Worthless—that was what my family decided I was the moment a doctor declared I could never have children. Three days later, my father summoned me into his study with another “proposal,” and the look on my mother’s face told me they weren’t trying to save my future—they were preparing to trade it away.

Five minutes later, Adrian Caruso was escorted into the grand living area. He looked disheveled. His pristine designer suit was damp from the rain outside, his hair slightly disarranged, and his face pale with anxiety.

When he saw me standing beside Dante Vance—who stood tall, powerful, and intimidating in a slate-gray vest and dark trousers—Adrian stopped dead in his tracks.

“Elena...” Adrian gasped, stepping forward, though Marcus instantly blocked his path with an immovable arm. “Elena, thank God you’re alright. I came as soon as I heard what happened at the Newark port.”

“Did you, Adrian?” I asked smoothly, leaning casually against the edge of Dante’s mahogany bar. “I recall the last communication from the Caruso family was a formal legal notice returning my engagement ring because I was 'strategically impractical.'”

Adrian’s face flushed red with shame. “That wasn't my decision! My father... the board... they forced my hand! When the medical report came out, they said the alliance was dead!”

“And now?” Dante interjected, his voice dripping with lethal contempt as he stepped up beside me, placing a hand gently but possessively on the small of my back. The heat of his touch sent a jolt down my spine. “Why are you here, Caruso? Trespassing on my property is a dangerous hobby.”

Adrian swallowed hard, glancing nervously at Dante before turning back to me.

“Elena, the Romano stock is crashing! Raymond is being investigated by federal prosecutors! Your father had a minor heart attack this morning when the banks froze their credit lines!” Adrian pleaded, his voice desperate. “The Carusos are willing to reinstate our engagement. My father will use our legal network to shield you from the scandal... if you bring Vance’s offensive to a halt and return to the Romano board!”

I stared at Adrian, feeling an overwhelming sense of pity—not for myself, but for how blind I had been to believe this pathetic child could ever have been my equal. He didn't want me. He wanted my brain to save his family’s investments from the fire Dante and I had set.

“You’re too late, Adrian,” I said coldly.

“Elena, please! He’s a monster!” Adrian yelled, pointing an accusing finger at Dante. “He’s using you! You’re just a pawn to him!”

Dante didn't even flinch. He simply walked toward Adrian, his massive frame towering over the younger man. The atmosphere in the room plummeted to below freezing.

“Listen to me very carefully, Caruso,” Dante said softly, his voice carrying a weight that made Adrian take two steps back in terror. “Elena is not a pawn. She is the mind running this operation. Everything happening to her father, her uncle, and your precious investments is coming directly from her hand. I am merely the weapon she chose to wield.”

Dante grabbed Adrian by the collar of his suit, pulling him close until they were eye-to-eye.

“If you ever step foot on my estate again, or speak to my future wife with such disrespect, I won't send you home to your father in one piece. Do you understand me?”

Dante shoved him back. Adrian scrambled backward, terrified, looking at me one last time with terror before turning and sprinting out the doors.

When the front doors slammed shut, the room returned to silence. I looked at Dante, my breath catching in my throat.

“'Future wife'?” I quoted softly, a subtle brow raised.

Dante turned around, looking at me with an intensity that made my heart hammer against my ribs.