Bound by vows torn by secrets

han she could have imagined. "I never

After five years of silence and deep regret, he stood before her as

ittle more confident than she felt. You have bee

in truth. She had abandoned him, without explanation, when he needed her t

eally register it. His arms folded over his chest, he leaned casually against the doorf

ed, "You're here for something."

aze directly. She had to confront this situati

despite inner conflict. I am in nee

in the air. She had visualized this a hundred times, and every time it felt different.

ut yet seemed to exude some gratification. Tucker Beaumont

s voice smooth as velvet but with the weigh

hers, revealing nothing. Her ears could hear her pulse, thus drowning out the silence of t

er chest. She asked, "What do you mean by an offer?" But

e-cold, exact, calculated. He said, "Marry me," and his words came out without doubt. "Two yea

ract of marriage? The absurdity of it sent a jolt down her spine

ow, like sound leaking through broken gla

as though he was savoring the power he possessed over her in this instant.

seemed to be eliminating all hope she had

This was his preferred method of discipline for her. He was twisting he

losed teeth. "How dare you exploit this to den

ory calmness in posture. "You've been gone for five years, Scar

shared, how could he be so chilly? The love. The assurances. Y

now, filled with fury and disbelief. "I'm not some... I'm

d upward again, his smile getting colder. "You'll change

couldn't let go of everything her parents had toiled for, everything they had left her.

the desk before her suddenly feeling like a noose around h

haking, but her will is stronger than it has

ave this dream behind her, she turned away from the de

nable smile, his eyes sharp and relentless. At first he said noth

ing as she retreated into the hall. She turn

unlike this. She would battle for everything: her dig

arl

it was quiet, almost informal, her hesitation was caused by so

ocked with hers like a tempest building inside his chest. The fo

, never consider for a moment that yo

shut behind h

startled by her phone buzzing i

d over at the wor

ished elevator doors slid shut behind Scar with a low metallic hum. Her heart hammered, the fast beat a sharp contrast to the frigid, austere lobby of Beaumont Construct

, the fragments seemed to cut deeper now. He had been fashioned by time, ambition, and res

ly art when the elevator halted. His office at last was at an end. S

ck

anding, he entered view and his form strikingly contrasted with the shining backdrop of his glass-walled office. His presence was like a st

hers: the flicker of identification immediately covered by something considerably colder. His dark, sharp e