Chapter 2

Abby Talley POV:

My Choosing Ceremony was held in the Barrett Corporation' s grand ballroom, a cavernous space with crystal chandeliers that glittered like constellations overhead. It was supposed to be a celebration of my future, a formal acknowledgment of the alliance between the Talley and Walls families. For me, it was the first step in dismantling the life that had destroyed me.

Connor arrived late, of course. He made his entrance with Jana Brady clinging to his arm, a triumphant smirk on his face. She was wearing a dress that was a shade too tight, and the faint, purplish marks on her neck, just peeking above her collar, were a deliberate and vulgar statement. A brand of his ownership.

A few of the younger executives snickered behind their hands. The message was clear: Connor Walls could have his fiancée-to-be and his side piece in the same room, and no one would dare question him. He was untouchable.

In my past life, this exact scene had played out. I had stood in this very spot, heart pounding with a mixture of hope and humiliation, tears stinging my eyes as he flaunted his infidelity. I had wanted so badly to believe it was a misunderstanding.

This time, my heart was a block of ice. I felt nothing but a cold, clinical detachment.

Connor noticed my stillness. He sauntered over, leaving Jana pouting by the doorway. His eyes, the color of dark whiskey, raked over me. He was looking for the hurt, the jealousy. He fed on it.

"You look beautiful tonight, Abby," he murmured, his voice a low caress that used to make my knees weak. "Ready to make it official? I promise to make it worth your while tonight." His gaze dropped meaningfully.

The crude implication hung in the air between us.

"Connor, aren't you going to get me a drink?" Jana whined from across the room, her voice sharp with envy.

He shot her an annoyed glance before turning back to me, his smile returning, slick and practiced. "Don' t mind her. She' s just a child. You' re the main event." He leaned closer, his cologne, a scent I now associated with fear and nausea, invading my space. "You' re the one who will be Mrs. Walls."

Jana' s face flushed with a mixture of anger and humiliation. She glared at me, her eyes promising retribution. The crowd watched the drama with undisguised glee, their whispers a low buzz that filled the room. Someone let out a low whistle.

I remembered this moment. I remembered the burning shame, the desperate need to run and hide.

I took a deliberate step back, creating a chasm of space between us. I intended to walk away, to find Howard Barrett and get this over with.

But Connor' s hand shot out, his fingers wrapping around my wrist like a manacle. His grip was tight, bruising. "Where do you think you' re going?"

His smile was gone, replaced by a flicker of irritation. "Stop with the games, Abby. This whole cold-shoulder act is getting boring. You want me. You' ve always wanted me."

I met his gaze, my expression unreadable. "Let go of me, Connor."

His grip tightened. "I know you. Underneath all this ice, you' re still the same pathetic girl who used to follow me around like a lost puppy. You' re just trying to make me want you more. And it' s working."

A wave of revulsion washed over me. I yanked my arm back, the force of the movement surprising him. "I said, let go."

"You think you have a choice?" he scoffed, his voice rising. "This is a business deal. My father needs your shares, and you need our name. That' s all this is."

"No," I said, my voice ringing with a finality that silenced the nearby whispers. "I will not be marrying you."

The silence that followed was absolute. It was as if the air had been sucked from the room. Even the string quartet in the corner seemed to have paused.

Then, a low chuckle rumbled from Connor' s chest. It spread through his entourage, a wave of ridicule directed entirely at me.

"Not marrying me?" he repeated, his eyes wide with mock disbelief. "My apologies, sweetheart. I didn' t realize you had other options. Who are you going to choose? My brother?"

The crowd erupted in laughter.

"Brannon?" Connor' s voice was dripping with contempt. "The corporate raider? The butcher? The man our father keeps locked away in the mergers and acquisitions department because he' s too ruthless for polite company?"

He leaned in again, his voice a poisonous whisper. "They say he gutted his last competitor so badly the man' s family lost everything. They say he doesn' t have a heart, just a calculator where it should be. Is that what you want, Abby? A monster?"

He looked me up and down, a cruel sneer on his perfect lips. "Or is this just another pathetic attempt to get my attention? You think threatening to choose my outcast brother will make me jealous?"

His question hung in the air, a challenge and an insult all in one.