Julian Sterling kept a canary with a death wish.

Every year, in a desperate bid for status, she reinvented her methods, staging elaborate suicides to force his hand.

The first year, claiming life had hit rock bottom, she staged a leap from a building.

The second, lamenting that she was adrift in the wind, she feigned a hanging.

The third, declaring she would simply go with the flow, she pretended to drown in the river.

——

By the seventh year, the theatrics came to an abrupt halt.

Julian Sterling tucked the duvet around the young girl beside him before finally casting a casual glance my way.

"You know how it is," he said, voice devoid of guilt. "Someone slipped me an aphrodisiac. This young lady was kind enough to help."

He paused, eyes narrowing. "Be good. Put the pills down. It's just a title, Bella. Does it really matter that much?"

My vision blurred, heat stinging my eyes. It felt like my heart was being unraveled, fiber by fiber. "She's only eighteen! Julian, you're disgusting."

A cigarette dangled from his lips, his smile loose and careless. "And you aren't? You slept with me when you were eighteen too."

I couldn't find the words to refute him. Before I could formulate a retort, the male escort he'd summoned hoisted me over his shoulder.

Julian delivered a sharp, patronizing pat to my behind. "Gender equality, Bella. Go enjoy yourself."

Humiliation clawed at my chest. My mysophobia flared, every pore screaming against the stranger's touch.

I bit my lip until I tasted iron, my fists raining solid thuds against the escort's back.

He hissed and set me down, feigning innocence. "Miss Cox, I'm just following orders."

I shoved a wad of cash into his hand, raising my voice to ensure the occupants of the room heard every word.

"Go on then. Julian might be disgusting, but I have standards. Unlike him, I'm picky. I mind the filth, and I'm terrified of catching diseases."

As the words left my mouth, I realized how ridiculous they sounded.

Who was I kidding? How could she have a disease? She was the heiress of the Fox family, one of Harbor City's four great elites.

For seven years, I was the only one by Julian's side. Today, she became the second.

And the moment she appeared, she became the one Julian decided to marry.

The man took the money, thanking me profusely before scurrying away.

The confrontation I expected never came.

Instead, coquettish laughter drifted through the crack in the door.

Right. Why would a Harbor City heiress deign to bicker with a canary like me?

Julian knew me too well. He had left the door ajar on purpose, a vicious tactic to humiliate me—the thief who had stolen seven years of his life.

My knuckles turned white as I gripped the doorframe, torn between dignity and desperation.

Courage and greed waged war in my heart.

Tears blurred my vision, heavy drops smashing against the floorboards. I fled, pressing my back against the corridor wall, gasping for air as my mind went blank.

My body curled inward, trembling from a cold that came from within.

Seven years of theatrics, seven years of threatening death, and I still hadn't secured the status I craved. She had simply crooked a finger and won it all.

Julian, when you marry her—is it calculation, or love?

Before I could spiral further, my phone lit up. A message from Julian.

"Bella, bring condoms. Ultra-thin. I can't wait any longer."

A massive bank transfer followed immediately after.

It took a few breaths for the reality to sink in.

My mind screamed no, but my body moved on autopilot.

Maybe I thought there was still a chance. Maybe I wanted to prove he couldn't break me.

Regardless, I needed the money. I needed to protect myself.

Minutes later, I handed over the box of condoms. I even thoughtfully included a pack of emergency contraceptives.

"Non-toxic. No side effects."

The girl froze for a second before taking them, revealing cute canine teeth in a smile.

"Thank you."

I scoffed internally. A rich heiress really was magnanimous—or perhaps just oblivious.

Julian tapped the stopwatch without looking up. "Three minutes and twenty-seven seconds. You serve others faster than you shop for yourself, Bella."

Sensing the tension, the young girl covered Julian's mouth with her hand.

"Bella. That's a very pretty name."

"Julian and I will have a marriage in name only. Do you mind staying on as his mistress?"

I froze. I hadn't expected Elisa to be so casual about sharing her husband. The answer lodged in my throat—a jagged lump I could neither spit out nor swallow.

