Vincenzo point of view

“Don't tell me you just made me lose a contract worth billions of dollars?” I asked.

The man opened his mouth, but no words came out. Sweat dripped down the side of his face as he shook in his seat.

Then he suddenly dropped to his knees.

“Please, Vincenzo. It wasn't my fault,” he pleaded desperately. “Our ship sank.”

I stared at him for a long moment before leaning back in my chair.

“And you didn't sink with it?”

His face turned even paler.

“Vincenzo—”

“You better tell me the fucking truth,” I cut in coldly. “Because if I find out you're lying, I'm afraid it'll be your soul leaving this room to inform your family that you've reunited with your creator.”

The man nearly collapsed. “Please don't kill me, Vincenzo.”

Ignoring his begging, I reached for the knife on the table and grabbed his hand.

The blade hovered over his finger.

A strangled cry escaped his throat.

I was just about to bring it down when the office door burst open.

“Boss, there's a problem.”

Caden walked in without waiting for permission.

My hand froze, ana slowly, I looked up.

“What problem?”

Without taking his eyes off me, Caden signaled the guards standing nearby.

“Take him away.”

The idiot scrambled to his feet before the guards could even touch him. They dragged him out anyway.

The moment the door shut, I turned back to Caden.

“What happened?”

His expression became serious. “Sylvia Browne.”

Every muscle in my body went still. “What happened to her?”

“Vincent Sky ruined the marriage.”

The knife slipped from my fingers and sank into the table.

Caden continued. “He called Sylvia a delusional maid with mental problems in front of everyone.”

My jaw tightened.

For years, I had stayed away, I had convinced myself that Vincent genuinely loved her.

I thought he had finally changed.

Looks like I gave him too much credit.

“So no wedding happened?” I asked.

“A wedding happened,” Caden replied. “The bride just wasn't Sylvia.”

A bitter smile tugged at the corner of my mouth. “Who?”

“Vivian Stanley.”

That name made me bit my lips. The Stanley family, he was definitely looking for someone who's influence marches the Morgan. He was marrying for influence, power and money. Everything Vincent had ever been obsessed with.

I slowly wiped the blood from my palm and laughed once.

A cold, humorless sound let my mouth. “He planned this.”

Caden remained silent.

Vincent knew exactly what he was doing.

If I had known he was marrying a Stanley, I would have stopped it before it even began.

The bastard hadn't simply betrayed Sylvia. He had calculated every move from the beginning.

"Prepare the car. We're going there now."

Caden looked at me. "And what exactly are you planning to do? The wedding should be over before we get there."

I glanced at him.

"I said prepare the car."

He didn't argue again, because he dare not to..

««THE WEDDING RECEPTION <<»»

The convoy came to a stop in front of the hotel.

The moment the door opened, I stepped out. My gaze swept across the entrance—and stopped.

Sylvia.

She stood near the reception hall, her wedding dress stained from dragging against the floor. Her makeup was ruined. Tears streamed down her face as two guards stood nearby, enjoying every second of her humiliation.

"You lied about being the bride," one of them sneered. "Even after they threw you out, you're still here embarrassing yourself. Don't you have any shame?"

The other guard laughed.

"Leave her alone. I'm enjoying this."

"What are you enjoying?" his colleague shot back. "Do you know how much damage this could do to the Sky family's reputation?"

Sylvia didn't seem to hear them, She just stood there crying.

Cursing Vincent.

Begging for answers that nobody intended to give her.

My jaw tightened. "Caden."

That was all I said.

He understood immediately.

The men behind us moved.

By the time the guards realized something was wrong, they were already pinned down.

"What the hell are you doing?" one of them shouted, struggling.

Caden walked forward and drove his fist straight into the man's face.

The guard hit the ground hard.

"How dare you mock a woman?" Caden asked quietly.

"She's trying to ruin the Sky family's reputation!" the other guard yelled.

The next punch shut him up.

I watched without saying a word.

The Sky family's reputation?

Interesting.

If I wanted to destroy the Sky family, there wouldn't be enough pieces left to rebuild it.

The only reason that family was still standing was because I hadn't decided otherwise.

My attention returned to Sylvia. She looked smaller than I remembered.

Broken.

Like someone had taken everything she had and left her with nothing.

I started toward her.

The sound of my shoes echoed against the marble floor, and she turned.. the moment she looked back, her heel caught the edge of her gown.

Her body tilted.

A gasp escaped her lips.

And before she could hit the ground, I reached her. My arm wrapped around her waist, her body crashed against mine.

For a second, she just froze.

Then she looked up. Those red, swollen eyes met mine.

And something inside me snapped.

Vincent Sky.

You should have prayed she never cried because of you

Sylvia POV

I turned around to see who was behind me, but the moment I did, my heel caught the hem of my gown.

A gasp escaped my lips.

