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"Sometimes, survival means you have to give up the dearest part of yourself—and learn to live with the cost that can never be repaid."
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Keira sat in her quiet office, her mind clear as she stared at the contract on the table. Her left hand held a pen, but her mind was elsewhere. The contract of marriage was signed, and she was tied to Rayan Deveraux—a man she never imagined would be in her life.
Her phone beeped, interrupting the silence.
Keira glanced at the screen. It was the lawyer of her father, Mr. Arif.
"Keira, are you alright?" Mr. Arif's voice was laced with concern. "We received a copy of the contract. Be careful with each step you take. It is no longer a matter of business it is your life now."
Keira sighed. "I know, Mr. Arif. I will be careful.".
She put down the receiver and returned to the contract, her thoughts whirling with the realization that she was a pawn in a much greater game.
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In Rayan's office, tension hung in the air. Rayan walked into the conference room with a grave face. Maxwell, his own attorney, was already seated.
"Rayan, are you sure?" Maxwell questioned, brow furrowed.
Rayan paused, looking out over the city from the floor-to-ceiling window. "Keira is the best. No one is better."
Maxwell shook his head. "But you also know that she's not an easy one to read. What if she strikes back?"
"She hasn't got a choice," Rayan said calmly, not even looking around.
Maxwell scowled, incredulous, but had nothing further to say. Rayan had reached her decision.
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Keira entered her apartment and put down her bag on the couch.
Her phone rang once more—this time her best friend, Sarah.
"Keira, are you sure about this?" Sarah's tone was tense with worry.
Keira sat down on the edge of her bed. "This is not something I'm being sure about, Sarah. This is for my dad. I need to do this."
"But that wedding. do you even know what you're getting yourself into? Rayan Deveraux is not a man you can just trust."
Keira fell silent. "I know. But this isn't about trust. This is about survival."
"Are you sure you can survive this game?" Sarah whispered.
Keira shut her eyes. "I don't have a choice."
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Rayan sat at his office, reading over his latest reports, but his mind kept drifting back to Keira.
There was something about her that disturbed him. He hadn't been able to shake her from his mind since he'd seen her for the first time last night. A shiver coursed beneath his skin—curiosity, maybe something else.
Maxwell entered without knocking. "Still stuck on Keira?"
Rayan glared. "What do you want?"
Maxwell leaned against the table. "You're more upset by her than you're admitting. There's more to it, isn't there?"
Rayan looked away, over to the window again. "It's business, Maxwell. Nothing more."
"If it was that, would you be so torn apart?" Maxwell did not believe him.
Rayan clenched his teeth. "I do not need lectures."
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Later in the evening, Keira was preparing dinner when her phone beeped again.
Rayan's name appeared on the screen. She glared at it before answering after a while.
"We need to talk," Rayan's voice was even, almost clinical.
Keira frowned. "Why? What now?"
"There are unresolved matters," he said vaguely.
"Where?"
"You know the place," Rayan replied coolly. "Tomorrow. 7 PM."
Keira sighed, eyes drifting to the window. "Alright. I'll be there."
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Keira stepped out of her apartment. Her eyes followed the bustling streets, but her mind was far from it.
This marriage plan made her feel more trapped than ever.
But what could she do? This world was no longer hers. She was already there—and she could not get out.
Rayan had acted. She was a pawn in his game.
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Keira arrived at the restaurant Rayan had chosen.
She took her seat at the reserved table, sitting stiffly.
Her hands trembled, although she could not explain why.
A few minutes passed, and Rayan arrived. Handsome, commanding—his presence made the room seem smaller.
Keira, Rayan whispered soft, "you look uncomfortable."
She scowled at him. "Do you have any idea how easy this is for you?"
Rayan sat opposite her, expression neutral. "Nothing comes easily in life."
Her gaze flashed. "You have no idea. You have no idea what it's costing me."
Rayan's eyebrow rose, unblinking. "We all pay something, Keira. Including you."
Her head throbbed. "I didn't sign up for this, Rayan. I don't wish to be a pawn in your game."
"It's too late now," Rayan drawled, no sympathy in his voice. "You're already tied."
Keira's gaze fell and she suppressed tears. "I know."
