Bound to the Mafia king

The pen was cold between my fingers, like it knew this was the end. “Sign here,” his lawyer said, sliding the papers across the table. Daniel didn't even look at me. His hands rested on the thighs of the woman beside him – the same woman he swore was “just a friend” when I asked. She was wearing my favorite shade of red lipstick. My shade. I wanted to claw it off her face. Instead, I smiled – sweet, poisonous – and pressed my name onto the paper. It was the last time I'd ever sign his last name. Three years ago, I thought I was marrying my forever. I left my family's world – the money, the power, the security – to prove I didn't need the Harrington fortune to be loved. I chose him over everyone who warned me. Over my best friend, my career, even myself. And here I was, traded for a shinier toy. When my pen left the page, Daniel finally looked at me. “Guess this is it,” he said, voice dripping with smugness. “I hope you find a… simple life that makes you happy.” I leaned back in my chair, letting my gaze roam over his perfectly pressed suit, the gold watch on his wrist – all bought with my sacrifices. I didn't blink. “Simple isn't in my vocabulary.” His brow furrowed, like he wanted to ask what I meant, but I didn't give him the chance. I slid the papers towards his lawyer, stood, and walked out without a single glance over my shoulder. The air outside the court house hit me like a slap. Sharp. Clean. My heels clicked against the pavement, each step pulling me further from the woman who walked in here. My heart was pounding, but not from grief. No, this was something else. Something darker. Freedom tasted a lot like revenge. Daniel thought he'd stripped me of everything. He thought I'd go crawl into some corner and cry over him. But the truth? He had no idea who I really was – or what I was about to do with my freedom. And by the time he found out, it would already be too late–