THE THREE-YEAR BRIDE

Olivia Chen needed money. Adrian Kess needed a wife. Three years. A contract. No feelings. It sounded simple when her family's business collapsed and Adrian Kess, the ruthless billionaire who'd crushed her father's dreams years ago, offered a solution: marry him, play his wife at galas and business functions, and walk away with enough money to save everything she loved. She didn't plan to fall in love with him. Adrian was supposed to be heartless. Cold. Someone she could hate while pocketing his money. But three years of sleeping in separate rooms didn't stop her from noticing how he checked on her, how his stone face cracked when she smiled, how he protected her from the cruelty of his world with a fierceness that terrified her. She learned his silences meant more than words. She learned he was lonely in the exact same way she was. When their contract was almost complete, Olivia dared to hope he might feel something real for her too. Then Adrian was spotted out with Victoria Ashford, his beautiful, powerful childhood best friend. Laughing together. Touching. The way he never touched Olivia, not outside the carefully arranged photo ops. The contract was ending anyway. She had no claim on him. No right to feel shattered. But Adrian had made a deal to protect Olivia's heart. He just didn't know it was already his to break. What happens when a contract expires and the lines between fake and real blur beyond recognition?