Bound by Shadow

e hem of her dress as she tried to calm her racing thoughts.

in frustration. "This is your chance. We don't have the luxury

ghed down on her chest like a heavy stone. She looked at her father, his face set with the grim determination of a man who ha

compliant when it came to matters like this. But today, Selena could sense something else in the air-an unspoken resignation, a defeat that mi

ngs were supposed to go. She had fought so hard to be free of their constant demands, to escape the suffocating

d urged. "This marriage is not just an escape-it's your opp

w it wasn't about love. It wasn't even about her happiness

arry the son of a business associate-a man she had never

l

clear picture. Ruthless. Cold. Untouchable. He was a man who wielded power without remorse,

need to understand, Selena. This arrangement is more than just a marriage-it's a busine

way from losing everything. This marriage, this arrangement, was the lifeline her family needed. But it came at a cost-h

ng the lump that formed in he

rms crossed and his gaze steady as he faced the man who had raised him. The cold, ruthl

tone unwavering, his voice carrying the wei

dying his father with a mixture of disdain and exhaustion. The words he had been hearing for the p

lied, his voice low but firm, carrying the weight of someone who had

e was a man who didn't know how to lose

the air like a knife. "This isn't a matter of preference-it's about necessi

d out at the sprawling city below, his empire. It was all within his gr

his breath. "You've never cared about what I wa

is a business deal, Alex. It always has been

s. He had learned long ago to hide behind a mask of indifference. But this-this was different. His life had alw

ace his father. "An

calculated smile. "You don't have a ch

er well enough to understand that nothing was ever a suggestion.

racing with the implications of what was to come. He wasn't just marrying a woman-he was