Chapter 3 Trapped in a Marriage She Never Wanted

Olivia stood frozen between the two men, Ethan, her fiancé, the man she had spent years planning a future with, and Adrian, the man who now held a legal claim over her as her husband. The tension between them was suffocating.

She wanted to demand an explanation, to wake up from this nightmare. But reality had already sunk deep within her.

Her fingers trembled as she turned to Ethan, pleading with her eyes. "I don't know how this happened. I don't remember, Ethan. I swear."

Ethan's jaw was clenched so tightly she feared he might shatter his teeth. "We'll fix this, Olivia. Whatever he's doing, we'll fight it." He glared at Adrian. "You don't own her."

Adrian's expression remained neutral, but there was a hint of, "Do not mess with me", in his gray eyes. "Legally, I do."

The room went deathly silent.

Olivia felt sick.

Ethan's grip on her wrist tightened. "I won't let you do this to her."

Adrian took a slow, measured step forward, his towering frame exuding a quiet, terrifying authority. "You're assuming she didn't do this willingly."

"She wouldn't," Ethan snapped.

Adrian's smirk didn't reach his eyes. "Are you sure?" He turned his gaze to Olivia. "Tell him, Olivia. Tell him you agreed to this marriage."

Olivia swallowed hard, the pressure was becoming unbearable for her. "I don't..." She hesitated, shame and confusion tangling in her mind. "I don't remember saying yes to this. I wouldn't have-"

Adrian's gaze became piercing. "But you also don't recall saying no, do you?"

Her breath became hooked in her throat.

Ethan's expression soured and his fingers curled as though he were holding back a punch. "You're manipulating her."

Adrian shrugged. "You can believe whatever helps you sleep at night."

"That's rich, coming from the bastard who somehow tricked her into marriage," Ethan spat.

Adrian's amusement vanished. His voice dropped to something icy and final. "If you want to fight this, go ahead. But you won't win. And if you try to drag Olivia into some pointless legal battle, you'll only make it worse for her."

Ethan's nostrils flared, but he didn't argue. He couldn't. They all knew Adrian had the resources to make their lives hell.

Olivia felt like the walls were closing in.

Her mind screamed at her to leave, to get out of this situation before it swallowed her whole. But how? Adrian had already blocked every possible escape route.

She turned to Ethan, her voice barely above a whisper. "Go."

Ethan's head snapped toward her. "What?"

"I need to figure this out," she said, forcing the words past the lump in her throat. "I need time."

His expression was a mix of fury and disbelief. "You're seriously staying here?"

"I don't have a choice," she admitted.

Ethan cursed under his breath, running a hand through his dark hair. He looked at Adrian one last time, hatred burning in his gaze. "This isn't over."

Adrian didn't react. He simply watched as Ethan turned on his heel and walked toward the elevator.

The doors slid shut behind him, and just like that, Olivia felt completely alone.

Her legs wobbled, and she forced herself to stay standing, to keep her composure.

Adrian's voice broke the silence. "That was dramatic."

Her head snapped toward him, fury rising like a tidal wave. "Are you enjoying this? Destroying my life?"

He remained infuriatingly calm. "Your life isn't destroyed, Olivia. It's just... different now."

She let out a bitter laugh. "Different? I was supposed to be getting married to Ethan! I was supposed to be celebrating my career! And now I'm-" She gestured at the marriage certificate still clenched in her hands. "This is a joke!"

Adrian took a slow step toward her. "It's not a joke. And you need to accept that."

"Accept it?" She let out a hollow laugh. "What exactly do you expect me to do? Play the dutiful wife to a man I don't even know?"

His expression steeled, his eyes stilled. "You'll stay married to me. And in time, you'll understand why."

Her heart pounded. "You keep saying that. Why? What aren't you telling me?"

Adrian didn't answer. Instead, he turned toward the bar in the corner of the room and poured himself a glass of whiskey.

"Do you even know what happened that night?" she demanded.

He took a slow sip before meeting her gaze. "I know enough."

Frustration and fear burned through her. "Someone must have drugged me."

Adrian's grip on his glass tightened slightly. "So it seems."

"You're not surprised."

He didn't deny it.

A chill ran down her spine. "Did you-" She stopped herself, bile rising in her throat.

Adrian's gaze sharpened. "You think I drugged you?"

She hesitated. "I don't know what to think."

He kept a straight face, but anger danced in his eyes. "Olivia, I would never do that to you."

She wanted to believe him. But she didn't know him. Not really.

"You're still keeping me trapped here," she whispered.

He clenched his jaw. "It's for your own good."

She let out a bitter laugh. "And what if I don't want your protection?"

Adrian took a step closer, his presence overwhelming. "Then you're a fool."

She was surprised by that response. "Excuse me?"

His voice was low, laced with an emotion she couldn't quite decipher. "You don't understand the danger you're in."

A shiver ran through her. "What danger?"

Adrian studied her for a moment before shaking his head. "You'll find out soon enough."

Her stomach twisted. "I don't want to find out. I just want my life back."

Adrian's face became stern. Olivia, that life is no more. "The sooner you accept it, the better."

She clenched her fists, rage bubbling beneath her skin. "You're a bastard."

His lips twitched. "So I've been told."

She wanted to throw something at him. Scream. Cry. But none of it would change the reality she was in.

She was trapped. She felt completely and utterly alone.

And she doesn't know what he was supposedly saving her from.