Julian caught her arm, his grip firm. "The Sterling family needs this alliance, and Elisa accepts the arrangement." His gaze flicked to me, cold and heavy. "Be sensible."

The warning was clear.

I lowered my eyes. My sockets felt dry and bruised, aching from tears I could no longer shed.

The path is laid out right in front of you, Bella Cox. What right do you have to be dissatisfied?

Being a well-paid canary was safer than being Mrs. Sterling—a title that came with an expiration date. I knew the logic. I knew the rules.

But I wasn't willing.

I couldn't stomach the thought of watching my lover belong to someone else while she enjoyed the respect and status I could never touch. A mistress and a wife lived in two different worlds. One word from the wife, and the mistress would have to cough up everything she'd ever been given.

While my mind waged war against my heart, Elisa's pleasant voice drifted from above. She patted my shoulder gently.

"It's okay. There's plenty of time. Think it over."

She turned and reached for a small bottle of pills on the table. Before she could open it, Julian intercepted her hand.

"You don't need to take that."

Astonishment flashed across Elisa's face. Before she could respond, Julian scooped her into his arms, shielding her from my view.

"I'll take her home first," he threw over his shoulder, his voice devoid of warmth. "We'll talk later."

He carried her out, leaving me alone in the silence.

It was just a small detail—stopping her from taking medicine—but his attitude stabbed harder than any insult.

I collapsed onto the floor, gasping like a fish thrown onto dry land.

For seven years, Julian had never once let me skip a dose.

There was one time I'd tried to refuse. He frowned, his pitch-black eyes filled with displeasure. "I don't want children yet. You know that. The family puts enough pressure on me as it is—a child would only be a weakness. Be a good girl."

Whether it was family pressure, his foul mood, or simply wanting to delay my cycle for his own convenience, he always had an excuse. He forced the pills on me, time after time.

I took them until my body broke. I took them until I could no longer carry a child.

But Elisa? She didn't even need to swallow a single pill.

The contrast was a physical pain—a sour ache spreading through my chest. I dug my nails into my palms until the urge to scream subsided.

My phone buzzed on the floor beside me. A message from Julian.

[Wash up and wait for me.]

I stared at the screen. Julian, a man with insatiable stamina, had actually held back with Elisa. Was he afraid of hurting her? Or was he coming back to coax me into submission again with his twisted logic?

I let out a hollow laugh. It seemed that in front of Julian, all my anger was expected to vanish the moment he touched me.

But a canary has no right to say no.

I dragged my exhausted body toward the bathroom. Steam filled the small space, blurring my vision and pulling me back into memories I'd tried to keep buried.

I was eighteen that year. We met at a club.

A clumsy waiter bumped into me, sending red wine splashing onto a bespoke suit. Within seconds, a group of wealthy heirs had cornered me against the wall.

"Is this the new way to seduce people? Bit outdated, isn't it?"

"Throwing herself at us and still pretending to be some pure little flower."

The insults poured over me, mixing with alcohol and cheap cologne. They trampled my dignity, tossing cash at my face before rough hands yanked at my collar.

"Had enough?"

The voice cut through the noise like a blade. Julian appeared, looking like a dark god descending into hell. His polished leather shoes stopped inches from mine.

"The Sterling family is blacklisting all of you. Permanently." His tone was bored but dangerous. "Men of such low character aren't worthy of doing business with me."

The crowd scattered. He reached out a hand, but instead of taking it, I looked up and rested my chin gently in his palm.

"Please," I whispered, desperate to escape my poverty and humiliation. "Cherish me."

He frowned, studying me.

I held up my resume, hands trembling. "I'm clean. If you need it, I can provide a physical examination report."

"A top-tier university student, reducing herself to this?"

The contempt in his voice stung like a lash. I bit my lower lip, shame burning so hot I couldn't find the words to defend myself.

Yet in my scramble to stand, I stumbled. My teeth grazed his fingertip, drawing blood. In that split second, the mask of the ascetic, untouchable Julian Sterling shattered. The beast beneath was exposed.

He didn't push me away. He picked me up.

