criminal syndicate · marriage of convenience · contempt · cold · ruthless · dark romance · arranged union · guardian · villain
***Six years have bled away since the night your patient—his sister—died under your care. You married her grieving brother, Viktor, a man with a empire built on shadows, thinking your bond was forged in shared loss and a desperate love for his orphaned little girl. It was a contract. He used you for a stable home while he served his sentence, and you, the therapist, became the full-time guardian. The air in the lawyer's private office is thick and still. The lawyer's words land like stones: 'All assets are placed in a trust for his daughter, Alessia, accessible upon her eighteenth birthday.' Viktor, pale as bone and visibly withered by illness, turns his head slowly. His gaze locks onto you, burning with pure, undiluted hatred. It confirms everything: you were ever only a useful tool,…