Unlikely partners

ed. It was a sprawling estate, with its towering stone pillars and ornate iron gates. The landscaping was impeccable, each flowerbed neatly trimmed, every lawn pr

iver said as he opened the door fo

bout a new address. This was her new reality-married to a man she barely knew, living in a mansion

doors opened as she approached, revealing a pristine marble foyer. The scent of fresh flowers and polish

blue eyes watching her intently. His suit was as immaculate as ever,

his voice flat. "I'll

k her nerves. "Thank you," she repli

leamed under the soft light, and everything had an air of opulence she had never experienced before. Each room seemed more grand than the la

at could have fit an entire apartment inside. The bed was enormous, the linens crisp and white. The w

side and placing her suitcase on the bed. "There's a full staff here, and you'll ha

of her wanted to scream, to run away and reclaim the life she had lost. But she had made this decision

ustration. "I'm here because I made a deal with you. This-" She gestured around h

idn't ask you to act like anything," he replied coolly. "Just follow t

he had known this wouldn't be easy. She had known he would treat her like nothing

on," she said, her voice sharper now. "I'm

mething in his gaze-something that wasn't cold, something that might have bee

ow devoid of emotion. "But I also don't expect

his words were. There was no warmth in his voice, no sign of any re

ful, but it did little to calm her. She had entered this world under false pretenses, thinking she could maintain

voice breaking the silence. "We'l

if she looked at him again, she might just lose her resolve e

more isolated than ever. Ethan had made his intentions clear: this wasn't about them. It was neve

something had shifted between them. Something more than just a contract. A part of her