CHAPTER 9

The moment Joseph's grip left his shirt, Dane's bravado cracked. He masked it in front of the crowd, but tremors coursed through his hands once the lobby cleared.

Hours later, at the dimly lit bar he frequented, glass after glass lined his table. His mind spun – not from the alcohol, but from the revelation gnawing at him. Lisa. An heiress. His Lisa.

"How the hell didn't I see it sooner?" he muttered, bitterness sharp in his throat. If he'd known and realized what kind of empire she carried in her blood, he would've treated her differently. Not like the disposable woman he discarded – but like the golden ticket she truly was.

Resentment flared, dark and consuming. If he couldn't have her, then ruining her would taste just as sweet. Revenge filled his eyes like fire.

Memories clawed their way back – the secretary he'd taken to bed, her tearful pleas, her swelling belly. For months, he had believed the child was his, bending over backwards to keep her close. Only to discover the truth: the baby wasn't his at all. She had been scheming with her real husband, pretending to belong to him while bleeding his wallet dry.

The humiliation still burned. The betrayal had carved him hollow. And now, staring into the amber swirl of his drink, a cruel smile curved his lips.

Lisa had become his new obsession.

And this time, he wouldn't be the fool.

Just then, his phone chimed on the counter. A single message lit up the screen.

"Do you want to play some games with your ex-wife?"

Dane's lips curved into a dangerous grin.

Revenge had just found its spark.

******

Back at the mansion, silence stretched between them like a blade. The air was too thick, too heavy – choking Lisa with unspoken words until she could no longer hold them in.

She flung her clutch onto the marble table, the sharp sound echoing. Her green eyes blazed as she spun toward him.

"Do you enjoy it?" she snapped. "Do you enjoy parading me in front of everyone like some weak little doll who needs her powerful husband to swoop in and save her? Because that's exactly what you do, Joseph. Every single time. You don't protect me – you humiliate me".

Joseph's dark eyes flicked to hers, cool and unreadable. "I protect my name", he said, voice clipped, precise. "Don't confuse that with charity".

Her breath caught, but rage only grew hotter.

She paced the length of the hall, words tumbling out sharp and fast.

"And what about me? What about how it makes me look? People think I can't fight for myself, that I'm nothing more than a spoiled brat. Do you know how hard I've worked to prove otherwise? But one move from you and it's all undone – I'm back to being the weak one".

He stepped closer, slow, deliberate, his presence swallowing the space between them. "You think they see weakness?' His tone was low, almost dangerous. "No Lisa. They see a Bronson. And a Bronson is never weak".

Her chest rose and fell flat, fury crashing against confusion "That's not strength – that's control. You control everything, everyone, like we're all just pawns in your hands. I didn't marry you to be your shadow, Joseph. I won't"

His composure shifted for the first time, his jaw tightening. He leaned down, close enough that his words struck like a blade.

"You want to survive in this world? Then learn the difference between pride and survival. Pride will get you eaten alive"

Lisa's lips parted, her fury warring with something else, something she refused to name. Because the truth was, for a split second out there, when he shielded her, when he threatened Dane, she hadn't felt humiliated. She had felt...safe. And that terrified her more than his control.

"Stop mistaking my protection for weakness, Lisa. Enemies are watching. The day you forget that will be the day you break". Then he turned from her, his voice clipped.

"Have the car made ready", he ordered.

Lisa's eyes flickered with concern, her anger wavering into something sharper, colder – fear. Her voice trembled despite herself.

"Where are you going, Joseph?"

He paused only long enough for his rage to lace the single word. "Out"

The sound of his footsteps echoed through the hall, leaving Lisa standing alone, torn between fury and the unspoken dread that whatever he was walking into – it wouldn't end clean.

********

Hours later, Lisa refused to touch dinner without him. She paced the room like a caged animal, her chest tight, anger simmering with something more dangerous beneath it.

The lock clicked. Joseph entered, his presence heavy, eyes dark as sin. He reeked of alcohol – and female perfume.

Her pulse spiked. "Where are you coming from?"

"Does it matter?" his tone was cold steel.

It cut through her like a blade. "What do you mean does it matter? I stayed up waiting for you! You ignored every call, every text – "Her voice cracked, then sharpened. "Were you with her?"

"I wasn't with anyone".

"Liar!" she bit out. "That perfume – you don't wear it. That isn't your scent".

A dark smirk ghosted over his lips as he prowled toward her "So...you know my scent?" Her knees weakened as she stumbled back. "You didn't answer my question".

He raked a hand through his hair, irritation flashing across his face. "I wasn't with anyone".

He turned to leave dismissive.

"No", she snapped, her hand darting out, gripping his wrist. The moment she touched him, the air thickened. His body went rigid, his eyes deadly still.

"Were you with her?" she whispered again, voice trembling but fierce. "I know this is a contract, but at least have some respect for me".

His gaze locked onto hers, a dangerous fire burning within. "She's nothing to me", he said. "That picture? Business. Since then, I've had her watched. Too flawless. Too genuine. And I don't trust genuine."

Her breath caught. He knew she had seen it. He wanted her to.

He yanked her closer, their bodies pressed flush, his heart searing through her. His breath fanned across her lips, so close she could taste the whiskey on him.

