Sold To the Ruthless Billionair

The Price

Seraphina Vale barely slept.

The photograph lay on her bedside table, its edges worn and its mysterious inscription haunting her every time she closed her eyes. Her mother had been dead for seven years, yet somehow, a single photograph had managed to drag her past into a nightmare she could no longer ignore.

Why had her mother been standing beside Damien Blackwood ten years ago?

And what had Adrian meant when he said she was the reason Damien had lost everything?

At six the following morning, Seraphina finally sat up and reached for her phone. She called Adrian three times, but he didn't answer. By the fourth attempt, she received a short message.

Don't go looking for trouble. Some truths are better left buried.

Her heart sank.

Instead of reassuring her, his warning only strengthened her determination. She had spent years believing that her mother's death had been the greatest tragedy her family had endured. Now she was beginning to suspect that the truth about her mother's life was far more complicated than anyone had allowed her to believe.

At eight-fifteen, Seraphina dressed in a cream blouse, black trousers, and modest heels. She slipped the photograph into her handbag and left the house without informing Adrian.

If Damien Blackwood possessed answers, she intended to get them.

Even if she had to force them out of him.

Blackwood Global's legal department occupied the twenty-third floor of the company's headquarters. When Seraphina arrived, a woman in a charcoal-grey suit was waiting near the reception desk.

"Miss Vale?"

"Yes."

"I'm Rachel, Mr. Blackwood's executive assistant. He asked me to take you directly to the conference room."

Seraphina followed her down a corridor lined with glass offices. Every employee seemed occupied, but she couldn't shake the feeling that several people recognized her.

Perhaps it was because word had already spread about Damien's unusual interest in her.

Rachel opened a door and stepped aside.

Damien sat at the head of a long conference table. Nathan Cross, his legal adviser, occupied the chair beside him, a laptop open in front of him. Several documents were arranged neatly across the polished surface.

Damien glanced at his watch.

"You're three minutes early."

"Would you have preferred that I arrived late?"

His eyes lifted to hers.

"No. I prefer people who understand the value of time."

"Then we have something in common."

For the first time, something almost resembling amusement crossed his face.

"Sit down, Miss Vale."

Seraphina took the chair opposite him.

Nathan introduced himself before sliding a thick document across the table.

"This is the proposed marriage agreement. It outlines the financial arrangements, responsibilities, and conditions governing the marriage."

Seraphina looked at the document but didn't touch it.

"Before we discuss anything, I want answers."

Damien leaned back in his chair. "Ask."

"What happened between our families ten years ago?"

His expression changed so subtly that she might have missed it if she hadn't been watching him closely.

"Your stepfather hasn't told you?"

"No. He would rather threaten me with silence than explain anything."

"That sounds like Adrian."

"Did you know my mother?"

Damien's fingers stopped moving against the armrest.

Nathan glanced at him, but Damien gave no indication that he had noticed.

"Your mother and my family were acquainted."

"Acquainted?" Seraphina repeated. "I have a photograph of her standing beside you. You look about twenty-two. That wasn't some distant family acquaintance."

Damien's gaze sharpened.

"You brought the photograph?"

She immediately regretted revealing that much.

"Why? Does it frighten you?"

"No," he answered coldly. "But it tells me Adrian has finally begun to understand the consequences of his silence."

Seraphina leaned forward. "Stop speaking in riddles! My mother is dead. If she was involved in something that destroyed your family, I deserve to know."

For several seconds, Damien said nothing.

Then he stood and walked toward the windows.

"Ten years ago, my family lost a company, a fortune, and nearly everything our name represented. Your mother was connected to the events that led to that collapse."

Seraphina felt the air leave her lungs.

"Was she responsible?"

"I didn't say that."

"Then what are you saying?"

He turned toward her.

"I'm saying that people lied, evidence disappeared, and someone benefited from the destruction of my family. Your mother knew more than she admitted."

Seraphina shook her head. "My mother wasn't a criminal."

"I never called her one."

"But you want to marry me because of her."

His silence was answer enough.

Anger rose inside her, hot and immediate.

"So this is revenge?"

Damien returned to the table.

"Call it whatever helps you understand the situation."

