His Cold Revenge, A Hidden Love

life a living hell. The day my family went bankrupt,

ed," he said coldly. "I

-in mistress. I had to serve him and his perfect new girlfriend, Astrid, in the pent

love" Astrid was secretly plotting with his brother, Ca

from blackmail. I agreed, ready to sacrifice myself to set him free. I never imagined this

pte

e Fry

ninety-five days, I made his life a living hell. On the one thousand an

ral Park. He didn't even have the decency to take me to his new, sprawling office. He just stood there, flanked b

nd smooth as the polished stone between us. "My t

re a punch to the gut, ste

love. It started at a frat party during our senior year at Columbia. I was the queen of the New York socialite scene, the untouchable heir

as his shadow, a bookish introvert who spent more time in the library than at parties. But that nigh

Kane Chandler's dorm room, looking disheveled and ruined. My family's reputatio

ill marry him," he'd commanded, his voice shaking with rage in his mahogan

n alliance with the Frys. My father laid out the terms with brutal clarity. A marriage, yes, but with the strictest prenup his lawyers could draf

ever, was a different story. He just stood there, silent and still, his dark eyes fixed on me. I couldn't read his expressi

A quiet ceremony at C

life with Cade. The life of a celebrated princess, not a shamed

mock his quiet nature and ill-fitting suits. "Look at Callie's little pet," they'd wh

ours, he was less than a servant. He slept on a cot at

ld say at dinner, not even looking at hi

er would ask with a sigh, picking at her sal

absorbed the insults, his fa

standing under the awning of a designer boutique, fuming. Suddenly, he was there,

mbrella from him. "Following me around like

ed through, his dark hair plastered to his forehead

. No man could endure that level of humiliation without cracking. But K

dsome in a severe, intellectual way. High cheekbones, a strong jaw, and eyes so dark they seemed to swallow the light. I knew he' d graduated top of

was charming, vibrant, al

ong was burning in my mind, the taste of cheap tequila and bitter regret.

the cot.

ogginess, just alert and sitt

me water,"

ass. The water was perfectly temperate, not too cold, ju

I could see was the man who had ruined my life.

ut," I

look, then turned and walked out of the room, closing the door softly behind him. A flicker of guilt sparked in my

ur life. A cycle of my crue

erything

d, made a series of bad bets, and the Fry empire crumbled

, but there was a new stillness to him. He started working late, disappearing into the small stud

orld of chaos. For the first time, I found myself watching him, really watching him. I start

on a gift for him-a first-edition copy of a book on coding I knew he wan

y tailored suit, flanked by wolves. A tech startup he'd secretly built in o

it, Ca

to the present. The cold,

as back. It was all a lie. His patience hadn' t be

ion of seeing me break. I signed my name with a flourish, the ink a b

oice brittle. "Now g

orless curve of his lips. "I'll

sound. "I don't have a home, reme

I know. I bought it. All your things are still there. I t

n of weakness I never even knew he had. Every humiliation I had ever dealt him, he was now returning

amily was squandering a legacy, he was building an empire from a

had been expecting-the triumphant rage, the vicious gloating-never came.

pushing past his lawyers and stumbling out

ter me, his voice stil

rn around.

hin dress. In my hand, I was still clutching the sm

nothing. I stood there on the pavement as the sky wept, letting the cold s