Chapter 6: Rule Number One
619 Words
The drive home was silent.
Not awkward.
Not peaceful.
Just…
Heavy.
The city lights streaked past the window while I stared at the diamond ring on my finger.
Mrs. Kingston.
The words still didn’t feel real.
“We’re here.”
Lucien’s voice broke the silence.
The SUV rolled through enormous wrought-iron gates.
A fountain stood in the center of a circular driveway, illuminated by soft golden lights.
Beyond it rose a mansion that looked more like a luxury hotel than someone’s home.
My mouth fell open.
“You live here?”
“No.”
I frowned.
“This is my grandmother’s estate.”
“And yours?”
“You’ll see.”
A butler opened my door before I could reach the handle.
“Welcome home, Mr. Kingston.”
Then he smiled warmly at me.
“And welcome, Mrs. Kingston.”
The title hit me harder than the wedding had.
Inside…
Everything was breathtaking.
Marble floors.
Crystal chandeliers.
Fresh white roses.
It was beautiful.
It was also…
Empty.
No laughter.
No music.
No family photographs.
It felt like a museum.
Not a home.
Lucien noticed me looking around.
“What?”
“It doesn’t look lived in.”
“It isn’t.”
He loosened his tie.
“I spend most nights working.”
That answer made me unexpectedly sad.
He climbed the staircase.
I followed.
At the end of the hallway, he stopped outside two identical doors.
He opened the first.
“This is your room.”
The suite was bigger than my apartment.
Floor-to-ceiling windows.
A fireplace.
A dressing room.
Fresh flowers.
Everything had already been prepared.
I turned slowly.
“You planned this.”
“Yes.”
“For how long?”
His gaze lingered on me.
“Long enough.”
Before I could ask what that meant, he reached into his pocket and handed me a folded sheet of paper.
“What’s this?”
“Our rules.”
I unfolded it.
There were only five.
Rule One: Never lie to each other.
Rule Two: Never embarrass each other in public.
Rule Three: Knock before entering.
Rule Four: If either of us wants to end the marriage after one year, the other won’t object.
Then I reached the last line.
I read it twice.
My pulse quickened.
Rule Five: If you ever feel unsafe, tell me immediately. I’ll protect you. No matter who you need protection from.
I looked up.
“What does this mean?”
His face became unreadable.
“It means exactly what it says.”
“Who would I need protection from?”
He didn’t answer.
Instead, he stepped closer.
Not close enough to touch me.
Just close enough that I could see the exhaustion in his eyes.
“I know you have a thousand questions.”
“I do.”
“I can’t answer them tonight.”
Frustration flared inside me.
“When?”
His voice dropped almost to a whisper.
“The day it’s safe.”
Safe?
Safe from what?
Before I could stop him, he turned and walked toward the second bedroom.
“Goodnight, Sienna.”
I watched him disappear.
Then I looked down at the list again.
One sentence refused to leave my mind.
I’ll protect you.
No matter who.
No matter what.
I didn’t know whether to feel comforted…
Or terrified.
As I closed the bedroom door, my phone vibrated.
One new notification.
Trending #1
THE ICE KING’S SECRET BRIDE.
I tapped the headline.
The article loaded.
Then my blood ran cold.
Someone had already published my entire personal history.
My university.
My home address.
Even photographs of my late mother.
At the bottom of the article…
A single comment had been pinned.
She won’t survive being a Kingston.
⸻
- Writer
