I didn't scream. Didn't demand justice. I simply lowered my eyes, withdrawing my gaze from the man who was supposed to be my husband.
The guests watched, whispering, until the banquet ended. That was when a ten-billion-dollar contract slid across the table.
"Today's incident is Jesse's fault," Patrick said, his voice gruff with guilt. "Treat this as compensation. Repayment for what the Gilbert family owes you from ten years ago."
Ten years ago.
The Gilbert family had been targeted by a corporate conspiracy, pushed to the brink of bankruptcy. I was the Matthews family's only daughter, an heiress, yet I chose to marry down—binding myself to Jesse Gilbert to save them.
But on our wedding night, I wasn't held in my husband's arms. I was kidnapped by his enemies.
For three days and nights, I disappeared. When I was returned, I was battered and broken, tossed onto the pavement of the city's busiest district like trash for the world to see.
I remembered how Jesse looked back then. He had knelt before me, slamming his forehead against the ground until blood ran down his face.