Chapter 2 The Storm of Dept

Lila's POV

I remained silent. Ethan put the contract in front of me, and I just gazed at it. The phrases on the page flashed before my eyes: *no emotional obligations*, *one year*, *mutual protection*, and *marriage agreement*.

However, it was the final sentence that gave me a headache: *all liabilities and debts in Lila West's name will be fully paid off.

What is the amount I owe? My question was hardly audible above a whisper.

Ethan took a while to respond. With his arms folded and his dark eyes fixed on me, he sat on the edge of the desk.

Gently, he said, "Lila." "You underestimate how bad it is."

I knew it was horrible already. Every time I opened the mailbox and saw another envelope with a red stamp, I had sensed it. However, I had been scared to look. Too scared to count.

I had no other option now.

Ethan went to the cupboard at the far end and took out a large folder. Slowly, as if he were handing me something that could shatter me, he handed it to me.

My hands were shaking when I opened it.

And I almost tripped.

medical expenses. debt from a mortgage. balances on credit cards. I never signed any business loans. names of banks that I was unfamiliar with.

I turned to the page with the summary.

**~$742,000.**

My heart stopped beating.

"No," I muttered. "It's not mine."

"It is," he muttered. "Richard created some accounts using your name. Others-without your knowledge, they were joint.

I was ill.

The room whirled.

I backed aside and dropped the folder.

"I signed nothing at all."

"He did." Some were forged. You have rights as a married couple.

"This isn't possible." I sat down, trembling, and my knees struck the couch.

Ethan knelt before me, his face pressed against mine. "Lila, you're in danger. This goes beyond money. He owes some folks who aren't exactly... lawful.

I gazed at him. "What are their desires?"

"What Richard promised is what they desire."

"What was the promise he made?"

Ethan's expression hardened. "Your bakery. The home. Your name on a million-dollar land purchase. However, he never returned the money he had taken. They now demand payment from you instead.

My eyes were burning with tears. "I was unaware of all of this. Why didn't you inform me earlier?

"I made an effort," he said. However, you were in mourning. Additionally, I didn't want to break the news to you as you were saying goodbye.

That made me rather resentful of him. I hated myself more, though, for loving a guy who wore falsehoods like skin and for blindly trusting Richard.

"And the union?" I inquired. "Is that your answer?"

Ethan remarked, "It's the only way I can help you without making it worse." "They'll know you're related to me if I pay off your debts right away. That increases your risk. However, if we get married, I will be able to take legal control. I can bury it all. Keep you safe.

I gave him a look.

His gaze remained fixed.

"Are you acting remorseful lying?" I inquired.

"No."

"So why?"

He touched me with his hand. Gentle. Be cautious.

"I informed you. What happened to Richard was not my fault. But I will not repeat that error.

The room fell silent.

I didn't know what to say.

That night, I sat in my kitchen staring at the bakery receipts sprawled across the table. The stats didn't lie. The bakery was sinking, too. Late taxes. Payroll debt. Supplier fees.

Richard had said he would take care of it.

But he'd lied about everything.

My face fell into my hands.

I felt inadequate. A stupid. Furthermore, I had no idea how to handle all of this on my own.

Reaching for my phone, I dialed the bank.

I hung up, trembling, thirty minutes later.

The caller had been straightforward but icy.

The house would go into foreclosure if I didn't pay the next mortgage amount, which is **$9,800**, by the end of the week.

Additionally, the bakery would take over the building if I couldn't pay off their bills by the tenth.

There was no one else for me.

Not a family. No savings.

Just Ethan.

And that agreement.

I didn't get any sleep. I was barely breathing.

By dawn, I had decided on something.

Once more, I drove to his office. I didn't wait at the counter this time. I pushed the door open and entered.

In a meeting, he was.

I didn't give a damn.

As soon as I intervened, he glanced up. His group fell silent, perplexed.

I threw the contract of marriage upon the table.

I said, "I'll sign it."

His jaw muscle twitched.

He waited for the door to close behind them, stood slowly, and looked at the others to excuse them.

Then he approached me.

"Are you certain?" he inquired.

"No," I replied. "But there doesn't seem to be another way."

He gave a nod. "So we begin today."

Silently, we made our way to the courthouse.

My dress was black. His clothing was black.

It was less like a wedding and more like a burial.

No promises. There are no rings. Only signatures.

I signed mine with a hand that didn't stop shaking.

The cashier smiled and said, "Lila West-Cole." "Congratulations."

I didn't smile back.

Ethan didn't either.

We ventured outdoors into the blustery wind.

For me, he opened the car door.

I just stood there for a while.

"Why me?" I inquired.

He gave me an inscrutable glance.

He remarked, "You've always been the only one."

Then he climbed into the vehicle.

I did the same.

I sat in the center of Ethan's apartment later that evening. It smelled of power and cedarwood and was clean and chilly.

My name had changed.

A fresh start.

And a man I scarcely understood.

He poured me a drink and sat across from me.

"I'll fix everything tomorrow," he declared.

I muttered, "I don't want to be your debt."

He bent over. "You're not."

I forgot all about money, pain, and fear when I saw the blaze in his eyes. I saw only him for a moment.

He put his hand on my cheek. Only once.

"I'm not requesting affection," he declared. "Just have faith."

I gave a nod.

