Aria's hands shook as she stared at the towering glass building in front of her. The city lights reflected off the polished surface, but she barely noticed. Her mind was spinning, a storm of fear, anger, and desperation.
Her family was on the brink of ruin. The debts were mounting, creditors calling every hour, and she had no choice.
A contract. That was all it took. Sign the papers, marry a man she had never met, and her family would be saved.
Adrian Black. The name sounded like a nightmare. Cold, untouchable, powerful. The CEO everyone whispered about in the city. The man who never married, the man who never smiled.
And she was about to give him her life—literally.
Her heels clicked against the marble floor as she entered the elevator. The glass walls showed the city sprawling beneath her, but she felt trapped, suffocating. Just sign it. Just sign it… she whispered to herself.
The elevator dinged, and the doors slid open. A tall figure stood waiting, as if he had been expecting her—which he had. Adrian Black. Black suit, sharper than a knife, and eyes that seemed to pierce straight into her soul.
"Aria," he said, his voice calm, controlled, but somehow carrying weight that made her heart skip. "You understand what this contract means?"
She nodded, words failing her.
"It's simple. We marry. You save your family. I get nothing more than what's written here," he said, flipping the contract in his hand. "No feelings, no attachments. Nothing. Do you understand?"
Her throat tightened. "Yes…" she whispered.
He handed her a pen. The ink glinted under the chandelier. Aria's hand shook violently as she touched the paper.
"Sign," he said softly.
Her hands froze. There was something in his eyes—something that made her want to scream, run, and yet… stay. She wanted to hate him. And maybe, just maybe, she did.
Her pen hovered over the signature line, the paper between them. One line. One signature. One step into a life she had never imagined.
Suddenly, a voice echoed behind her.
"Aria!"
She turned. Her heart stopped. Standing there was someone from her past, a memory she thought she had buried. Someone who could ruin everything, someone who could change her choice, her path, her life.
The elevator doors closed behind them, trapping all three inside.
Aria's breath caught in her throat.
Adrian's gaze hardened. "We need to finish this."
Her hands tightened around the pen. Which choice will define me…?
And in that moment, she realized—this marriage was just the beginning.