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The night air bit colder as Keira returned to her flat.
She paused at the threshold, gazing out over the city under a thousand lights. It was deserted—like the city held reflections, but not anything real.
In her own bedroom, her thoughts were spinning.
The conversation with Rayan nagged her, replaying itself, each time more maddening.
What did he really need from her?
She dropped her bag onto the couch and sat on the edge of her bed. Her phone buzzed again.
"Keira, are you okay?" Sarah's words trembled over the phone. "I can't help it."
Keira massaged her face and sighed. "I just… everything's happening so fast. I don't know what to do."
"You need to get out of there, Keira. Something's off. Rayan Deveraux isn't to be trusted."
Pause. Then Keira spoke, "I know. But it's for my dad. If I don't do this, we'll lose everything."
"But what about you? Don't you risk getting lost?"
"It's already too late, Sarah," Keira breathed. "I'm already a captive of this game."
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Days went by and tensions ran high in Rayan's office.
He sat in his chair, gazing at the documents, but his thoughts kept going back to Keira.
Every time her face came in his thoughts, something else started to stir inside of him—something that he was unable to define.
Maxwell arrived, unsure. "Rayan, I know this isn't the best time, but something doesn't feel right about what's going on here."
Rayan looked up sharply. "What are you talking about?"
Maxwell folded his arms. "You're trying to navigate this like you're signing one of your business deals, but I can tell you're furious. This is not about the contract anymore."
Rayan let out a breath. "I understand how to play the game, Maxwell. Keira is merely a pawn in a big game."
Maxwell nodded. "You can delude yourself, Rayan, but you can't fool the rest of us. You do have feelings for her."
Rayan said nothing, looking out the window.
Was it true?
He could no longer pretend otherwise.
Keira was different.
But this feeling, whatever it was. he wasn't quite ready to accept.
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A few days later, Keira faced Rayan once more, this time in a boardroom at Imperium Tech.
The air between them was thick, even though they were now technically married.
They both knew this wasn't a normal meeting—neither of them had the courage to say what they actually felt.
Keira held her bag close as she sat down. "What else is there to talk about, Rayan?"
He gazed at her with that impenetrable mask. "We have to finalize the details timing, money, your position after this marriage."
Keira scowled. "So it really is purely business, then? Nothing at all?"
"Nothing at all," he said softly. "We both understood what this was in the beginning."
Silence.
He just stood there, staring, and she was hollowed out—everything exposed, but nothing making sense.
"Do you actually believe there's something more to this?" she attempted to sound controlled.
Rayan hesitated. "Keira, I'm not a game-player. What we have is real but it's not love."
Keira shook her head, breathing deeply to keep the storm brewing inside her contained. "I'm not something to be played with like that, Rayan."
He had nothing to say.
Sat there looking at her, blank eyes, waiting to see what she was going to do.
Lay back, releasing a slow breath.
"I know why you did it. To keep my dad's company. But that's no reason that you get to use me."
Rayan stood up, stepping closer to her.
The tension mounted but she did not step back.
"What do you actually want, Rayan?" her tone was soft, mastered. "Why are you playing me deeper into the game?"
He looked at her, then cast his eyes aside to focus them on the enormous glass window.
"You're asking the wrong question, Keira. This isn't about you and me. It's about something greater about the future, family, about what matters more than how we feel."
Her anger flared. "So I'm a pawn? A means to an end?"
He stood in front of her once more, eyes slicing but tired. "You're reading too much into this. I never expected you to."
Keira laughed again. "So how am I to interpret it then? It's all about me, and you don't even give me an explanation, an honesty."
He stepped closer.
"Sometimes, Keira, what you're offered isn't what you need. Sometimes you must live with things the way they are, even when it hurts. You understand that. So stop struggling, and think about the bigger picture."
She said nothing just stared at him, between rage and something else she couldn't quite identify.
Something was being hidden.
And she knew… this agreement was not revealing the whole picture.
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End of Chapter 2
"Under pretenses of bargains and cold words, with each step they were pulled further into a game neither of them wanted. They clung to rules penned in darkness, but in every glance, every silence, tension simmered. Not trust. Not yet. But something darker suspicions that gripped, and desires that would not die.
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