However, I was unsure if I had any left.

We each slept in a different room.

I wondered how quickly a life could fall apart as I curled up in silk sheets and stared at the ceiling.

How quickly a falsehood can destroy everything.

I heard my phone buzz in the quiet.

I took it off the bedside table.

**Unknown Number: "Marrying him was a mistake." **

My blood turned to ice.

One more buzz.

**"He didn't keep your husband alive. He sold him. **

With my chest thumping, I sat up straight.

One more message.

I sat motionless on the bed's edge. The texts were staring up at me from my phone, which I was still holding.

**"He didn't keep your husband alive. He sold him. ** ** "Ask Ethan about Richard's death night. He was there, not merely observing. **

My mouth became parched.

I glanced in the direction of the bedroom door, half expecting to see Ethan. A slight click caught my ear-his door opening? Or am I just deceiving myself?

With shaking fingers, I slid the phone under the pillow. I was unable to think clearly. My ears were ringing from the loud pounding of my heart in my chest.

I had to breathe.

I left the bedroom quietly and went down the marble corridor barefoot. Only city lights were visible through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the penthouse, which was completely dark. The entire space seemed too spotless, too ideal, too strange.

I ended myself in the kitchen, pouring cold water into a glass. I didn't drink, but my lips did touch the rim.

I sensed being observed.

The hairs sprang up on the back of my neck.

Then his voice.

"You ought not to be awake."

I pivoted.

Ethan was standing in the corridor wearing dark jeans and no shirt. His eyes were dark in the low light, and his chest rose and fell gently.

I said, "I couldn't sleep." My voice faltered as I tried to sound composed.

His bare feet were silent on the floor as he approached me.

"Had bad dreams?" he inquired.

I gave a nod. "That kind of thing."

He looked down at my hand. I continued to hold the glass too tightly.

"Come," he said. "You need to sleep."

However, I remained motionless.

"Were you present when Richard passed away?" My voice was low as I asked.

He came to a halt.

His mouth tightened. His gaze grew gloomy.

"Why do you ask that?" he asked cautiously.

"I simply must know."

He took a step toward her.

He stated, "I was in the city." "During a meeting. I had no idea he was traveling that route.

I didn't think he was real.

I had no idea why. Perhaps it was the way his eyes averted. Perhaps it was the lengthy silence before he said anything. Or perhaps it was the text that was still blazing in my brain.

I responded, "He perished in the rain." He lost control, according to the police. But his remains were discovered distant from the scene of the collision. That was nonsensical.

At his sides, Ethan's hands clenched into fists.

"You believe I was involved in it?"

"I'm not sure what to think," I muttered.

He moved so near that I could smell his power, warm spice, and clean skin.

He said, "Lila, I didn't kill your husband."

However, you were aware of things. He used my name, as you knew. You were aware of the debts.

"Yes," he said. I also wanted to let you know. I made an effort. But each time I approached, he drew you more away.

He was being honest.

Or it was a lovely lie.

My mind was racing.

He touched me with his fingertips. "To keep you safe, I married you. I wouldn't have spoken if I meant to harm you.

I stared up at him, uncertain, terrified. and still attracted to him.

"Why are you acting in this way?" I repeated my question. "Why get married to me? Why take on my mess?

He raised his hand and cupped my face. His thumb moved slowly and gently across my cheek.

He explained, "Because I've loved you for years."

I gazed at him.

And I forgot the dread in that instant. the uncertainty. The falsehoods.

He gave me a kiss.

I didn't stop him either.

His lips took mine, softly at first, then more forcefully. He pulled me in as his hands sank into my hair. Something inside of me burst open as my body crushed against his.

I gave him a kiss in return.

In a desperate situation. Furious. wishing to forget everything.

His lips trailed fire down my neck as he pulled me onto the counter.

His hands seized my thighs and parted them as I let out a small sigh.

He muttered on my skin, "Tell me to stop."

I didn't.

His greedy, desperate mouth met my once more.

Between breaths, the clothes vanished. I dropped my nightgown to the ground. His trousers fell next to it.

I shouldn't have wanted it, but I did, because his skin on mine felt hot and dangerous.

He moved slowly and deeply inside me. He moved deftly, gripping my waist as if I were brittle.

I wasn't breaking, though.

I was on fire.

My fingernails penetrated his back. His groans blended with mine. I encircled him with my legs, demanding more, more quickly, more forcefully.

And I got it from him.

Until I was nothing but pulse, pleasure, and forgotten pain, we smashed together repeatedly.

I collapsed on his chest, out of breath, when it was over.

Without saying a word, he carried me to bed.

He stayed.

He remained with his arms wrapped around me and his warm breath on my shoulder.

I ought to have felt secure.

However, I didn't.

I bided my time till his breathing stabilized.

I then padded back to the kitchen after sneaking out of bed.

My phone was still there, hidden beneath the bowl of fruit.

A fresh message.

**Unknown Number: "Lila, he isn't your savior. Inspect his office's lockable drawer. There, the truth is concealed. **

My hand trembled.

Footsteps behind me, then.

Ethan's harsh, low voice.

"At this hour, what are you doing on your phone?"

I quickly whirled around, concealing the screen behind my back.

However, it was too late.

The flush on my face and the flicker of terror in my eyes were already visible to Ethan.