"You're unbelievable."

"And you're running out of time."

He pushed the agreement toward her.

"Your family's debts will be settled once the marriage is legally registered. Your home and the remaining assets listed in the agreement will be protected from the creditors covered by the settlement. In return, you will remain my wife for twelve months."

"And afterward?"

"We separate."

"Just like that?"

"Just like that."

She studied him, searching for some trace of hesitation. There was none.

"Are there other conditions?"

"Several."

Nathan opened the document to a marked page. "You will reside at the Blackwood estate during the marriage. Neither party will disclose the private financial terms of the agreement without authorization. Public appearances may be required to protect the interests of both families."

Seraphina frowned. "What about our personal lives?"

Damien answered before Nathan could speak.

"What happens privately is your business, provided you respect the agreement and don't interfere with mine."

"How convenient for you."

"Marriage to me isn't a fairy tale, Miss Vale. If that's what you're looking for, you've come to the wrong man."

She looked down at the contract.

One year.

Twelve months of living with a man who appeared to despise her family, who knew secrets about her mother, and who had offered to save everything she loved in exchange for becoming his wife.

It sounded less like a marriage and more like a sentence.

Yet if she refused, her family could lose their home, their remaining assets, and the last connection to the life her mother had worked so hard to build.

"Why me?" she asked quietly. "You could marry anyone."

Damien's expression hardened.

"Because you're a Vale."

The words struck deeper than she expected.

She rose abruptly.

"Then find another Vale."

She turned toward the door, but his next words stopped her.

"Your stepfather signed documents ten years ago that helped destroy my family. Your mother tried to prevent what happened, but she disappeared from the situation before the truth could be established."

Seraphina slowly faced him.

"Are you saying my mother tried to help you?"

"I'm saying you don't know the people you think you know."

"And you expect me to marry you while you refuse to tell me the whole truth?"

"I expect you to make a decision based on what you stand to lose."

For the first time, Seraphina saw something beneath his coldness. It wasn't compassion. It was a deep, carefully controlled bitterness that had been there long before she entered his office.

She hated that she wanted to understand it.

She hated even more that part of her wondered what had happened to make him this way.

An hour later, Seraphina left Blackwood Global without signing the agreement.

She walked several streets before stopping outside a small café, where she finally called Adrian again.

He answered immediately.

"Where have you been?"

"Meeting Damien's lawyers."

"You went back there?" His voice rose. "Seraphina, what is wrong with you?"

"I could ask you the same thing! You knew my mother was connected to Damien's family, and you kept it from me."

"Whatever he told you, don't believe him."

"Then tell me the truth!"

Adrian fell silent.

She closed her eyes, fighting the frustration threatening to overwhelm her.

"Did my mother try to help Damien?"

"Your mother made a mistake," he whispered. "And I've spent ten years trying to make sure you never paid for it."

"What mistake?"

"I can't explain over the phone."

"Then meet me."

"No."

"Why?"

"Because Damien will destroy you if you get too close to him."

The call ended.

Seraphina stared at her phone, her pulse racing.

Before she could decide what to do next, a black car pulled up beside the pavement.

The rear window lowered.

Damien sat inside.

"Get in," he ordered.

She folded her arms. "I don't take orders from you."

"Then consider this a warning. Someone has been asking questions about you since yesterday."

Her expression changed.

"Who?"

"That's what I'm trying to find out."

"Why should I believe you?"

He looked at her for a long moment.

"Because whoever it is has already contacted your stepfather."

Seraphina's phone vibrated.

An incoming message appeared from an unknown number.

She opened it.

Her blood ran cold.

She looked up at Damien.

For the first time since meeting him, he seemed genuinely alarmed.

"Show me," he said.

She handed him the phone.

The moment he read the message, every trace of emotion disappeared from his face.

He looked toward his driver.

"Take us to the estate. Now."

Seraphina stepped away from the car. "I'm not going anywhere with you."

Damien opened the door and met her eyes.

"Seraphina, listen carefully. Whoever sent that message knows something about your mother's death that even I don't even know."

Her breath caught.

Before she could respond, he added the words that shattered her last remaining certainty.

"Your mother didn't die in an accident."