I stumbled forward, already expecting the painful impact with the floor, but it never came. A strong arm wrapped around my waist and steadied me before I could fall.

For a brief moment, I found myself staring into a pair of dark eyes.

The man holding me looked unreal.

His features were sharp and striking, his expression cold, yet there was something about him that made it difficult to look away. Maybe under different circumstances I would have noticed more, but right now my mind was too exhausted to think about anything except the humiliation I had just suffered.

Realizing I was still in his arms, I quickly stepped back.

"I'm sorry," I said softly, lowering my head.

The last thing I needed was to embarrass myself in front of another stranger.

He was probably one of Vincent's associates anyway. Another person who had heard the whispers inside the hall. Another person who knew about the woman who thought she was getting married only to discover she wasn't the bride.

The thought alone made my chest ache.

I didn't want to stay here anymore.

I was tired of crying.

Tired of being stared at.

Tired of feeling like everyone was looking down on me.

All I wanted was to leave and figure out how to rebuild the life I had foolishly handed over to Vincent.

I had barely taken a few steps when a hand gently caught my wrist.

"I'm Vincenzo Morgan Sky."

I looked back at him.

The name doesn't sounds like someone I know.

"I'm sorry if I offended you," I said quickly. "I didn't mean to cause any trouble. And I'm not what those people said I was."

My voice almost broke at the end.

The laughter inside the hall echoed in my head.

The mocking looks, accusations and pity.

For a moment, it felt like I was standing in that hall all over again.

"I'll leave now," I added quietly.

But his next words stopped me. "I know you're not."

I blinked.

His gaze remained fixed on me.

"You're not what they think you are," he said calmly. "You're someone who trusted the wrong person and ended up paying the price for it."

Something tightened painfully inside my chest.

Because that was exactly what happened.

Not a crazy woman, a liar or a maid trying to ruin a wedding.

Just someone who had loved the wrong man.

And somehow, hearing a stranger say it hurt more than all the insults combined.

"Thank you for believing me," I said softly. "I'll leave now and stop humiliating myself any further."

I turned to go, but his voice stopped me.

"I can help you with this."

I looked back at him, stunned.."Help me how?" I asked. "How exactly can you help me?"

A faint smile touched his lips.

"I'm the enemy of the man inside that hall. If you join forces with me and bring him down, wouldn't that be satisfying?"

For a moment, I simply stared at him.

Then I laughed, not because it was funny, but it sounded impossible.

"You must be joking."

I shook my head and looked away.

"Even if I wanted revenge, even if I wanted to prove to the world that I'm not the woman he painted me to be, what exactly do I have?" My voice cracked slightly. "Nothing."

The word lingered between us. "You know what my biggest mistake was?" I asked quietly. "I refused to accept that Vincent was completely out of my league. I kept believing love was enough."

A bitter smile pulled at my lips.

"It doesn't matter how honest or hardworking a poor person is. The moment someone powerful decides to tell a lie, people believe them. We become the liars. We become the crazy ones."

Tears blurred my vision again.

I hated crying.

Especially in front of a stranger.

But today felt like one long nightmare I couldn't wake up from.

"The painful part isn't even that he married someone else." I swallowed hard. "It's that I spent months planning all of this."

My gaze drifted toward the hotel.

"I made the reservations. I picked the flowers. I chose the decorations. I handled every detail because I thought I was planning my wedding."

My chest tightened.

"And not once... not even once... did he tell me the truth."

The tears finally slipped free.

"He watched me work myself to exhaustion. He watched me get excited over a future that was never mine. For five years, I trusted him completely, and all he did was make a fool out of me."

I quickly wiped my face.

Crying wouldn't change anything.

Neither would standing here.

"You can't understand that kind of pain," I said quietly. "Someone like you probably hasn't experienced this before."

I took a step back.

"So thank you for your concern, but I don't have the money, power, or connections it would take to fight Vincent Sky. I'll leave, rebuild my life, and maybe one day I'll be strong enough to face him."

I turned to leave.

His hand closed around mine, the warmth of his touch made me pause.

When I looked back, his expression had changed,.there was something dark in his eyes.."I've experienced more betrayal than you can imagine."

His voice was calm.

The kind of calm that usually came after surviving a storm.

"You think you're the only person who's trusted the wrong people?"

My breath caught.

"You don't need resources," he continued. "I already have them."

A strange feeling settled in my stomach..Nothing about this conversation felt normal anymore.

"And what would that cost me?" I asked carefully.

His gaze held mine..For several seconds, neither of us spoke.

Then he finally answered.."You'll marry me."

I blinked.

My mind went completely blank.

"You'll get your revenge," he continued as if he had suggested something perfectly reasonable. "And in return, I get something I want."

I stared at him.

Surely I had heard him wrong.

"What?"

My brows furrowed as I searched his face for any sign that he was joking.

