CONTRACTED AS A BILLIONAIRE HEIR

blinding assault on her senses. As she blinked, trying to adjust to the

and saw the IV attached to her arm, the drip of

rnado, her thoughts a jumble of fragments th

confusion, fragments of memory began

the oncoming car, her life flashing before her eyes. She remembered the sea

en, da

dry as sandpaper. "Where am I?" she

d, the movement an agonizing effort, and saw him. Kieran, the man from t

his words as precise as a surgeon

t, her mind racing as she tried to pr

with implications and unanswered questions. And then, a knock at the door, and a nurse push

ck. "What's all this?" she asked

his voice betraying the barest hint of emotio

ions a labyrinth of possibilities. She forced hersel

s?" she asked, her voic

ill pool, spreading ripples of meaning throug

ed out fr

the realization that her body had betrayed her, that her hun

ment, it overpowered her. Without hesitation, she lunged for the table, her h

r hunger a palpable force that seemed to radiate from her skin. The silence b

in the symphony of silence, its insistent buzzing a re

e. The message from Vivian flashed across the screen l

o Christen, her body st

ok her home, Christen didn't want him to know they have sent h

lhouettes loomed, their fe

whispered, her voice quive

, a storm of feelings he had long kept buried. She clutched at his

lities. He looked into Christen's eyes, saw the fear, the vulnerability,

city streets like a shadow in the night. Christen's heart hammered

a towering edifice of glass and steel, ros

with amazement. "This is your home?" s

sterpiece of modern architecture, its sleek

usement flitting across his

nto the foyer, her presence a sudden intrusion into

maintaining his facade. He didn't recognize Vivian's face, but her bag, her dress, her earr

and doubt. "Who is she? Why is she here?" Her gaze flitted back a

smooth as silk. "She's a friend. I was bus

growing with each passing moment. "A fr

inality that silenced even the air. "Vivian," he said, his gaze fi

t?" she gasped, her voice trembling with disbelief. "Kiera

"Kieran," she said, her voice low and seductive. "I know we're differe

pungent perfume that stung his nostrils.

gether " he said

ur father will ever ac

and, their fingers entwining as though they were made to fit. He

yer, her face as white as marb

elf in Kieran's world, the two of them cocooned in

her deeper into his home, the warmth of his hand in

with books and maps, the air thick w

n's power and wealth, the space as

desk, its surface strewn with objects of beauty-a decanter

ainbow of knowledge, and the shelves were adorned

her deeper into his home, the warmth of his hand in

ingers tracing the wood as tho

ment, the pages crisp and fresh. "This is ou

eeling with questions, but her gaze landed on the first r

eran, the question

, his voice the soft purr of a lion. "I

chest as she nodded, her throat

e soft mattress with a sigh of relief. The room was a hav

. For the first time in years, she felt safe, her futu

ed to Kieran, his cold blue

e Weddi

ey and power. The guests, decked in their finest attire, were a veritable who'

her lace gown, stood at the altar, her

f music heralding the arrival of the bride. Christ

wn of silk and diamonds, her hair a cascade of gold. She was a

e church doors swinging op

rprise rippled through the crowd,

nd of Vivian's brittle laughter, her f

gers curled into claws of rage. She lashed out, her hand

of shock and anger. Christen reached for his

f voices shouting, demanding answers, th

n knew that her world w