A man was strangling Millie. She couldn't breathe. She could barely see the man's shape in the darkness.

Fear took over. Her instincts kicked in. She lifted her hand and hit what seemed like his weakest spot—the back of his neck.

"You bastard, get off me!" she yelled.

The man groaned. His hands let go. He dropped to the floor.

Millie froze. She hadn't even used her full strength. How did he go down so fast?

Her heart raced. She had spent her childhood in the country with her grandmother. She had learned to help people, not hurt them. Had she just killed somebody?

"Are you all right? Hey, can you hear me?" She bent down to check if he was breathing. She didn't notice her sweet scent filling the air around them.

The man's control snapped. He grabbed her, pulled her close and pushed her down beneath him.

His body burned like fire. The heat washed over her. She felt like she might melt.

She felt something hard and threatening press against her leg. Then it hit her—this man had taken some kind of drug. That was why he couldn't control himself.

Did male prostitutes really need pills these days just to do their jobs?

She swallowed hard and tried to push him away. "Hold on! I didn't come here to hook up with you! I came here to—"

His mouth crashed down on hers before she could finish. The kiss silenced her completely.

Millie fought back as hard as she could. Her fingernails dug into his back. Red marks appeared on his skin.

But the man acted like a wild animal. He wouldn't stop!

She suffered through the entire night.

Morning came. Light crept into the sky.

Millie opened her eyes. Every part of her hurt. She felt like she had been hit by a truck.

She looked at the man next to her and wanted to die from embarrassment.

She had only planned to fake it and spread the rumor. Who knew it would become real? Who could have guessed things would go this far?

The man hadn't woken up yet. He lay with his back toward her.

Millie could only see his strong body—wide shoulders, slim waist, and that scary black wolf inked on his back.

Millie's throat went dry. Her face turned hot. She hadn't expected this high-class escort to have such a sculpted build.

What a pity...

The guy was all show! He probably only lasted that long because of the drugs!

She didn't wake him. Instead, she pulled out her phone. She took some photos that made it look like she was holding him from behind.

Her mission was done. She tried to stand up. Her body felt crushed like a truck had run her over. Every movement hurt. She couldn't hold back her anger and muttered quietly, "Damn jerk! Couldn't he go easy on a girl?"

If she didn't need to leave so badly, she would wake him up right now. She would give him an earful.

Millie was too mad to just walk away. She grabbed some cash from her purse and wrote a bold note. "Here's money for last night. Also, you're terrible in bed!"

Millie thought for a second. Then she added a prescription out of kindness.

"Stop taking those sex pills. They'll just make you worse. Here's a prescription to get your strength back! My prescriptions are worth a fortune, so you lucked out today!"

The man woke up slowly after Millie had gone. He hadn't slept that well in ages.

He felt the cold, empty space next to him. The warmth had faded long ago. When he saw the bright red spot on the sheets, his chest tightened for a moment.

That woman... had been a virgin?

Then he spotted the note. He saw the money holding it down. His face went dark.

This woman had a death wish. She had the nerve to say he was bad in bed? And she called that her prescriptions were worth a fortune? Did she think she was some kind of miracle doctor?

"Jorge, get in here."

Jorge Holden, Aiden's assistant, showed up after getting the call, only to find that Aiden was coming out of the bathroom.

Aiden's white bathrobe hung open. His muscles showed through. His abs were visible. He gave off powerful energy. He dried his hair with a towel. His voice came out rough and low. "What did you learn?"

"Last night was all Richard Campbell's doing. He tried to plant a woman in your bed to close a business deal. But the woman he sent never made it to this floor. Our guys stopped her," Jorge replied.

Aiden stopped drying his hair. "So who was the woman last night?"

"Richard wiped the security footage. We can't identify her yet. But chances are she was just... in the wrong place at the wrong time," Jorge explained.

Aiden closed his eyes and thought about that blood on the sheets. So he had hurt someone innocent last night.

But then he remembered her note. A small smile crossed his face.

It turned out that woman had claws. Like a little wild cat. It was actually kind of fun.

Either way, she had gotten his attention!

"Track her down. Whatever it takes! Tell her that I, Aiden Elliott, will make her my wife. I'll make her the most respected woman in all of Ostruron!" Aiden ordered.

Jorge looked worried. "But what about your grandmother? She picked someone out for you already. To fix your... problem with women and keep the family going. The wedding's in three days."

Aiden's eyes turned cold and sharp. "Why am I just hearing about this now?"

"Your grandmother has kept it under wraps. I only learned about it last night and was about to break the news to you," Jorge explained.

He held out a photo and added, "Take a look. This is Millie Evans. She's the woman you're supposed to marry."

Aiden didn't even give it a glance. His frown was cold. "I don't need to see it. I've already picked the woman I want to marry. As for this Evans girl, send someone to break off the engagement right away!"

Jorge paused for a beat. "It's too late to call it off now. Your grandmother already went behind your back and registered your marriage to her. The wedding in three days is just for show."

Aiden drew a long breath. He shut his eyes. He pushed down the rage burning inside him and let out a bitter laugh. "Grandma's getting on in years and losing her wits. She actually bypassed me and handed me a done deal? Pity for her. I can give ground on other matters, but not this. Not ever marriage. Ready the car now. I'm going to drag that cursed woman to the courthouse. I'm divorcing her today!"