But There wasn't one..

Sylvia POV

“You can't be serious,” I said, staring at him.

“I am,” he replied without hesitation. “Why would I joke about something like this?”

I frowned. “That's exactly why I'm confused. Why would you marry someone you barely know? Marriage isn't a joke, Mr. Vincenzo.”

I shook my head and took a step back.

“I've already embarrassed myself enough today. I don't need everyone who watched me get humiliated by Vincent to see me standing here with another man. That would just make me look even more pathetic.”

I turned to leave.

“This would be a contract marriage,” he said calmly. “Stay married to me for a while, and you'll get your revenge.”

I almost laughed.

“So revenge is all I get?” I asked, blinking back the tears burning my eyes. “Yes, I want Vincent to regret what he did. I want him to realize I wasn't someone he could throw away. But if I really want to prove something, it won't be by showing up beside another man.”

I took a slow breath.

“I've only just realized how foolish I've been. I spent five years believing love was enough. My best friend warned me over and over again, but I refused to listen. I lost myself chasing someone who never loved me. I'm not going to jump into another relationship just because my heart is broken.”

The words poured out before I could stop them.

It was ridiculous.

I had only known this man for a few minutes.

He looked at me for a moment before speaking.

“What if I improve the offer?”

I raised a brow.

“When our contract ends, I'll pay you two hundred thousand dollars. Consider it capital to start a new life.”

I froze.

Two hundred thousand... dollars?

My feet refused to move.

That wasn't the kind of money someone like me could earn in years.

A tiny voice in my head immediately screamed, Gold digger!

Another answered just as quickly.

I didn't ask for it. He offered.

I slowly turned back to him.

“You mean... if I marry you, you'll really give me that money?”

He nodded once.

I swallowed.

“Mr. Vincenzo... how long would this contract marriage last?”

“A year,” he answered. “That should be enough. Unless you want a shorter contract.”

“Shorter?” I blinked. “I was actually thinking... maybe two years.”

For the first time, the corner of his lips lifted.

“And if we make it two years,” I continued with a sheepish smile, “the payment should double too... don't you think?”

He let out a quiet chuckle.

I rubbed the back of my neck awkwardly.

“Please don't misunderstand me. I'm not a gold digger. I'm just... a poor woman who knows a generous opportunity when she sees one.”

I held out my hand with a bright smile.

“So... we have a deal.”

I tilted my head.

“Oh, and what kind of fake married couple are we going to be? The hopelessly-in-love type? Don't worry, I can act. I've watched plenty of contract marriage dramas.”

As pathetic as it sounded, I needed this.

Only now was I beginning to realize just how badly I had ruined my own life.

Where exactly was I supposed to go?

The woman I once called mother had thrown me out when I was seventeen, long before I met Vincent. The only person who would have opened her door to me was Lina, but she had already left the city for work.

I had nowhere to stay, no jobs and no savings..

For five years, I had lived in Vincent's apartment, cooking for him, doing his laundry, taking care of everything he needed. Somewhere along the way, I stopped thinking about myself.

I had sacrificed my own future just to make another man comfortable.

Now that he was gone, I had nothing.

If I walked away from this offer, I'd be homeless, unemployed, and probably wondering where my next meal would come from.

Maybe accepting a contract marriage sounded desperate.

But wasn't I already desperate?

Besides...

Vincent was never worth destroying my life over.

"A court wedding?" Vincenzo asked. "Or would you prefer something grand?"

I let out a dry laugh.

"A grand wedding?"

The words alone made my chest tighten.

That had been my dream once.

Not anymore.

"I don't want a grand wedding," I said, shaking my head. "It's only a contract marriage. A court wedding is more than enough."

"We can have whichever wedding you want," he replied calmly. "I know you've always wanted a grand one."

I looked at him in confusion.

How did he know that? I'd never met this man before... had I?

I narrowed my eyes. "How do you know so much about me?"

“What did you say?” he asked, tilting his head slightly as though he hadn't heard me.

I hesitated for a second before repeating myself.

“Do... do you know me from somewhere?”

One of his brows lifted.

“Why would you ask that?”

I searched his face, hoping to find something familiar.

“You just knew what I wanted,” I said quietly. “You said I've always wanted a grand wedding.”

For a brief moment, he was silent.

Then he replied calmly, “My PA was at the wedding. He heard the arguments... and everything that happened. That's how I knew.”

“Oh...”

I lowered my gaze, feeling a little embarrassed for asking.

It made sense.

Still...

For some reason, I couldn't shake the strange feeling that there was something familiar about him.

Maybe I was just overthinking.

After everything that had happened today, my mind was probably trying to make sense of things that weren't there.

I let out a small breath and nodded.

“I see.”

He didn't say anything else.

Neither did I.

But somehow, the silence between us no longer felt as awkward as before.