person with enough debt to be completely controlled. "Marry me, Abbey. A three-year contract, and I make all of this go away." I looked at the man who had destroyed my life just to own it and realized that to save my family, I had to walk straight into the golden cage he had built for me.”