bedroom after o

made her stomach churn. He moved through the room with a heavy, deliberate tread, shedding his clothes. He went into the bathroom, and she hear

rom his hair onto the expensive rug. He didn't bother with his side of th

vulsion washed over her, so strong it was a physical force. This was the body that had

ry gesture, devoid of any affection. It wa

a child," he said

were a dea

bbed his wrist, her nails digging

er wrist like a manacle. "The prenuptial agreement. Clause eight. My controlling

were discussing

erms when you married me. You're a member

There was nothing. Only a cold, calculating stranger. In her first life, she had been so desperate for his lov

ool she

?" she asked, h

ceiling. "Then the agreement is void. Your shares, your settlement,

n who knew he held all the cards. He didn't want a child with h

d herself into a sitting position, t

a final, desperate test. "D

hat the only sound in the room was the ticking of the antique cloc

"Love is irrelevant. We're partners

a sob. It was a laugh. A hollow, brittle th

pulling her back down against the pillows, his body

a corpse in his arms. This was what h

osed her eyes, a single tear escaping a

touch hers, she spoke, her voic

breath hot ag

h. For my health. She has me on a regimen of Chinese herbs to... regulate my sys

th frustration. He was breathing heavily, th

ched his pillow from the bed and threw it with

t me the doctor's report t

he room, slamming t

ock of his proximity. Her hand crept to the drawer of her nights

traceptive. Her s