The pen trembled in Aria's hand.
It shouldn't have felt this heavy.
It was just a signature.
Just ink on paper.
Just one decision.
---
But it didn't feel like "just" anything.
It felt like the moment her life split into two.
**Before him.**
…and everything that came after.
---
"Sign it."
Ethan's voice was calm, almost indifferent.
As if this meant nothing.
As if *she* meant nothing.
---
Aria stared at the contract, her vision slightly blurred.
Her mother's name.
The hospital.
The impossible bills.
The fear of losing the only person she had left.
---
Her fingers tightened around the pen.
"This is wrong," she whispered.
---
Ethan didn't respond.
---
"This isn't how people get married," she continued, her voice shaking. "This isn't love."
---
A brief silence.
Then—
"I never said it was."
---
Her chest ached at how easily he said it.
No hesitation.
No emotion.
No regret.
---
Aria let out a slow, broken breath.
Then—
She signed.
---
The sound of the pen against paper echoed louder than it should have.
Like a door slamming shut.
---
Ethan picked up the contract almost immediately, glancing over her signature as if confirming a transaction had gone through successfully.
Satisfied.
---
"It's done," he said.
---
That was it.
No congratulations.
No warmth.
No acknowledgment that she had just given up her freedom.
---
Aria slowly placed the pen down.
Her hands felt numb.
"What happens now?"
---
Ethan closed the file neatly.
"You move in."
---
Her eyes widened slightly. "Tonight?"
---
"Yes."
---
A hollow laugh escaped her lips.
"Of course."
---
He ignored the tone.
---
"There will be rules," he continued. "You will follow them."
---
Aria looked at him, something inside her starting to crack.
"I'm not your employee anymore."
---
"No," he said.
A pause.
Then—
"You're my wife."
---
The word hit differently this time.
Heavier.
More real.
More suffocating.
---
Before she could respond—
A phone rang.
---
Ethan answered without hesitation.
"Yes."
---
His expression didn't change.
But the air did.
---
"Prepare the announcement," he said.
"Tomorrow morning."
---
Aria's heart skipped.
"Announcement…?"
---
He ended the call.
Then looked at her.
---
"Our marriage will go public."
---
"What?!" she stepped back, panic rising instantly. "No—you said this was a contract! A private arrangement!"
---
"It is a contract," he replied coolly. "But I need a real wife. Not a hidden one."
---
Her chest tightened.
"This will ruin my life."
---
Ethan's gaze sharpened slightly.
"It already has."
---
The words cut deeper than she expected.
---
"No," she said, shaking her head, fear turning into anger. "You don't get to decide everything! You don't get to just—just take my life and turn it into whatever you want!"
---
For the first time—
Ethan's expression darkened.
---
"And you don't get to forget why you signed that contract."
---
Silence.
Heavy.
Unforgiving.
---
Aria's anger faltered.
Because he was right.
And that made it worse.
---
"You said," she whispered, her voice breaking slightly, "you needed someone who wouldn't fall in love with you."
---
"I did."
---
"Then why make it public?" she demanded. "Why put me in your world?"
---
This time—
He hesitated.
Just for a second.
---
Then—
"Because," he said slowly, "once this starts…"
His eyes locked onto hers.
Dark.
Intense.
Dangerously certain.
---
"There's no going back."
---
A chill ran through her.
---
Before she could ask what that meant—
The penthouse doors opened.
---
A woman walked in confidently, her heels clicking sharply against the marble floor.
Elegant.
Beautiful.
Perfectly dressed.
---
And the moment her eyes landed on Aria—
They froze.
---
Shock flashed across her face.
Then disbelief.
Then something darker.
---
"…Aria?"
---
Aria's heart dropped.
No.
No, no, no—
---
Because she knew that voice.
---
"Lena…?"
---
The name left her lips like a ghost from the past.
---
Lena stepped closer, her eyes scanning Aria from head to toe, as if trying to understand what she was seeing.
"What are you doing here?" she asked sharply.
Then her gaze shifted to Ethan.
"And why is *she* in your penthouse?"
---
The tension in the room snapped tight.
---
Ethan didn't look surprised.
Not even slightly.
---
Instead—
He slipped one hand casually into his pocket.
And said the one thing that shattered everything.
---
"She's my wife."
---
Silence.
---
Lena's expression cracked.
"What… did you just say?"
---
Aria couldn't breathe.
---
Because Lena wasn't just anyone.
---
She was:
* Her former best friend
* The one who disappeared years ago
* The one who betrayed her…
---
And now—
She was standing in front of her husband.
---
"No," Lena whispered, shaking her head slightly. "That's not possible."
---
Ethan's voice remained calm.
Cold.
Final.
---
"It is."
---
Lena's eyes slowly returned to Aria.
This time—
Filled with something far more dangerous than shock.
---
Hatred.
---
"You…" she said softly.
"You really don't know, do you?"
---
Aria's stomach dropped.
"What… are you talking about?"
---
Lena let out a small, bitter laugh.
Then looked at Ethan.
---
"Did you tell her?" she asked.
---
Ethan said nothing.
---
And that silence—
Said everything.
---
Aria's heart began to race.
"What didn't he tell me?" she demanded.
---
Lena's smile was slow.
Sharp.
Cruel.
---
"About your *husband*," she said,
"and the reason he chose you."
---
The room felt like it was collapsing.
---
"Ask him," Lena added softly.
"Ask your dear billionaire CEO…"
---
Her eyes locked onto Aria's.
---
"…what he did to your family."
---
Everything stopped.
---
Aria turned slowly toward Ethan.
Her heart pounding violently.
Fear.
Confusion.
Dread.
---
"Ethan…"
Her voice barely came out.
---
"What is she talking about?"
---
He didn't answer.
---
And that silence—
Was more terrifying than any lie.
---
*To be continued…*