For seven days, I didn't leave his villa. I had fallen from grace, but I had caught a lifeline. I clung to Julian Sterling, the most powerful man in Harbor City, to survive.

Cold fingertips trailed up my spine, snapping me back to the present. Julian pressed his chest against my back, his breath hot against my ear. "Been waiting anxiously?"

He didn't wait for an answer. "Bella, you're a smart woman. Between a title and me... you know which holds more value, right?"

I turned, my gaze crashing into eyes so deep they could bewitch a soul.

The pure, restrained Julian of the past was gone. In his place stood a cold, calculating businessman.

"Julian," I said, my voice icy, "do you think I'm that cheap?"

He raised a brow, feigning ignorance, and casually adjusted the silver frames perched on his nose—frames that held no lenses, a mere prop for his deceptive persona.

"I never said that. And I never thought it."

As the words fell, he removed the glasses and captured my lips. His hand gathered my hair at the nape of my neck, stroking it rhythmically, as if soothing a temperamental cat.

A metallic taste bloomed between our mouths. He had bitten me. He pulled back slightly, his thumb brushing the corner of his own lips where I had retaliated.

His smile didn't reach his eyes. "My Bella has claws."

He shifted, and a velvet box appeared. He opened it, revealing a diamond the size of a pigeon's egg shimmering under the dim lights.

"Is it enough? Hmm?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but his index finger pressed against my lips, silencing me.

"Anything you want, Bella. Except the title of Mrs. Sterling."

I narrowed my eyes, studying the man beside my pillow. I looked for a trace of a joke, a hint of irony.

There was none. Only the steely determination to win.

He was certain I would compromise. He believed that, just like every other time I tested his limits over the years, he simply had to coax me, and I would fold.

"Tell me, Julian," I whispered, "is being a kept man thrilling for you?"

The humor in his eyes vanished. His gaze darkened. He reached out and pinched my cheek, his voice devoid of emotion.

"Bella, sometimes a woman can be too smart for her own good. Especially a canary."

He leaned in closer. "The little tricks you used to seduce me seven years ago won't work anymore. Right now, I prefer obedience."

I forced a mischievous smile, aiming my words like daggers at his chest. "It seems you're satisfied with me, but Elisa isn't willing to acknowledge you publicly, is she?"

His jaw tightened. I pressed on.

"What a pity. We're actually the same, you and I. You knew Elisa had a fiancé, yet you deliberately drugged her—or perhaps pretended you were the one drugged—just to compromise her. You forced a scandal to make the marriage inevitable."

I laughed softly. "When it comes to dirty tactics, I should be the one admiring you. Was it a long-term play for the family merger? Or, as you claim, were you simply 'taking responsibility' for her?"

He let out a soundless laugh. His hand clamped around my throat, tightening just enough to warn me, before releasing me as I gasped for air.

"What am I going to do with you?"

It sounded like indulgence, yet it carried a heavy note of helplessness.

The conversation ended there, replaced by fierce, demanding possession. I found it suffocating. I reached out and handed him the foil packet from the nightstand.

"Julian... I hurt."

Not just my body. My heart, too.

His eyes were rimmed with red, his breathing ragged. He answered incoherently, but his hands obeyed my request.

As I lay there, I couldn't help but think: if not for our disparate backgrounds, we would be the most perfect soulmates in the world. Our minds matched. Our bodies matched.

But after that day, the relationship between the three of us reached a fragile, subtle balance.

I stopped asking for love. I only asked for money.

Julian and Elisa continued their public performance, playing the part of the engaged couple when the occasion called for it. But I could see the shift.

Julian had truly taken Elisa to heart.

He began to care about her moods—her joys, her anger, her sorrows. He no longer treated her as a naive little rabbit, easy to control.

He memorized her cycle. He orchestrated elaborate holiday surprises for her. He even abandoned me when I was seriously ill just to go read her bedtime stories.

His obsession grew dark. He began to covet another man's woman in earnest, taking out his twisted frustrations on her photograph in the dead of night.

But no matter what he did, he couldn't change the Fox family's arrangements, nor could he sway Elisa's heart, which had already tilted toward another.