Chapter 1
My fiancé came from a family with a century-old legacy, and they had one unwritten rule:
Only a woman who received jewelry designed by the groom himself would be recognized as his bride.
On the eve of our engagement party, I was still waiting for the pink diamond my fiancé had promised me.
Then I saw that very diamond on his adopted sister’s blog.
“Thanks for cheering me up, Ethan! All I had to do was say I was upset, and he gave me this pink diamond!”
I let out a cold laugh. This was a marriage between two powerful families. I wanted to see how he planned to explain himself tomorrow.
But at our engagement party the next day, in front of guests from both families, he left a message announcing that the engagement was canceled. He had taken his adopted sister to India for the Festival of Colors.
Under everyone’s scrutinizing gazes, I walked straight toward my fiancé’s uncle.
He was also the man who truly ruled the Blackwoods, a Mafia family with a hundred-year history.
I gave him a dazzling smile. “Adrian, are you looking for a wife?”
His eyes darkened as he slipped an arm around my waist. “Darling, you can call me your husband now.”
I honestly hadn’t expected to see Ethan Blackwood again.
When I spotted him, he was walking in with a camera bag in one hand, pushing a stack of Indian brass trunks with the other.
His adopted sister, Sophie Reed, sat on top of them, several shades tanner than before. She held a roll of handwoven fabric in her arms.
I had no idea when they’d returned. I was even more surprised to see them at the fall jewelry auction.
After all, this was an invitation-only event. Every invitation was issued to a specific guest.
Wearing sunglasses, I stood in front of a display case, admiring my latest acquisition, which had already been put away.
An emerald brooch rested against my neckline, its edge engraved with the family’s discreet, exclusive emblem.
I was waiting for Adrian Blackwood’s private jet to land. He had promised to come home and have dinner with me tonight.
A commotion rose from the crowd, and Ethan noticed me.
He walked straight over.
“Claire, I’m back. I’m here to marry you.”
I took off my sunglasses and discreetly stepped back, giving him a polite smile.
“Oh, I’m sorry. It’s been so long, and you both look so different. I didn’t recognize you at first.”
Ethan really had changed. He used to be handsome, fair-skinned, and in good shape. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have agreed to the marriage between the Blackwoods and the Bennetts.
Now… well, he looked only slightly better than a man living on the street.
Fortunately, he wasn’t going to be my husband.
Even more fortunately, my actual husband was still handsome, beautifully built, and more than capable of meeting my every need at night.
Sophie jumped down from the brass trunk, her voice as shrill as ever.
“Why are you pretending you didn’t recognize us? You’re the one who can’t live without Ethan!”
“If I hadn’t made him throw away his SIM card after we left, you would’ve chased us all the way to India!”
“Don’t think I don’t know what you’re doing. You never got over him. The second he comes home, you’re all over him. Are you that desperate for a man?”
I genuinely didn’t understand where they got their nerve. Had they been staying somewhere without internet?
Hadn’t they heard that I was married?
Why on earth did they think I would still want someone else’s leftovers?
Ethan ruffled her hair, then tapped her nose with an indulgent smile.
“Once Claire and I are married, she’ll be family. You need to show her some respect.”
“Otherwise, I won’t take you back to India for your photography trip next year.”
Only after soothing Sophie did he turn to explain himself to me.
“She’s just childish. You know her father died shielding me in that car accident. She lost her dad because of me, so I look after her.”
“Once we’re married, we’ll be a team. I hope you’ll help me take care of her and treat her like your own sister.”
Did he even hear the nonsense coming out of his mouth?
I rolled my eyes as elegantly as possible and held up my left hand, showing him my glittering wedding ring.
“Ethan, I’m already married. Let’s leave the past in the past.”
“I didn’t come here to see you. I didn’t even know you would be here.”
“Please stop flattering yourself. I’m waiting for my husband.”
Ethan froze. Then he narrowed his eyes, studied me for a moment, and smiled.
“Claire Bennett, do you think I’m an idiot?”
“Our families’ marriage alliance was the talk of the entire social circle two years ago. All the family elders came to witness our engagement. Everyone knows you’re my fiancée.”
“Yes, I was wrong to embarrass you by canceling it. But your reputation took a hit. Who else would marry you besides a Blackwood?”
“Enough. Stop making up excuses to throw a tantrum. I don’t want to hear it.”
“Ethan Blackwood, your ego is unbelievable. Who the hell do you think you are? Why would I have to marry you?”
I laughed in disbelief. Now I finally understood why he’d dared to cancel our engagement. He’d assumed that once he abandoned me, no other man would want me.
He had overestimated himself—and badly underestimated me and my family.
He probably didn’t know that after he canceled our engagement, the Blackwood elders had transferred the assets earmarked for him into my name.
Adrian had also given me generous gifts of his own, including an exceptionally valuable vineyard.
Apparently, Ethan knew nothing about any of it.
Of course he didn’t.
He had cut off contact with the Blackwoods for Sophie’s sake for two whole years. He hadn’t even called once.
I only hoped he could still smile when he returned to the family estate tonight.