Married to the man I shouldn't love

The ride back to the penthouse was painfully quiet. Adrian sat me in the car, his posture rigid, his attention fixed on the skyline ahead. He didn't speak, but I could feel the tension radiating from him like heat from a furnace. Whatever his father had said, whatever suspicions had been stirred, they were already building into something dangerous inside him.

When we entered the penthouse, he removed his jacket with the sharp, controlled movements of someone trying very hard not to lose control. I stood near the door, unsure whether I should walk away or wait for him to speak.

"Sit," he said finally.

Not a request. A command.

I obeyed, taking a seat on the far end of the velvet sofa. Adrian remained standing for a moment, his back turned to me, his hand braced against the marble counter. Then he exhaled slowly, the kind of breath people release only when they've spent hours denying how tense they truly are.

He turned around, his eyes fixed on me in a way that made my pulse jump.

"What did my father say to you?" he asked.

"He asked if I was afraid," I said quietly.

"And what did you tell him?"

"That I wasn't."

"And was that the truth?"

My mouth opened, but no sound came out. Adrian's eyes narrowed slightly, almost like he was frustrated but not surprised.

"I told you already," he continued, "my father sees everything. He's looking for cracks. Weakness. Lies." His voice softened just a fraction-not gentle, but not cruel either. "So if you are afraid, you should say it. At least to me."

My heart twisted unexpectedly.

Adrian wasn't a man who asked questions he didn't want answers to. And he wasn't someone who offered space, even small space, for honesty. But tonight something felt... different. Thinner. Sharper. More exposed.

"I'm not afraid of you," I said.

He studied me. Long enough that I wondered if I should have lied.

"But I'm afraid of this," I admitted. "Of being here. Of pretending. Of disappointing you. Of making a mistake."

His expression didn't fully change, but something in his eyes shifted-slightly, enough that I noticed.

"You will make mistakes," Adrian said. "Everyone does." His voice dipped lower. "But lying to my father is not one you can afford."

I nodded slowly. "I understand."

He walked closer, stopping only a few steps away. "You're not Evelyn," he said-not accusing, just factual. "And you never will be."

A painful pang hit my stomach, but before I could respond, he added, "But that doesn't mean you can't survive this marriage. My father may doubt you, but he doesn't decide what happens between us."

Between us.

The words lingered longer than they should have.

There were footsteps outside the penthouse doors before I could respond-quick, deliberate. A second later, Marcus Hale stepped inside without knocking, wearing a charcoal suit and an expression that said he knew exactly how unwelcome the interruption was.

"Apologies," Marcus said, not looking apologetic at all. "But we have a problem."

Adrian stiffened. "What kind of problem?"

Marcus glanced at me briefly before turning back to Adrian. "Your father's driver was seen talking to a private investigator tonight. Someone is digging into Evelyn's disappearance."

My stomach dropped.

Adrian's eyes darkened immediately. "Who hired the investigator?"

"We don't know yet," Marcus replied. "But if your father is behind it-"

"He is," Adrian said instantly. "He doesn't trust what he can't control."

Marcus's gaze flicked toward me again, softer now, assessing. "This puts Lila at risk."

I swallowed, feeling the weight of those words settle into my spine.

Adrian's jaw clenched. "Nobody touches her."

There was nothing gentle about the way he said it. It wasn't affection. It wasn't kindness. It was a warning-a promise sharpened to a blade.

Marcus nodded. "Then we need to get ahead of this. Fast."

Adrian turned back to me. "You are to stay inside the penthouse until I say otherwise."

"Am I... in danger?" I asked.

"Not yet," he said. "But you might be soon." Then softer, almost reluctant, "And I don't want you walking into anything unprepared."

The room felt warmer suddenly, the air heavier. Adrian looked away first, as if he'd revealed more than he intended.

Marcus cleared his throat. "Actually, there's something else." He held up his phone. "A photo of Evelyn surfaced online tonight."

My heart almost stopped. "Where?"

Marcus hesitated. "Brooklyn. Two nights ago."

Adrian stepped forward. "Show me."

Marcus handed him the phone, and I leaned in without realizing it. The image was grainy, taken from across the street. But it was unmistakably her-Evelyn, in a black coat, hair pulled back, looking over her shoulder like she was expecting to be followed.

Adrian's expression barely moved, but Marcus must have seen something because he said, "You know what this means."

Adrian handed the phone back, his voice low and controlled. "It means Evelyn hasn't disappeared. She's hiding."

My hands trembled. "Why would she hide in New York? If she didn't want the wedding, why not leave the country?"

Adrian looked straight at me then.

"Because she wasn't running from the wedding," he said. "She was running from something else."

Marcus added quietly, "Or someone."

A cold shiver ran down my spine.

For the first time since the marriage, I wasn't thinking about the wedding or my parents or even Adrian's father.

I was thinking about Evelyn.

What had she seen?

What had she done?

And why had she told me not to take her place?

Adrian rubbed a hand over his jaw. "Marcus, get the security team on standby. I want extra surveillance around the penthouse. No one gets near her."

Marcus nodded and left quickly, giving me one last reassuring look as he closed the door behind him.

When we were alone, Adrian returned to standing in front of me, his presence filling the room in a way that made it hard to breathe.

"You're not to worry," he said quietly. "I'll handle this."

"I'm not worried about me," I admitted. "I'm worried about Evelyn."

Adrian's eyes lifted to mine, and something softened-barely there, but real.

"I'll find her," he said. "But until I do... you stay with me."

His words weren't tender, but the weight of them settled deeper than any comfort I expected.

I nodded slowly, unable to look away from him.

"Okay."

Adrian exhaled, stepped back, and started to turn away-then paused, as if deciding something.

"Lila."

"Yes?"

"If anyone asks," he said, "you're my wife. And I protect what is mine."

The statement pulled the air from my lungs.

Not affectionate.

Not romantic.

But a warning wrapped in something dangerously close to devotion.

And for the first time since the wedding, I wondered whether the real danger wasn't the Blackwell family...

but the man I had just married.