THE LIE I CALLED LOVE

ONE BED, TWO STRANGERS

Ariella

The first time I see the master bedroom, my stomach twists.

One bed.

I whirl on Cassian. “You didn’t think to mention this?”

He strolls past me, loosening his tie like this is any other Tuesday. “It’s expected. Fiancés don’t sleep in separate rooms.”

“In real relationships, they also like each other.”

“You don’t have to like me, Ariella. Just lie convincingly.”

I don’t respond. I can’t.

Because everything about this room is wrong. The muted gray tones. The massive California king bed. The absence of anything soft or warm.

It’s like him—cold, controlled, and expensive.

He tosses me a pillow and one of his spare t-shirts. “You take the bed.”

I raise a brow. “Seriously?”

“I don’t need sleep. You clearly do.” His voice is detached. Businesslike. Like I’m some house guest, not the woman wearing his ring.

He retreats to the sleek, L-shaped couch near the window and lays down without another word.

I don’t thank him.

But later that night, I find myself staring at his silhouette against the city skyline, wondering what keeps a man like that up at night.

It sure as hell isn’t guilt.

---

The next day, I make the mistake of googling him.

Cassian Wolfe: Tech prodigy. CEO. Ruthless negotiator. Cold-blooded investor.

There are whispers, too—about how he forced a rival company into bankruptcy. How he ghosted a partner days before IPO. One article even calls him a “smiling executioner.”

I close the tab.

I don’t want to know who he was before this lie.

Because if I do, I might start asking myself the most dangerous question of all:

Who is he when no one’s watching?

---

That night, I catch him on the phone in the hallway. He doesn’t know I’m awake.

“I don’t care how it gets done. Buy them out, shut them down, or burn the deal. Just don’t let them near her.”

My heart freezes.

Near me?

I step back quietly before he notices me.

Back in bed, I lie awake for hours, staring at the ceiling.

Cassian Wolfe might be my shield. But he's also the fire.

And I don’t know which one will burn me first.