Chapter 2 A Deal With Shadows

Lucien's POV

I tightened my grip on the glass of whiskey in my hand. It was too early to be drinking, but I didn't care. The burn was familiar. So was the silence. I found comfort in both.

Behind me, the office buzzed with quiet activity. My assistant, Clara, typed quickly, barely making a sound. She knew better than to speak unless spoken to.

"Any word from the board?" I asked, not turning around.

"Yes, sir," she replied, her voice low and crisp. "They've scheduled the final review for next month. Your grandfather requested your presence this evening at the estate."

Of course he did.

I nodded once, taking a slow sip.

My grandfather didn't ask for things-he demanded them. And when he gave you a deadline, it wasn't a suggestion. It was a noose tightening around your neck.

I turned to face the office. Clara looked up briefly, then back down. She'd seen me on good days and bad. This wasn't the worst.

"How long do I have?"

"Twenty-eight days."

Twenty-eight days to find a bride. Or lose everything I'd worked for.

Everything my brother left behind.

I clenched my jaw and stared at the floor-to-ceiling window again. Rain was starting to fall. Fitting. It always rains when things go to hell.

"You're late," he said.

"I wasn't aware this was a dinner date," I replied, dryly.

He didn't smile. He never did.

"I gave you everything, Lucien. The name, the company, the legacy. I expect a return on that investment."

I stiffened. "And I've tripled profits in under two years."

"At what cost?" He raised an eyebrow. "You live in that glass tower like a ghost. No wife. No heir. No future."

I swallowed the anger rising in my throat. "You want a future? I'm building it every day in that office."

He stood, slow but strong, the cane tapping against the floor as he stepped closer. "You will be married by the end of this month. Or I will remove you as CEO and hand everything to your cousin Lawrence."

My fists clenched at my sides. "He can't run a lemonade stand."

"But he has a fiancée," Victor said simply. "And that's what matters now. Image. Stability. Control."

I could barely breathe. "You want me to lie? To put on a show?"

"I want you to obey. Like your brother did."

The mention of my brother hit like a blade. I looked away, jaw tight.

Aiden had been perfect. Smart. Kind. Responsible. And then gone. Just like that. One accident, and both he and Elise were erased from my life.

I had taken over everything....his job, his office, his burdens. The weight never left. And now my grandfather wanted me to pretend again. Wear another mask.

Two years of guilt.

I should've been there that night. If I hadn't canceled. If I had taken the wheel. If I had...

I pushed the glass aside and leaned forward, burying my face in my hands. Twenty-eight days was all I had. No woman in her right mind would marry someone like me. Cold. Closed off. Damaged in ways that couldn't be fixed.

And yet, I needed one. Not for love. Not for companionship. For control. For survival.

The kind of woman I was looking for wouldn't be wearing diamonds or sipping champagne at high-society events.

She'd be somewhere in the cracks of this city-struggling, desperate, probably praying for a miracle.

I needed someone with everything to lose. Someone desperate. Someone who needed money more than love. Someone who wouldn't ask too many questions. Someone who could disappear when the deal was over.