Elena Hart sat in the cold, empty boardroom of Hart Enterprises, staring at the large company logo that once stood for something. Now, it only reminded her of failure. The walls used to echo with laughter, ambition, and success. Now, they were silent, heavy with tension and fear.
She gripped the edge of the long table, her fingers trembling. Her heart beat hard in her chest. The numbers weren’t lying this time. They were drowning. Hart Enterprises was on the edge of bankruptcy. One more missed payment, and the company her father built from nothing would be gone.
“I’ve done everything I can,” she whispered to herself.
Her phone buzzed on the table. A message from Kingston, her older brother.
“He’s waiting. Don’t be late.”
Elena took a deep breath. Today was the day she had been dreading. The day she had to meet Dominic Vance, the man who had bought a large stake in Hart Enterprises. The man who almost destroyed them.
She had never met him in person, only seen him in news articles and business interviews. Cold. Ruthless. Dangerous. Every story said the same thing—Dominic Vance played dirty, and he always won.
But now, she had no choice.
The elevator doors opened with a soft chime. Elena stepped into the luxurious office of Vance Corp. The marble floors sparkled, and the glass walls reflected the city skyline. Everything about the place screamed power.
A tall woman with red lipstick and sharp eyes stood behind the reception desk. “Miss Hart, Mr. Vance is expecting you,” she said without a smile.
Elena nodded and followed silently as the woman led her down the hallway.
When the office door opened, she saw him.
Dominic Vance.
He was standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, hands in his pockets. He wore a black suit, perfectly tailored, like everything else in his life. His face was unreadable—cold, distant, and impossibly handsome.
“Elena Hart,” he said without turning around. “Finally.”
She stood straight, chin high. “Mr. Vance.”
He turned then, his eyes dark and sharp, scanning her from head to toe like she was something to be measured and priced.
“I assume you know why you’re here,” he said simply.
“I’m not here to beg,” Elena replied, her voice steady, even though her heart was pounding. “If you’re planning to destroy what’s left of Hart Enterprises, just say it.”
Dominic raised an eyebrow. “Destroy? No. I’m offering you a lifeline.”
Her stomach twisted. “A lifeline?”
He walked to his desk, opened a folder, and slid a document toward her. “A marriage contract.”
Elena blinked. “Excuse me?”
“I’ll take over the debts, restructure your company, and restore it. In return, you marry me. Publicly. Officially. For one year.”
She stared at him, unsure if she heard him right. “Is this a joke?”
Dominic leaned back in his chair, calm as ever. “I need an image change. Investors are pushing for stability. A wife will soften my reputation. You need to save your company. I think the deal is fair.”
Elena’s face flushed with anger. “You think marriage is just a transaction?”
“Isn’t it, most of the time?” he said coldly.
She stood, ready to leave. “This is insane. I’m not selling myself for your business deal.”
“Then walk away,” he said with a shrug. “But don’t come back when Hart Enterprises disappears next week.”
She froze.
He had her. She hated it. She hated him.
That night, Elena sat in her bedroom staring at the contract.
Kingston had begged her to say yes. “It’s just one year,” he said. “You don’t even have to love him. Just survive it. For Mom. For Dad’s legacy.”
Elena thought of her mother, Margot, lying in her bed with tired eyes and a quiet voice. She thought of her father’s name, still carved in gold letters in the lobby of the company.
She didn’t want to marry Dominic Vance. She didn’t want to even look at him.
But this wasn’t about what she wanted anymore.
It was about survival.
Two Weeks Later
The press called it the wedding of the year.
Photos of Dominic and Elena were everywhere—on magazine covers, news sites, even gossip blogs. Elena stood beside him in a sleek white gown, smiling on the outside while her heart stayed locked in a cage.
Dominic never once looked at her with warmth. Every smile was for the cameras. Every touch was practiced. They were perfect strangers in expensive clothes.
In front of the world, they were newlyweds.
Behind closed doors, they were enemies.
The mansion Dominic brought her to was more like a fortress. Cold floors. Steel décor. A home without love.
“Your room is on the east side,” he said without looking at her. “We keep things separate.”
Elena nodded, jaw tight. “Fine.”
Neither of them said goodnight.
Days passed like storms. They argued over business, over money, over everything.
“You can’t fire the head of marketing without telling me,” Elena snapped during a morning meeting.
“I own 51% of your company,” Dominic replied calmly. “I don’t need your permission.”
“You’re unbelievable.”
“And you’re emotional,” he said. “That’s why your family’s company fell apart.”
She slapped the file shut and stood. “You don’t know anything about my family.”
But his words stayed with her long after the fight ended.
One night, she found him working in the library, tie loosened, sleeves rolled up.
She hesitated at the door.
“I thought you went to bed,” he said without looking up.
“I can’t sleep.”
Silence.
“I was close to your father once,” he said suddenly. “Gregory Hart. He mentored me in my early days. Until he made choices that cost both of us.”
Elena blinked, caught off guard. “You never mentioned that.”
“He wasn’t the man you think he was.”
She stepped closer, confused and curious. “What are you saying?”
Dominic looked up. For the first time, there was something in his eyes that wasn’t cold. It was pain. Regret.
But before he could speak, his phone buzzed. He answered, his voice changing to business again.
The moment was gone.
As she lay in bed that night, Elena stared at the ceiling.
She hated him. She hated this deal. But somehow, every day, he got under her skin.
He made her angry.
He made her think.
And sometimes… he made her feel.
Even if she didn’t want to.