...

At the same time, the Evans family's residence was in an uproar over Millie going missing.

"Useless idiots! They've been looking all night and still haven't found that little bitch!" Linda's face was contorted with fury.

Eliza was sobbing her heart out next to her. "What are we going to do, Mom? If we can't track down Millie soon, won't I have to marry into the Elliott family instead of her? I don't want to marry that man!"

Linda's heart ached for her. "Don't you fret. That little tramp can't have escaped from Ostruron. We'll locate her!"

Just as the mother and daughter were tearing their hair out, some welcome news finally arrived that made them catch their breath.

They had captured Millie!

Linda and Eliza hurried to the living room in haste. When they caught sight of how drawn Millie appeared, their vicious true nature showed itself.

"You bitch, you thought you could get away?" Eliza raised her hand to smack Millie across the face.

Millie's reflexes took over. She struck back and seized Eliza's wrist.

But Millie had been worn out after a sleepless night. Eliza gave her a hard shove, and Millie lost her footing and hit the floor.

Eliza moved forward, snatched a handful of Millie's hair, and mocked. "You almost pulled it off! Shame you got nabbed anyway, didn't you? Seems like it's meant to be that you'll wed Aiden!"

Eliza's voice rang with victory. "Millie, garbage like you only deserves to wed into the Elliott household and be the bride of that hideous monster! People say he's already finished off multiple fiancées. I wonder when we'll hear the wonderful news that you've been tortured to death? The mere idea gives me a rush!"

Millie flinched from the pain but didn't even consider pleading. Her defiant eyes were brimming with contempt. "Shame your clever little plot is going to explode in your face. You don't honestly think I spent all night sitting on my hands, do you? Just wait and see. Since you want to destroy me, I certainly won't let you off the hook!"

No man would stand for being made a fool of, let alone a man with Aiden's standing.

Millie was dead certain that once Aiden laid eyes on those photos, he would fly into a rage and bring hell down on the whole Evans family!

"What is that supposed to mean?" All at once, a sinking feeling washed over Eliza.

Just then, a maid's polite voice drifted in from outside. "Mr. Evans, you're back!" she said.

Jed burst into the living room hall like a thunderclap. Fury ate away at him. He flung an envelope with crushing strength. It smacked Millie square in the face.

"You cursed wretch!" he bellowed. "See what you've caused! You nearly destroyed us all!"

The force knocked Millie's head to one side. Her hair fell into disarray. A scratch opened up on her cheek and started to bleed.

Millie watched the envelope drop to the floor. Her face went white as a sheet.

It was the very envelope she had mailed out just a short time before! It held the photos inside.

Eliza's curiosity got the better of her. She bent down and grabbed the envelope. She pulled out the pictures and looked them over. Her eyes went wide with disbelief. "Good lord!" she cried. "What in heaven's name is this?!"

The woman in the picture was Millie!

The pictures also revealed a man's back.

His face was hidden, but his trim, muscular frame was easy to make out. What grabbed attention most was the black wolf tattoo on his back. Even in the picture, it appeared to radiate a menacing air.

These were several explicit photos. They showed Millie in bed with another man!

Jed's rage knew no bounds. "She's gone completely mad!" he roared. "It's bad enough she doesn't know her place from one day to the next. But now she actually attempted to deliver these disgraceful pictures to the Elliott household! If Aiden caught sight of these pictures, how could he possibly want to wed her? If I didn't have connections who intercepted this mail, our family would be completely ruined!"

Eliza finally grasped the source of Millie's earlier boldness. So this was her game plan!

"Dad, thank goodness you stopped it in time," Eliza cut in. "What would this family do without you?" She looked at Millie with pure glee.

Linda was privately amazed too. She moved forward without delay. She rubbed Jed's back and acted the role of the loyal wife. "Jed, don't lose your temper," she urged. "It's not worth damaging your health over a wretch like her."

Jed looked at Millie's face. Revulsion filled his expression.

"At first, having Millie marry into the Elliott household was just a stopgap measure," he declared. "As long as she went along without a fuss, I could swiftly find a way to help her escape Aiden's grasp. But now it appears there's no need for that! She's so thankless. She almost caused the collapse of the Evans family."

Linda's eyes burned with satisfaction. She had been annoyed by Millie for years. Now that they could get rid of her without trouble, it was surely heaven's work.

She didn't waste time. She shouted commands at the servants. "You there!" she commanded. "Lock Millie up right away! In three days, even if we have to tie her with ropes, we'll force her into the wedding! This match between us and the Elliotts absolutely must not be permitted to fall apart because of her any longer!"

Millie felt complete hopelessness sweep over her. She never imagined that in spite of all her struggles, she still couldn't dodge the fate of wedding Aiden.

Was everything really going to play out just as they wanted? Didn't she even have one last chance to fight back?

Right then, the butler came rushing in. He was in a panic. "It's terrible, Mr. Evans!" he cried out. "A group of men in black have forced their way onto the grounds! Our people can't hold them back."

Jed's face changed when he heard this. "What?" he demanded. "Who dares to break into our place? Call the police! Call them right now!"

But before the butler could make the call, a band of men in black swept in. They entered like a tornado. They encircled everyone who was present.

"Who is Millie Evans?" one of them asked. "We are sent by the Elliott family. Come with us immediately!"