Mr. Shepherd and his assistants bowed and left, leaving the penthouse in absolute silence once again.

Krista walked over to the racks of clothing. Her fingertips brushed against the heavy silk and intricate hand-embroidery.

She took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of new fabric. She closed her eyes, and when she opened them, the vulnerability was gone. Her gaze hardened into cold, clear glass.

She pulled a minimalist, deep burgundy silk gown off the rack. She walked into the bathroom and let the bathrobe drop to the floor.

She pulled the dress up and zipped it. She looked in the mirror. It fit her body flawlessly, hugging every curve as if it had been tailored to her exact measurements.

She sat at the vanity and opened the expensive makeup. She applied a sharp, flawless look, using dark eyeliner and a bold red lip to mask the exhaustion in her face.

When she stood up, the broken girl from the rainstorm was gone. The queen of the Upper East Side was back.

Hours ticked by. The orange glow of the setting sun spilled across the oak floors.

At exactly 6:00 PM, the electronic lock on the front door beeped.

Jasper pushed the door open. He brought the freezing, cutthroat energy of Wall Street into the room with him.

He reached up to loosen his tie, his eyes lifting. He froze.

Krista sat on the center sofa. The burgundy silk draped over her legs. Her makeup was lethal. She looked like a goddess of war.

Jasper's lungs stopped working. A violent surge of pure obsession and possessiveness ripped through his chest.

He forced his jaw tight, burying the reaction in a fraction of a second. His eyes returned to their dead, cold state as he walked into the living room.

"I see you've made your decision," Jasper said. He sat down on the single armchair opposite her, crossing his long legs, claiming absolute authority over the space.

Krista stood up. Her heels clicked sharply against the floor as she walked over to the marble coffee table.

She slid the prenup across the smooth stone. Her signature was at the bottom.

"I agree to your terms, Mr. Stone," she said, her voice perfectly steady.

Jasper glanced at the signature. The corner of his mouth twitched upward in a microscopic smirk.

"But before we make this official, I need to know one thing," Krista said, keeping her chin high.

Jasper raised his hand, gesturing for her to speak, looking like he was negotiating a billion-dollar merger.

"Why me?" Krista asked, her voice tight. She let out a dry laugh. "I am the laughing stock of the Upper East Side. A fake with dirty blood."

"You said you needed a shield. But marrying me will only bring the Stone family endless gossip and scandal."

Jasper looked at the deep-seated insecurity hiding behind her sharp eyeliner. A physical pain twisted in his gut.

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, instantly closing the physical distance and suffocating her with his presence.

"Do you really think," Jasper asked, his voice dripping with absolute arrogance, "that I, Jasper Stone, need a wife's pedigree to secure my power?"

Krista's breath hitched. She was completely paralyzed by his confidence.

"As for the gossip..." Jasper sneered. "In the face of absolute power, no one in New York will dare breathe a word about my wife in my presence."

His dark eyes locked onto hers, burning with an intensity that made her skin flush.

"You only need to know one thing," he commanded. "I chose you because I want you."

Jasper's words hit the marble floor like heavy stones. I want you.

Krista's heart stuttered in her chest. She quickly lowered her eyelashes, breaking eye contact to escape the suffocating heat in his gaze. She desperately needed to regain control of the negotiation.

"Since you don't care about my reputation, let's discuss the actual boundaries of this arrangement," Krista said, forcing her voice to remain flat.

Jasper leaned back against the leather armchair. He looked completely relaxed, his eyes glinting with dark amusement. "I'm listening."

"First, I require complete financial and professional independence during this marriage." Krista curled her fingers into tight fists in her lap. "I will not be a canary kept in a cage."

Jasper nodded once, not hesitating for a second. "Agreed. You have full access to Stone Group resources, and I will never interfere with your career."

"Second," Krista took a deep breath, "aside from public appearances where we must play the happy couple, we do not interfere in each other's private lives. We sleep in separate bedrooms."

The temperature in the room plummeted. The amusement vanished from Jasper's eyes, replaced by a terrifying, icy rage.

He lunged forward, his massive frame casting a dark shadow over her.

"Do not interfere in each other's private lives?" he repeated, his voice a lethal whisper.

He stared at her, his eyes cutting into her soul. "Ms. Cain, did you misunderstand the definition of the word 'wife'?"

"I am not marrying you to put a pretty vase in my house. And I am certainly not marrying you to give you the freedom to see other men."

Krista shrank back, terrified by his sudden explosion of anger. "I-I didn't mean that! I just meant we need personal space-"

"No." Jasper cut her off, his tone leaving zero room for argument.

He reached into his jacket and pulled out a heavy Montblanc fountain pen. He grabbed the prenup off the table and quickly slashed a line of text across the bottom of the page.

