BOOK2–Chapter 1
“I’ve decided,” I said. My voice didn’t shake, even though my heart did. “I’ll marry the paralyzed man from the Reid family. I’ll do it to save your illegitimate daughter Katie.“}}
For a moment, the only sound in the room was the steady ticking of the grandfather clock. Then my father, who had been lounging lazily in his armchair, shot to his feet. He crossed the room in two strides and pulled me into a tight hug.
“Lily,” he breathed against my hair. “This… this is the best decision you’ve ever made. You’ve made the right choice, sweetheart. I’m so proud of you.”
For the first time in years, my father hugged me.}]
And just like that, I realized no matter how many awards I’d won, no matter how many times I tried to earn his love, it was never enough. But today, because I agreed to sacrifice myself for Katie, his precious illegitimate daughter, I was finally “good enough” to touch.”
I shoved him away gently but firmly, straightening my sleeves like his affection left a stain. “There’s a condition,” I said, my voice cool. “I want the summer house. Transfer it to my name.“}
My father blinked, stunned. “The summer house? But… that’s supposed to be Katie’s.“}
I met his gaze steadily. “Then consider it payment. Take it or leave it.“}
A long pause. His jaw tightened–he hated being cornered–but he knew he had no choice. He needed me to marry into the Reid family so Katie would be free to love anyone.
“Fine,” he muttered.
I smiled thinly. “And, I want a new personal chef. Fire Cameron. I don’t want him around me anymore.“}
My father’s eyebrows shot up. “What are you talking about? Lily, you know Cameron’s the only one who managed to cure your eating disorder. No one else could even get you to touch food!”
I stayed silent. He was right. After Mom died, after everything that happened, I had stopped eating altogether.}
I was only ten when the world collapsed around me–the same day my father brought home Katie. The same day I found out my mother wasn’t enough to keep his heart, nor enough to save her own life.}
Losing her unborn baby, watching my father flaunt his mistress and illegitimate child… it broke her. And in the end, it killed her. And it almost killed me too.
I grew up hollow, my body wasting away as depression dug its claws in deeper. For years, my father didn’t notice–or maybe he just didn’t
care.
Until one night, when I was seventeen, I snuck into a bar, desperate to feel something.
That’s where I first saw Cameron.
He wasn’t just another bartender. He had this presence–this careless charm that made me forget, for just a second, how broken I was.
I did everything to catch his eye after that night. Wore prettier clothes. Smiled more. Laughed louder. I made up reasons to go to that bar every weekend, each time praying he’d notice me–not as a broken rich girl–but as a woman.}
But he never looked my way. Until one night, when he cooked something special at the bar–a dish that smelled so intoxicating I couldn’t resist. I took a bite… and for the first time in years, I actually tasted joy.
! forced my father to hire him after that. Demanded it. Threatened to starve myself again if he didn’t.”
Cameron agreed to be my personal chef.
And for two years, I believed–foolishly–that maybe he stayed because of me. That maybe, finally, someone saw me.}]
Until the night I overheard him.
“But Young Master Brown! You need to stop playing personal chef. You are the heir of the Brown Corporation! You need to come back now!” the voice said. “Are you really going to be with that Lily?“}
“Not yet. I have to stay a little longer. Katie’s still here. I took the job to get close to her, not that idiot Lily. She’s just a stepping stone. Lucky she ate the food that night, and who would have thought it would cure her eating disorder–made it easier for me to get in.”}
I had stood there, frozen, as my world crumbled all over again.
I was nothing more than a pawn. Now, here I was, sealing my own fate with a marriage to a paralyzed stranger, because at least he wouldn’t pretend to love me.
I turned away from my father without another word, heading back upstairs. My hands were trembling, but I clenched them into fists.
As I reached the end of the hallway, a sound stopped me.}
Soft moans. I knew that voice.
My heart in my throat, I crept closer to the door left slightly ajar–Cameron’s room.
Through the crack, I saw him, shirtless, panting, his hand between his legs–and on his phone screen…
Katie’s face. He was pleasuring himself to a secret video of her.
And in between ragged moans, he whispered her name like a prayer.
“Katie… oh! I want you so much! I love you.”
I walked away silently, leaving the last piece of my pathetic hope behind me.
