Chapter 2 - The Husband Who Slept Outside Her DoorThe attorney's name was Theodore Grant.
He was seventy-two.
He lived in a quiet townhouse in Princeton.
And when he opened the door, he almost collapsed at the sight of Selena.
“Miss Reed.”
Selena frowned.
“You know me?”
Theodore's eyes filled with tears.
“I knew your father.”
Dominic stood beside Selena.
“He's telling the truth.”
Theodore looked at Dominic.
“Then it has begun.”
Selena's skin prickled.
“What has begun?”
Theodore ushered them inside.
On the wall hung an old photograph.
Selena's father stood beside a younger Dominic Vale.
She stared.
“What is that?”
Dominic's expression hardened.
“I was twenty-one.”
“You knew my father?”
“He was my father's attorney.”
Theodore nodded.
“Your father helped Dominic's family once.”
“When?”
“Before Dominic inherited anything.”
Selena looked at Dominic.
“What happened?”
“My father died.”
“And yours?”
“Same year.”
She noticed the grief in his expression.
Theodore poured tea.
“Your father was not a poor man.”
Selena stared.
“Then why did my mother struggle to pay rent?”
“Because your father's assets were hidden.”
“Why?”
“Because he knew someone wanted him dead.”
Selena's hands went cold.
“He was murdered?”
Theodore nodded.
“Your mother was told it was an accident.”
“She lied to me.”
“She was trying to protect you.”
Theodore opened a safe.
Inside was a thick envelope.
He handed it to Selena.
“This was left for you.”
She opened it.
There was a photograph of her at age eight.
On the back her father had written:
If they ever tell you I abandoned you, don't believe them.
Selena began shaking.
Another letter.
Then another.
And finally, a document.
A trust.
She read the amount.
Her vision blurred.
“That's impossible.”
Dominic looked over.
“What?”
Selena whispered the number.
Twenty-eight million dollars.
Theodore nodded.
“Your father established it before his death.”
“Why wasn't I given it?”
“You weren't old enough.”
“I was eighteen years ago.”
“Yes.”
“Then why?”
“Because the trust required something.”
“What?”
Theodore looked at Dominic.
“Marriage.”
Selena stared.
“What?”
Theodore continued.
“Your father believed his daughter would be vulnerable because of her inheritance.”
“He required me to marry someone?”
“Not just anyone.”
Selena slowly turned toward Dominic.
Theodore nodded.
“Dominic Vale.”
Silence.
Selena looked at her ring.
“No.”
Dominic looked equally uncomfortable.
“You were never supposed to know about the condition until the trust matured.”
“Then why did we get married?”
Theodore's voice lowered.
“Because someone tried to kill you last night.”
Selena froze.
The terrace.
The elevator.
The darkness.
The hand around her waist.
Dominic.
“You saved me.”
“Yes.”
“And you married me because of the trust?”
“No.”
Her eyes lifted.
“Then why?”
Dominic took a slow breath.
“Because Mason had arranged for you to disappear.”
Selena's face drained.
Theodore nodded.
“Mason Caldwell has been trying to gain control of assets tied to your father's estate.”
“How?”
“Through forged financial authority.”
Selena thought of her office.
The altered report.
Her career collapsing.
Mason telling her she wasn't good enough.
Every insult suddenly looked different.
“You ruined me.”
Mason hadn't merely wanted to humiliate her.
He wanted her desperate.
Dependent.
Isolated.
Dominic reached for her hand.
She let him.
“What happens now?”
Theodore looked at them.
“The trust is active.”
Selena looked at Dominic.
“So we're really married.”
“Yes.”
“How long?”
“The trust requires one year of legal marriage.”
She stared.
“One year?”
Dominic nodded.
“You'll remain protected within my household.”
“I don't need a prison.”
“My house isn't a prison.”
“You have armed guards.”
“Outside.”
“Cameras.”
“Security.”
“Same thing.”
He almost smiled.
“You can leave whenever you want.”
Selena blinked.
“You'd let me?”
“Always.”
Theodore cleared his throat.
“There is one more condition.”
Selena sighed.
“What now?”
“You must remain married publicly for twelve months.”
“Of course.”
“And neither spouse may initiate divorce proceedings during that period.”
Selena looked at Dominic.
He looked back.
A strange silence settled between them.
Then Theodore said quietly,
“Your father's final letter explains why.”
He handed her a sealed envelope.
She opened it.
My daughter,
I don't know if I will be alive when you read this.
But I know one thing.
The world I built is not safe.
I have chosen Dominic because I know his family.
He is not perfect.
He is not gentle.
But he understands loyalty.
If you ever find yourself alone, trust the man who stands between you and danger without asking what it will cost him.
Selena looked up.
Dominic looked away.
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“Because I didn't want you to think I married you for money.”
“You didn't?”
“No.”
She stared.
“Then what did you want?”
Dominic's voice was almost a whisper.
“You.”
Her heart skipped.
Before she could answer, Theodore's phone rang.
His face changed.
“They're here.”
Dominic stood immediately.
“Who?”
“The people who have been looking for her.”
The first window shattered.
Dominic pulled Selena down.
Gunfire erupted.
“Stay behind me.”
He drew his weapon.
Selena crawled toward the hallway.
“Dominic!”
He turned.
“Where's Theodore?”
The old attorney had disappeared.
A basement door stood open.
Dominic cursed.
They ran.
But Theodore was already gone.
On the floor lay a note.
SELENA ISN'T THE ONLY HEIR.
Dominic read it.
His face became unreadable.
Selena looked at him.
“What does that mean?”
He folded the paper.
“We need to go.”
“Where?”
“Home.”
She hesitated.
“You mean the mansion?”
He looked at her.
“Our home.”
The words affected her more than they should have.
She followed him.
Neither noticed the man watching them from across the street.
Mason Caldwell.
Smiling.
Because his plan had worked.
May you like
He hadn't needed Selena dead.
He only needed her married to Dominic Vale.
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