He shoved the paper back toward her, tapping the fresh ink with his long finger.

"This is my added clause. We live together. You sleep in my master bedroom."

Krista stared at the bold, aggressive handwriting. Her face flushed a deep, angry red.

"The master bedroom? That violates every rule of a standard business marriage! We can sleep in separate rooms!" she protested, her voice rising.

Jasper let out a dark, mocking laugh. His eyes slowly dragged down her body, lingering on the curve of her chest before meeting her eyes again.

"Standard? In the Stone family, I set the standard," he said, his arrogance absolute.

"Besides," he added, his voice dropping into a wicked drawl, "after how 'enthusiastic' you were last night, playing the conservative virgin now is a little too late, don't you think?"

Krista choked. Her face burned so hot she felt dizzy. She bit her lower lip hard, completely unable to find a comeback to the undeniable truth of last night.

"Relax," Jasper said, throwing her a poisoned lifeline. "As long as you don't throw yourself at me like you did yesterday, I won't force myself on you."

Krista took three shaky breaths. She weighed her options. She had no money, no home, and the Cain family was hunting her. Sleeping in his bed was the price of survival.

"Fine. I agree," she ground out through clenched teeth.

A flash of dark victory crossed Jasper's eyes. He handed her the pen. "Then sign it."

Krista snatched the pen. The metal nib scratched loudly against the thick paper as she signed her name next to the new clause.

Jasper took the contract back, staring at their names side by side. He looked like a predator who had just locked the cage on his favorite prey.

He stood up, towering over her. "Since the contract is settled. Go change your clothes."

Krista froze on the sofa. She looked up at Jasper, who was already turning toward the door.

"Change clothes? Where are we going?" she asked, her fingers instinctively gripping the silk fabric of her dress.

Jasper stopped and looked back at her. His expression was completely matter-of-fact. "City Hall. We signed the contract. Now we execute the legal procedure."

Krista's heart slammed against her ribs. Panic flooded her veins. "Now? But it's almost seven in the evening!"

"If I want it to be, the City Clerk's office is open twenty-four hours a day," Jasper said, his voice flat, yet dripping with the terrifying power he wielded over the city.

Krista stood up, stumbling backward a step. "This is insane... Jasper, have you really thought this through?"

She bit her lip, the deep, toxic insecurity clawing its way back up her throat. "I am just a discarded fake. I bring nothing to the table. I can't help you with anything..."

Jasper's eyebrows snapped together. He closed the distance between them in two massive strides. He reached out and clamped both of his large, heavy hands down onto her bare shoulders.

The grip was so strong it forced Krista to stop moving and look up directly into his pitch-black eyes.

"Krista Cain. Look at me," Jasper commanded, his voice vibrating with a dark, inescapable gravity.

"Do you honestly think my background check consisted of watching one security video?" He stared right through her.

"Top graduate of the Ivy League business school. Three consecutive years running the Cain charity fund with excellent performance records that kept the board utterly silent. Publicly known for your flawless linguistic skills in four different languages, handling international donors with ease."

Jasper listed her achievements, hitting every word like a hammer driving a nail into her heart.

"The Cain family is blind. They treated you like a cheap tool for marriage. But that does not mean you are worthless."

His grip on her shoulders loosened slightly. A microscopic crack appeared in his cold facade, letting a sliver of raw, intense heat bleed through.

"In my eyes, Krista, you are worth more than the entire Cain family combined."

Krista's throat locked up. Her eyes burned instantly, and hot tears pooled in her vision, blurring his sharp face.

For twenty years, her adoptive parents had only taught her how to smile at galas. Dannie had only viewed her as a trophy to boost his ego.

This was the very first time in her entire life that someone had looked at her and validated her actual, individual worth.

The massive wall of ice around her heart cracked and shattered under the burning heat of Jasper's words.

She sniffled, blinking the tears away. The fear in her eyes vanished, replaced by a sudden, fierce determination.

She had hit rock bottom. It was time to fight back.

"Okay," Krista said. Her voice was thick with emotion, but it didn't shake. "I'll go change."

Jasper watched the fire return to her eyes. The corner of his mouth lifted into a genuine, satisfied smile.

He let go of her shoulders and took a step back, giving her space. "You have ten minutes."

Krista turned and practically ran into the walk-in closet. Her heart was pounding like a war drum, but this time, it wasn't out of fear. It was anticipation.

Ten minutes later, she walked out. She wore a pristine, tailored white Chanel suit. It wasn't a wedding dress, but the white fabric felt like a shield. She held her ID tightly in her hand.

Jasper was waiting by the door, draped in a long black trench coat. He looked like a king ready for war.

He saw her approach and smoothly bent his right arm, offering it to her.

Krista hesitated for exactly one second. Then, she reached out and slipped her hand through his arm. Together, they walked out the door.