The Empire He Sold To Her

to reignite the spark with my husband, Collin. I surprised him in our p

e me an order: sleep with his business rival to close the

d weight" and promised her my life. He was so eager to get

"e-sign" o

and the very contract that wo

an asset and then leave me destitute. H

m. Now, with the help of the very man I was sold to, I'm

pte

trauma of childbirth. The soft curves, the lingering tenderness, they were

umbled, his eyes scanning my figure with a detached surge

had slowly opened between us, widened by the unspoken, unacknowledged distance that had grown since our son was born.

g the discreet consultation, then the surgery. A vaginal rejuvenation. A

e was closing what he called "the deal of the century." I imagined his face, the slow burn of

aring, a desperate plea for his attention, for his gaze to linger, to appreciate. My heart ha

o me, the city a miniature kingdom beneath his feet. "Coll

relief washed over me. I moved towards him, my steps soft on the thick carpet, my hand reaching for his arm. I leaned in, inhaling his famili

t. He gently, almost imperceptibly, pushed me away. "Brittnie?" he said, his voi

ie. No

ress – everything blurred into a painful, disjointed mess. My hear

tion that shattered the fragile silence. He glanc

heard a woman's voice through the phone, thin and reedy, yet undeniably intimate. "Collin? Sweethe

aining about me, his wife. The

ingly sweet, a tone he hadn't used with me in months. "You kn

the phone. "I' ll make it up to you, Brittnie. I promise. Dinner at Daniel, just the tw

he cavern of my chest, hollow and mockin

d to me, his face a mask of annoyance. "Look, Elena, this isn'

ing Grover Dyer, Collin's slimy associate, a man whose lec

a proprietary leer that made my stomach churn. "Th

ognition. He looked at me, then at Grover, then back at me. A chilling realization dawned on his face, one that made m

g out, not to comfort me, but to grasp my chin, tilting my face towards him. His thumb brushed my lower li

seeing his wife. He was seein

zar is a formidable opponent. He's trying to acquire a controlling stake in the Northwood Grou

ce agreement? He was using me,

a low, dangerous growl. "Make him happy. Whatever he wants, you provide. Pl

rder. An order to prostitute myself for his business deal. My eyes, wide with disbelief and a na

an, but by reducing me to an object, a tool for his ruthless ambition. My hands cle

issive gesture, and turned away to speak with Grover. "Make sure

open. But beneath the profound pain, a tiny, icy spark ignited. A cold, hard resolve. I had been his wife, his devoted partner, h

lay it fo

in's retreating back. He had no