His Unwanted Bride: The Substitute's Secret

“Elianna was nothing more than a substitute wife, pushed into a cold, transactional marriage with billionaire Adrien Leach after her perfect older sister, Ivette, suddenly ran away. For a year, they lived as strangers sharing a zip code, which was exactly what Elianna needed to hide her darkest secret-a severe, trauma-induced phobia of physical touch that left her trembling and terrified at her husband's slightest proximity. But this fragile, loveless balance was completely shattered at the annual family gala. Just as Elianna swallowed her panic to play the dutiful wife, Ivette unexpectedly returned. The golden child burst in, demanding her rightful place beside Adrien, while their own mother looked at Elianna with familiar, crushing disdain, ready to cast the understudy aside. Hiding in the shadows of the balcony, Elianna felt the suffocating weight of her past closing in. She waited for Adrien to terminate their contract, fully expecting him to agree that she was just a pathetic, temporary placeholder who couldn't even bear to be touched. Instead, she heard Adrien's voice cut through the dark, delivering a ruthless warning to the sister who thought she had won. "It's not a deal, Ivette. I married her because I'm in love with her." Standing frozen behind the glass door, Elianna's blood ran cold as she realized her fake, business-deal marriage was hiding a terrifying secret of its own.”