The bar was dimly lit, the kind of place no one would expect to find two billionaires nursing whiskey in silence.
Dominic sat at the corner booth, his tie loose, his jaw set like concrete.
Julian slid into the seat across from him and tossed back his drink.
"So… 'fiancée', huh?"
Dominic didn't answer.
Julian leaned forward, eyes narrowed with disbelief.
"Dude, you want your sex slave to act like your fiancée? Or actually be your fiancée? Because those are two very different brands of crazy."
Dominic's eyes flicked toward him, cold and unreadable.
"Oh, right. My bad." Julian smirked bitterly. "You just bought her, locked her in your mansion, and took her phone. Sounds like the dream proposal."
Dominic's jaw twitched'
Dominic took a long sip of his drink.
"I don't know."
Julian leaned back.
"So how do you think she's gonna react when you tell her she has to play house in front of your whole family? Dress up, smile, pretend she chose you?"
Dominic's eyes darkened.
"She doesn't have a choice."
"And what happens when she makes one anyway?"
That question settled in the silence between them like smoke.
Dominic didn't answer.
Because for the first time…
He wasn't sur
I'm leaving' he muttered and left Julian at the bar.
***
The soft creak of the door stirred Liana's senses.
Footsteps. Heavy. Controlled.
Dominic.
I layed motionless on the bed, eyes closed, my back turned pretending to sleep.
He stood there for a moment, watching her, the room thick with tension and things unspoken.
He didn't say a word. He left quietly.
But the air didn't settle.
The next morning;
I sat stiffly, my eyes puffy and my face unreadable.
Dominic was already seated, flipping through emails on his tablet like nothing mattered. Like i was just another extension of his empire.
Until he spoke.
"We're attending my grandfather's birthday party. As my fiancée."
I froze, spoon halfway to my mouth.
"What?" my voice cracked, barely a whisper.
"You heard me." He didn't look up. "You'll wear something elegant. Smile. Be charming.
The spoon clattered onto the plate.
"I'm not your fiancée," i said sharply. "I'm your prisoner."
"You're mine," he said coldly. "And I can call you whatever I want."
"No," i hissed, standing. "No, I am not going to pretend to love a man who bought me, who locked me up, who treats me like a thing"
He finally looked at me,my eyes like frost.
"You're mine because your father made you mine. I paid. I own. I decide."
"You're sick," she spat. "You think money gives you the right to ruin someone's life? You think I'll stand next to you and smile like it's okay?"
I shoved my chair back violently.
"I'd rather die than marry a monster like you!"
Dominic said nothing. His jaw clenched, but he didn't move.
I ran past the hall, up the stairs, into the cold walls of my room where j collapsed onto the floor.
And cried.
For myself.
For my mother.
For the life stolen from