Chapter 2

Stella's POV

The rain in New York came out of nowhere, heavy drops slamming violently against the floor-to-ceiling windows of our sixty-sixth-floor penthouse.

The bedroom was pitch black, illuminated only by the flashing neon lights from the city below. Justin pressed me against the cold glass. Behind me was the freezing window. In front of me was his burning chest.

His kisses were wild, almost desperate, as if he wanted to consume me whole.

I tilted my head back, my hands gripping his broad shoulders tightly. As wave after wave of pleasure washed over me, I closed my eyes, feeling this man's absolute, raw desire for me.

Just as we reached the peak, right at the second our sanity was about to snap, a phone suddenly buzzed frantically from the pocket of his jeans thrown on the carpet.

It was Justin's private, encrypted phone.

Frustrated by the interruption, Justin cursed under his breath, his eyebrows knitting together. Still, he paused. Keeping one arm wrapped tightly around my waist, he reached down with the other to grab the phone.

The moment he saw the caller ID, I felt his body stiffen. A subtle, split-second change, but I caught it.

He pressed answer, pulling me flush against his chest and resting his chin on top of my head.

Carter's panicked voice came through the speaker, muffled by the loud background noise of a bar.

"Justin, are you out of your mind?"

Justin's expression shifted instantly. He cut Carter off, speaking in fluent, freezing German. "I'm not alone. Speak German."

The other end went dead silent for two seconds. Then, Carter took a sharp breath. He switched to German, though the shock and anger in his voice were still palpable.

"Did you really sign marriage papers with Chloe in LA?"

"What the hell are you thinking?"

"When you got into that car crash and ended up in a wheelchair, your company almost went under. Chloe treated you like garbage. She fled the country to marry some rich guy."

"Now she is divorced, back in town, and needs a legal husband to secure her family trust fund. And you just hand yourself over?"

Those German words felt like frozen icicles piercing through the receiver straight into my ears. My brain instantly translated them into crystal-clear English.

In that single second, the blood in my veins ran completely cold.

An icy chill started from the soles of my feet and rushed straight to my heart.

Justin didn't notice my stiffness. He just unconsciously tightened his grip on my waist, his voice remaining cool and detached.

"Chloe is in a dangerous spot right now. If she doesn't get that trust fund, she will be buried in massive debt. I can't just watch her drown."

"Then what about Stella?" Carter roared through the phone.

"When you were paralyzed, who gave up her career as a commercial pilot to become a risk management expert just to protect your company? Who spent over a thousand hours helping you with physical therapy? She loves you more than her own life. Now you have married someone else. What is she to you?"

Hearing my name, Justin's breath hitched. A trace of impatience crept into his tone. "I'll keep this from her. Once Chloe's crisis is resolved, we'll get a divorce. As for Stella... I'll give her the grandest wedding in a few months. She won't care about a piece of paper."

"How long do you think you can hide this? If she finds out..."

"She won't," Justin cut him off coldly. "Keep your mouth shut. Don't tell a soul."

With that, he hung up and tossed the phone back onto the carpet.

He leaned down, kissing the side of my neck again. His warm lips tried to soothe me, and his movements became passionate once more.

"Sorry, babe. Just a quick emergency with the company," he whispered hoarsely against my ear.

I didn't say a word.

I just kept my eyes wide open, staring at the reflection of our tangled bodies on the glass window.

Justin had no idea.

During the years he was paralyzed, in order to help him understand the medical files from top German neurosurgeons, I had stayed up late for six months straight just to learn German.

So I had understood every single word he just said to Carter.

To save his ex, he married her.

And he planned to use a fake, legally void wedding to deceive me, the woman who had stood by him for five years.

My body kept moving with his.

We even reached the peak together at the very end. Panting, Justin carried me back to the bed, kissing my forehead gently, as if I were a precious gem.

"Stella, I love you," he murmured, eyes closed in satisfaction.

I stared at the ceiling. My eyes burned, but not a single tear fell.

I forced a faint smile, my voice as quiet as a whisper. "Yeah. I know."

I knew he loved me.

But I also knew his love for me would always play second fiddle to Chloe.