Chapter 3 Secrets In The Dark

Clara barely slept that night. She lay in the enormous bed staring at the ceiling, every muscle in her body tight. Her mind wouldn't stop replaying the evening - Adrian crashing her wedding, the way he had stared at her when he said you're mine, and the look that flashed across his face when his phone buzzed.

Something was wrong.

For a man who prided himself on control, Adrian Wolfe had looked... unsettled.

Clara rolled onto her side, frustrated. She didn't care about his business, not really. But if his "something wrong" somehow involved her family's safety, she needed to know.

---

At some point, exhaustion pulled her into a restless sleep, but she woke with a start when she heard footsteps outside her room.

The house was silent except for the faint, deliberate sound of Adrian's shoes against the marble floor.

Clara sat up, her heart racing. It was still dark; the digital clock on the nightstand read 3:12 a.m..

What is he doing awake at this hour?

Curiosity gnawed at her, and before she could talk herself out of it, Clara slid out of bed. She cracked her door open just enough to peek into the hall.

Adrian was walking down the corridor, his broad shoulders tense, his phone pressed to his ear.

Clara held her breath and followed quietly, her bare feet making no sound against the carpeted hall.

When he reached his study - a room lined with dark shelves and floor-to-ceiling windows - he closed the door but didn't lock it.

Clara hesitated for only a moment before creeping closer. She pressed herself against the wall near the door, straining to hear.

Adrian's voice was low, but sharp with anger.

"you told me this was handled," he said, his tone like ice. "I don't pay you to make excuses, Leo."

A pause, then Adrian's voice hardened further.

"I don't care what it takes. I want Barrington out of my company by the end of the week. If he leaks this, it won't just hurt me - it'll hurt her."

Clara's heart skipped.

Her?

Was he talking about... her?

Adrian's tone dropped lower, but she caught fragments:

"already too many eyes on us after the wedding"

"-if anyone finds out why I married her-"

"-no mistakes, Leo. None."

Clara froze, her breath caught in her chest.

Why he married me?

Her mind raced. He had said it was because of her father's debt, because he wanted her. But now it sounded like there was more - something he was keeping from her.

Clara leaned closer, desperate to hear the rest, but the floor creaked under her foot.

Adrian's voice stopped abruptly.

"Wait," he said sharply on the other side of the door.

Clara panicked, stepping back, but it was too late.

The door opened, and Adrian stood there, filling the doorway, his phone still in his hand, his dark eyes narrowing as they landed on her.

---

"Clara," he said, his voice low and unreadable. "What are you doing awake?"

She forced a shaky smile, clutching the edge of her silk robe. "I... couldn't sleep. I was just-getting some water."

Adrian's gaze dropped briefly to her bare feet, then back to her face. His jaw tightened slightly.

"You were outside the door," he said flatly.

Clara's heart skipped. "I wasn't-"

"Don't lie to me."

The quiet authority in his voice sent a shiver down her spine.

Clara swallowed, standing her ground. "Fine. I heard you talking. You said something about-about why you married me. What does that mean?"

Adrian's expression didn't change, but his eyes darkened, sharp and calculating.

"That's none of your concern."

Her anger flared. "It's absolutely my concern! You dragged me out of my own wedding, forced me into this-this arrangement. You don't get to decide what I deserve to know."

For a moment, neither of them spoke. The only sound was the faint hum of the city beyond the glass windows.

Then Adrian stepped closer, so close Clara had to tilt her chin up to meet his gaze.

"You want answers?" His voice was quiet but edged with steel. "Fine. I married you because you were the easiest way to destroy your father's enemies."

Clara's stomach dropped. "What?"

Adrian's jaw tightened. "Barrington and Whitmore are connected. Taking you from that wedding wasn't just about saving your family. It was about sending a message. Marrying you hurt them in ways money never could."

Clara stared at him, stunned. "So I'm just-what? A weapon? A pawn in your stupid revenge game?"

Adrian didn't flinch. "At first, yes."

Her chest tightened painfully, a lump rising in her throat. "At first?"

His gaze softened slightly - just slightly - but his face remained unreadable. "Things change."

Clara felt her breath hitch, but she shoved the flicker of warmth away.

"You're unbelievable," she whispered, stepping back. "You ruined my life because you wanted to send a message? Do you even hear yourself?"

Adrian's eyes hardened again. "Your life would've been ruined either way. I gave you a way out."

"That's not your choice to make!" Clara snapped, her voice breaking.

Adrian's jaw flexed, but he said nothing.

Clara turned sharply, heading back toward her room. "Stay away from me."

"Clara-"

She stopped at the door but didn't turn. "Don't talk to me unless it's about my father's safety. Everything else-keep it to yourself."

Then she slammed the door behind her.

---

Clara leaned against the door, breathing hard. Her chest felt tight, her eyes burned, but she refused to cry.

She had known this marriage was a trap, but hearing Adrian admit it out loud - that she had been nothing more than a pawn - hurt worse than she'd expected.

Clara crawled back into bed, pulling the sheets around her like armor.

She didn't want to care. She didn't want to think about the way his eyes had softened when he'd said things change.

But lying there in the dark, she couldn't shake the feeling that Adrian Wolfe was far more dangerous than she'd imagined - not just because of his power, but because, somehow, he was already finding a way under her skin.

And she hated herself for letting him.

---

Adrian's POV

In his study, Adrian stood by the window, staring out at the city lights. His phone buzzed again, but he ignored it.

Leo's voice from earlier echoed in his mind.

If Barrington finds out the real reason you married her-

Adrian's jaw tightened.

He hadn't lied to Clara completely. Yes, marrying her had been about revenge at first, about crippling Barrington and humiliating Whitmore.

But there was something else, something Clara couldn't know yet.

Something that could destroy her if it ever came out.

Adrian set his glass down with a quiet thud.

He had sworn to keep her out of this, no matter what it cost him.

But the way she had looked at him tonight, hurt, betrayed - gnawed at him more than it should have.

Don't get attached, he told himself. She's just part of the plan.

But for the first time in his life, Adrian Wolfe wasn't sure he believed his own words.

The next morning, Clara woke to the sound of her phone vibrating on the nightstand.

She frowned, reaching for it. A message from an unknown number flashed on the screen:

"Do you really think Adrian Wolfe married you to save your father? Ask him what happened five years ago. Ask him about the accident."

Clara sat up, her heart pounding.

Accident? What accident?

She stared at the message, unease curling in her stomach.

Whatever Adrian was hiding, it was bigger than revenge.

And Clara wasn't sure she wanted to know the truth.