elled like antisepti

before they'd both changed their names and fled their old lives-had always been a force of nature. Sharp-tongued, brilliant, a political strategist who'd helped

when they landed on Damien B

voice weak but dry with amus

still expensive, but dark jeans and a black sweater instead of a suit, an attempt at casual that someho

fter my daughter called saying her 'new job' involved moving into a penthouse ove

her mother would investigate. Catherine mig

tured to the chairs beside her bed. "A

, her mind racing through possible explanations, ways to spin this th

r treatment," Damien said calmly. "It's a business arrangement that bene

toward him. What th

Damien with an intensity that had once made polit

oing to hurt your daughter. The answer is no, not intentionally. We have a contract. Clear terms. Clear benefits. At the end of one

r heart? What about the year of her life you're buying? What happens

h going into this with our eyes open. No f

Ivy. "Is this what y

made her look so fragile, so mortal. "I want you to live, Mom. I want you t

yourself to

"Isn't that what you always taught me? That som

. "Not like this. Not sacr

and gently. "It's one year. And at the end, I'll have enoug

ned, moving between Ivy and Damien.

of this. But Damien has agreed to claim the child as his

ion Ivy recognized-the one that had once made her father confess to affairs, ma

y are," Catherine said

ton. Daughter of Richar

candal? About your pristine reputatio

lied. "Everything else is manageable. Besides, your ex-husband's crimes aren't

bitterly. "They destroyed her. A twenty-one-year

nted. Ivy rebuilt herself through honest work and determination. That's admirable, not shameful.

defending her strategically, yes, as part of protecting his investme

ld, Mr. Blackwood. Calculating. Everything about you screams danger." She loo

Monroe," Damien said quietly. "

Catherine replied. "Not al

ed to treatment protocols and schedules. Damien listened with apparent interest, asking intelligent qu

ooked like a concerned future son-in-law, attentive and supportive

This was just another rol

hly. "We should let you rest. But I'll ensure you have everything you need-anythi

ened slightly. "Thank

rected gently. "

romising to return tomorrow, and followed Damien into the hallway. They walked in silence t

u tell her

she would have figured it out anyway. Your mother is sharp

jeopardized ever

uirements. She can't reveal the arrangement without facing legal consequences, which she won't risk because it wo

ause. Ivy sagged against the elevator wall, suddenly e

tudied her. "The whole point of this arrangement is that w

b, the black Mercedes gleaming in the afternoon sun. But as they approached, a comm

ou're only marrying to satis

to go from housekeeper

with Damien's baby

aos with security materializing around them. His face was a mask of cold disple

when a familiar voice

Ivy Su

older but still recognizable. Handsome in that polished, preppy way, wearing

when I saw the engagement photos. Ivy Sutton, daughter of the criminal Rich

of carefully constructed identity crumbling in seconds. Beside

," Damien said, his voice

spectable." Reese smiled, all teeth and venom. "Did you tell him, Ivy? About how you tr

gh," Damien

pensive cologne, could see the cruel satisfaction in his eyes. "The publ

d shooting out to grip Reese's wrist in what looked like a friendl

t is exactly that-past. If you value your family's business connections, their social standing, or your ability

y, but Damien held firm

tment firm has three major clients that happen to be my subsidiaries. How long do you think Winters

, his face red with humiliation and anger. But he said nothing els

nsible for those mistakes. She was a victim of them. She's spent the last five years rebuilding her life with integrity and hard work. I admire that

got the door open. They slid inside, and the Mercedes

t, the arrangement, her carefully hidden identity,all of it exposed in seconds because

. "I'm so sorry. This is g

startling her. His palm was warm,

The gold-digger accusations, my father's crim

narrative. I meant what I said-you're not responsible for your father's actions. An

t him. "You'

ed he was still holding her hand. "I knew about your past before I made the contract. This was always a

, fleeing in the middle of the night. She thought about the woman she'd become, surv

d firmly. "I c

in his eyes. "Then we'll face it together. Unite

ng in the back of the car with his hand still holding hers, the city

or a m

before they made it

recognize, social media mentions that quickly overwhelmed her locked

REVEALED AS DISGRACED

FROM SCANDAL T

FIANCÉE EXPOSED: THE

ly, seeing Ivy's pale face. "We're pushing the survivor narrative hard. Your mother's illness, your honest work, the

possible?" Iv

a pregnant woman at her mother's hospital? Bad optics. And Damien's defense of you is play

voice lacked its usual edge. He was watching

he Atlantic piece just posted-'Damien Blackwood Finds Love Beyond St

s expression remained neutral, but something

enerally reputable, no

phone. I want to

t at the city that was currently tearing her life apart on socia

ays, something else will be the story. In a week,

Ivy replied. "Unless they

m. "Together. That's the point of this arrange

bought her presence in his life but was now defending her

se, maybe, or something more complic

r the bus back there. Claimed you didn't know about my past, positioned

amien agreed

you care about

d, Ivy. Whatever else this arrangement is, I won't let a pregnan

y felt something shift in her chest, a dangerous so

he line. She wants to schedule an interview with

hanged glances. "T

. My fiancée and I will grant you one exclusive interview. Tomorrow, six p.m., at my offic

schedule tomorrow after five. And get me everything on Reese Winters:financial

g after him?

ice cold. "That makes him my problem. No on

spine that she absolutely should not be feeling. This was fak

Reese like she mattered. Was looking at her now wi

orrow," Ivy said, needing

n said. "After dinner. We need

o strategy. Back

hand covering hers in the car, his quiet assurance that she wasn't alone. It was da

ausea that had become familiar. "Your father is complicated," she wh