"Tell me", he murmured darkly, eyes flicking to her parted mouth, "did it make you jealous? The thought of me with another?"

Lisa's chest rose and fell rapidly. Her lips parted, anticipation trembling through her – waiting, aching – for a kiss she shouldn't want.

But instead of closing the distance, his mouth shifted, brushing the shell of her ear.

His voice, low and lethal, wrapped around her. "I won't touch you until you beg for it. And when you do, Lisa...I'll ruin you".

Her body trembled violently, her breath caught in her throat. And then – he was gone. Just like that.

CHAPTER 10

A Sharp knock startled Lisa awake. Still tangled in sheets, her hair wild and face sleepy, she shuffled to the door, certain it was a maid.

She swung it open – and froze.

Joseph stood there. Immaculate. Composed.

Dark eyes taking in every scattered detail of her.

Her face went crimson. "Ah!" she squeaked, slamming the door shut so fast the wood rattled.

From the hallway came the unmistakable sound of his low chuckle.

Heart pounding, Lisa scrambled, smoothing her hair, throwing on a robe. After several long minutes, she opened the door again, posture stiff and face carefully arranged.

"Good morning, Joseph," she managed.

His eyes lingered on her, amusement flickering. They exchanged brief pleasantries before his tone shifted into that familiar command.

"Get prepared. We're having breakfast with my family. We leave in an hour".

He turned to go, but not before tossing over his shoulder, "Try not to scare them with that hair next time".

Her jaw dropped. By the time the sting of embarrassment turned to flustered warmth, he was gone.

She touched her cheeks. They were hot.

Blushing. At him?

"No, no, no!" she whispered harshly, slamming the door shut and burying her face in her hands.

*******

Breakfast at the Bronson estate began warm, almost deceptively so. Laughter circled the table, dishes passed from hand to hand, and even Lisa managed a smile when Joseph's brother teased her about choosing only the mildest food.

For a moment, she thought she might survive unscathed.

Then Joseph's mother leaned forward, her smile sharpened to a blade.

Tell me, Lisa – how does a girl who once ran from her own family suddenly think she's fit to represent ours?"

The warmth vanished.

She pressed on.

"Do you honestly believe you can carry the Bronson name? Or is it your beauty you plan to rely on, rather than your brains?"

Lisa's throat tightened her fingers trembling beneath the table. Just as she faltered, Joseph's hand slid over hers – firm, steady, grounding her.

But his mother wasn't finished.

"You may wear our name, but don't mistake it for belonging".

Joseph's chair scraped back. His voice was steel.

"This is my wife. You will accord her the respect she deserves. Disrespect her, and you disrespect me....Mother".

Shock rippled through the table. Joseph rose, drawing Lisa to her feet and without another word, led her out of the house.

Behind them, his mother's lips tightened, his siblings stared wide-eyed - yet it was his father's face that told the truest story.

His eyes narrowed, his jaw clenched and though he said nothing, the truth was clear: Joseph hadn't married to honor a promise. He married her because she mattered.

______

The drive home was silent. Lisa stared out the window, Joseph's words replaying in her mind – This is my wife.

"You didn't have to do that", she said softly.

His gaze stayed on the road. "I don't allow anyone to disrespect what belongs to me".

Her chest tightened at the word belongs. Was she just his possession, or did his tone mean something more?

Lisa turned away, but the question haunted her all the way back to the mansion.

At the mansion, the staff greeted them with lowered heads. Joseph brushed past, still cold from the dinner, but Lisa lingered in the foyer.

Her fingers traced the edge of the banister as if grounding herself.

"Go upstairs", Joseph said without looking at her. "Rest"

She wanted to argue, to thank him, to question what his words at the table had really meant. But his tone left no room. She obeyed, climbing the stairs slowly, her thoughts tangled.

Hours later, after a brutal day at the office, she came down again, shaken.

Joseph poured Lisa a glass of wine and guided her to a seat beside him at the round table. The closeness unstilled her, but he kept the conversation light, unusually chatty.

Just as she began to relax, he swirled his glass lazily, eyes locked on her.

"You stayed at the office until 8:48 tonight", he said casually, as though remarking on the weather.

Lisa stiffened. "How would you know that?"

His lips curved into a slow, taunting smile.

"Because I pay attention to you".

Her throat went dry, word slipping away. Before she could gather a response, her phone buzzed against the table

She glanced down – an anonymous text glared at her: He can't protect you forever.

Her breath hitched.

Joseph's gaze sharpened instantly, "What's wrong?"

She forced a shaky smile, tucking the phone aside. "Nothing... I just want a nice dinner, that's all".

They ate in silence after that, until the plates were cleared and only the wine remained.

Joseph refilled her glass, watching her with an intensity that made her chest tighten.

As her laughter softened into slurred words, he leaned in, so close she could feel his breath.

"You really shouldn't drink so much, Mrs. Bronson", he murmured, his lips a breath away.

Her heart raced, but before she could react, tears slipped out. "I keep getting these texts...it feels like someone's watching me", she confessed, fumbling for her phone. She showed him the messages, her hands trembling.

Joseph's expression darkened, unreadable.

Minutes later, her eyelids grew heavy. Curling against the chair, she whispered as sleep pulled her under, "It's been happening for weeks..."

Joseph went rigid, his glass pausing mid–air.