Chapter 2
Freya's POV
I sat rigidly in the dark until the first grey light of dawn cracked through the window.
A sleepless night. Every time I closed my eyes, the image of him kissing that sick little girl burned the back of my eyelids.
The heavy bedroom door clicked open.
Aaron walked in, the crisp morning chill clinging to his designer coat. He didn't even bother taking it off before he crossed the room and pulled me into a crushing embrace.
"You're awake," he murmured, his breath warm against my neck.
"Couldn't sleep."
He pulled back, his eyes gleaming with a manic, boyish excitement. "Perfect. I have something to show you."
He tapped his sleek holographic tablet. Instantly, a glowing, 3D projection of a massive metropolis flooded the dark bedroom.
"The Future Smart Eco-City," Aaron announced proudly. "I'm breaking ground next month. And I'm naming the entire project after you."
I stared at the glittering blue light, my chest tightening.
"When we finally have our heir," he vowed, his thumb tracing my jaw line, "I'm going to make the entire commercial empire celebrate. This is our legacy, Freya."
"Our legacy," I echoed, my voice hollow.
He was planning decades ahead, mapping out a kingdom for a child he thought we didn't have yet.
But I knew the truth. That glittering future was already a dead mirage.
A suffocating wave of grief hit me. Tears violently spilled over my lashes before I could stop them.
Aaron froze mid-sentence.
"Baby? What's wrong?" He framed my face, his thumbs frantically swiping at my wet cheeks.
"Nothing," I forced a trembling, pathetic smile. "I just... I watched a movie last night while you were out. About a commercial marriage. The husband betrayed her."
Aaron exhaled a sharp, heavy breath of absolute relief.
"Freya, look at me." His gaze was intensely serious, holding mine captive. "I will never betray you. I swear it on my life."
Liar. You already did.
"I'm clearing my schedule," he declared, standing up abruptly. "I'm canceling the cross-border acquisition meetings."
"But Aaron, you have a billion-dollar merger today—"
"I'm coming with you to the socialite charity afternoon tea," he insisted, his tone leaving no room for negotiation. "You need me today. Work can wait."
The moment we stepped through the doors, we became the absolute center of attention.
"Well, if it isn't the ultimate wife-doting Mr. Kensington," a senator's wife teased, raising her crystal champagne flute.
Aaron chuckled, his hand sliding down to rest possessively on my lower back.
"We couldn't miss it," Aaron smiled. He snapped his fingers.
His head assistant stepped forward instantly.
"As a token of my wife's appreciation," Aaron announced, his voice booming over the string quartet, "my office has just wired a premium sponsorship fee to every single charity fund managed by the ladies in this room."
Loud gasps echoed through the hall.
"Oh my god, Freya, you are incredibly lucky!"
"He would literally empty his empire's vaults just to make you smile!"
I smiled politely. "Thank you. He's very generous."
But my eyes were dead.
My soul felt like it was being slowly, agonizingly siphoned out of my chest with every fake compliment.
Suddenly, the heavy VIP carved doors swung open with a violent thud.
The sycophantic chatter died instantly.
Brianna stood in the doorway.
She didn't wait for a greeting. She walked straight to the main seat directly across from me and sat down.
Aaron's hand tightened painfully on my waist.
"Brianna," Aaron's voice dropped an octave, turning instantly frosty. "This is a private event."
"I'm a major shareholder in your subsidiary, Aaron. I go where I please," she shot back smoothly.
Her piercing gaze swept over the table. She stared at the velvet boxes sitting in front of every socialite—the unreleased, limited-edition smart terminals Aaron had just gifted them.
She picked one up, turning it over slowly in her manicured hands.
A soft, mocking chuckle escaped her perfectly painted lips.
"The core algorithm on this product is indeed exceptional," Brianna stated, her voice slicing through the tense air.
She locked eyes with me.
"But what everyone sitting here probably doesn't know," she paused, letting the suspense choke the room, "is that the underlying logic patent for this entire device... is legally registered under my name."
Dead silence.
The air in the club turned to ice.
"Excuse me?" a socialite whispered, her eyes darting between Aaron and Brianna.
Brianna leaned forward, staring directly into my eyes. "Two years ago, Aaron set up a stealth venture capital fund under his personal name."
My heart slammed against my ribs.
"He didn't just blindly inject billions into my research lab," Brianna continued relentlessly. "He transferred the ultimate profit rights of this core patent entirely to me."
I couldn't breathe. The room started to spin.
"He is an incredibly responsible man," Brianna murmured, her tone sickeningly sweet. "He always knows exactly how to give a person the greatest sense of security when they are in desperate times."
She slowly shifted her gaze to Aaron. Her eyes lingered on his rigid jaw for one fleeting, devastatingly intimate second.
Then, she looked back at me.
She flashed me a smile as sharp as a butcher's knife.
Two years ago, he claimed he was pulling endless all-nighters for "closed-door R&D." Now I knew the sickening truth. He wasn't working. He was building an impregnable financial fortress for their daughter.
Pain ripped through my chest so violently I couldn't breathe. It felt like a serrated knife carving out my heart. I clutched my chest, gasping for air.
"Freya!" Aaron bolted upright.
