He chose me because I was desperate. He married me because he needed control. Then he made me believe he loved me. My younger brother was dying. The operation that could save him cost more than three million dollars. I had no money left. No rich family. No powerful friends. Then billionaire Sebastian Rourke made me an offer. Marry him for eighteen months. Smile for the cameras. Help him claim the shares he needs to control his family empire. In return, he will pay for my brother’s operation and give me enough money to begin again when our marriage ends. I know it is a contract. I know Sebastian does not love me. But I do not know about Project Hearth. I do not know that his people studied my debts, my fears, and my brother’s illness before Sebastian ever entered my life. I do not know that every flower, every private dinner, and every tender touch was planned to make our false marriage look real. And I do not know that his beautiful ex-wife knew the truth before I did. Then Sebastian stays beside me through my brother’s operation. He repairs my mother’s broken watch. He kisses me when no one is watching. And the cold billionaire who promised me nothing becomes the man I cannot imagine leaving. I fall in love with my husband. He says he loves me too. But on our first anniversary, his ex-wife places a black folder in my hands. Inside it is the plan for our entire marriage. My private life. My brother’s medical records. The gifts Sebastian used to win my trust. And the message he sent before our wedding. Helena is only a solution. Once the trust is released, we can return to our old arrangement. So I remove my ring in front of five hundred guests. I expose the truth. I file for divorce. And I use the company shares Sebastian gave me to challenge the empire he thought I was too weak to touch. Now my husband says the plan became real. He says he will give up his company, his fortune, and every piece of control he once valued to earn me back. But I do not need another expensive gift. I need the truth. I need freedom. And I need to know whether a marriage born from a cruel bargain can ever become a love worth choosing again.