Chapter 1 - The Diamond Cuff
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The first time Evan Mercer told me marriage required obedience, he didn't use his words as a weapon. He used them as a ribbon, tying up a beautifully dangerous gift. We were sitting in the VIP room of a boutique jeweler in downtown Chicago, sipping champagne that tasted faintly of cold metal and old money.
“Hold still, darling,” Evan murmured, his long fingers brushing the inside of my wrist.
He fastened a heavy diamond cuff around my arm. It was blindingly expensive and entirely not my style. I liked vintage pieces, things with history, much like the historic buildings my father had spent his life restoring before his sudden heart attack left his empire in my hands.
“It’s beautiful, Evan, but I told you, I don't need anything this extravagant,” I said, trying to pull my arm back.
His grip tightened. Just a fraction, but enough to hold me in place.
“Hush,” he interrupted, his smile bright but his eyes entirely flat. “A wife needs to learn how to accept what her husband provides. Marriage requires a little obedience, Mara. It’s about trust.”
I let out a nervous laugh, assuming it was a poor joke. Evan was the Chief Operating Officer of Quinn Architectural Restoration. When my father passed away, Evan was my rock. He knew the business inside and out.
“I trust you,” I said, looking at my reflection in the gilded mirror. “But I also run a multi-million-dollar company. Obedience isn't exactly in my job description.”
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“It will be,” he whispered, kissing the bare skin of my shoulder. “After the wedding, we’re a team. But every team needs a captain.”
I should have taken the bracelet off right then. But grief makes you pliant, and love makes you blind. I let the diamonds sit heavy on my pulse point, ignoring the cold chill creeping down my spine.
