The Annulled Bride's Billionaire Husband

My wedding day was supposed to be the start of everything. Three hours after I married my college sweetheart, Ethan Hayes, my world imploded. He raised his glass for a toast, but instead announced, "This is an end." Publicly, brutally, he annulled our marriage, leaving me shattered and ridiculed in front of hundreds. My love, my hope, my very reputation-all destroyed on that glittering ballroom floor. Five years later, a new, quiet life had begun; I was secretly married to Alexander Sterling, New York' s reclusive tech billionaire. I thought I was finally safe, finally happy. Then, I saw Ethan again, with his cruel accomplice, Brittany, their smug faces a painful reminder. He mocked my simple life, then insultingly offered me a cleaning job. When I quietly revealed I was married, they erupted in disbelieving laughter. Brittany snatched the unique signet ring Alex had given me, screaming "Thief!" Ethan, fearing for his ambitious plans, brutally slapped me, dragging me from the cafe into a dark alley. He imprisoned me, then, to protect his image, hauled me onto his gala stage, accusing me of stalking. My life felt ruined all over again, consumed by pain and utter injustice. In front of society's elite, he twisted my hand with a sickening crunch, deliberately breaking it. My screamed agony was swallowed by the crowd, my humiliation complete. Just then, a hush fell as Alexander Sterling himself walked in, casting a long shadow. Brittany, holding my broken ring like a trophy, boasted about punishing the "thief." Then Alex' s eyes found mine, lingering on my mangled hand, and his face contorted with ice-cold fury. He walked straight to me, and with a voice that silenced the room, asked Ethan, "What have you done to my wife?"