I used to think storms were loud.
Thunder.
Wind.
Rain slashing windows.
But those storms are nothing compared to the silent ones—the ones that happen behind a closed door, between two people who are both trying not to explode.
That kind of storm was sitting right in front of me.
Leon Hale.
My husband.
My contract husband.
His jaw was clenched, his posture sharp and deadly as a blade. He wasn't shouting—the man never needed volume to dominate a room. He just stared at me with those cold, cutting eyes, like he was dissecting every lie I told myself today.
"Amelia," he said, voice low, dangerously controlled, "tell me exactly what happened."
Exactly.
As in the last thing I wanted to relive.
As in the moment I walked straight into the trap Mia set—and nearly fell on my face in front of the entire board.
I rubbed my arms. "It was nothing."
His eyes hardened. "Nothing doesn't make you shake."
I hated that he noticed everything.
Hated… and maybe needed.
I took a breath. "Mia cornered me before the shareholders' meeting. She brought Leo with her."
A muscle in Leon's jaw pulsed.
He didn't interrupt—he never did. He let silence pull the truth out of me like a magnet.
"She said she would expose the… remarriage situation," I whispered. "That she'd tell them you married your secretary on a whim. And Leo—"
His entire body went statue-still.
"—Leo tried to convince me to annul our marriage before the board vote. He said he'd 'save me' from you."
The words tasted rotten.
Leon stood.
Not abruptly. Not loudly.
Just… with purpose.
"Where are you going?" I asked.
His voice was ice. "To deal with it."
I jumped to my feet. "Leon, no—just let it go."
His eyes turned razor-sharp. "I don't let go of people threatening what's mine."
My pulse fluttered.
"I am not your property."
"No," he said calmly. "You're my wife. And I protect what I vow to protect."
The word vow hit me like a blow.
We never said vows—not real ones.
We barely said hello on our wedding day.
But somehow he meant it anyway.
He took a step toward me.
Then another.
Until I had to tip my head up just to meet his eyes.
"You think I don't see what Mia is doing?" he said softly, too softly. "You think I don't know she planned that ambush? Or that she wants to weaponize your past, your heartbreak, your fears?"
His hand lifted like he wanted to touch my face.
He didn't.
But the intention itself made my knees weak.
"I know," I whispered. "I just… didn't want you to be dragged into it."
His jaw tightened. "You don't shield me, Amelia. That's my job."
Something warm curled inside my chest—wrong, dangerous, addictive.
His phone buzzed.
He didn't break eye contact as he answered.
"Hale."
A pause.
Then his voice dropped several degrees.
"Put them through."
Them.
The board.
I stepped back instinctively, smoothing my skirt, straightening my posture.
Because now we were shifting from personal storm to corporate battlefield.
He hit the speaker.
A chorus of voices crackled through.
"Mr. Hale, we would like clarification regarding certain… rumors."
I felt my stomach twist.
Leon didn't even blink.
"What rumor," he asked evenly, "do you mean?"
"That your marriage was unannounced, impulsive, and possibly influenced by internal employee relationships."
I wanted to disappear.
Fade into the carpet.
Die.
Leon didn't move an inch.
"My wife and I chose privacy," he said, voice calm steel. "As for 'impulsivity,' I assure you nothing I do is impulsive."
Someone cleared their throat. "And the concern that your marriage might have been a reactive decision due to previous engagements—?"
Ah.
There it was.
My humiliation served on a corporate platter.
Leon's eyes flicked toward me—and something like anger sharpened his gaze.
He hated that they mentioned Leo.
Good.
"Let me be extremely clear," Leon said, voice dropping into a lethal quiet. "My marriage is not a reaction to anyone else's actions. I married Amelia because I wanted to."
My lungs forgot how to work.
He continued:
"And if anyone implies otherwise again, they may consider themselves terminated from any future vote involving my leadership."
Silence.
On my side of the line, my heart thrashed.
On their side, I could practically feel a dozen men sweating through their thousand-dollar suits.
"We… understand, Mr. Hale."
Leon nodded once. "Good. Expect us shortly."
He ended the call.
I stared at him.
"You didn't have to defend me like that."
He turned fully toward me.
"I wasn't defending you."
I blinked.
"I was defending us."
My breath hitched.
His eyes softened—barely—but enough to make my heart trip.
"Amelia," he murmured, "stop acting like you're alone in this marriage."
I swallowed hard. "Sometimes it feels like I am."
His expression changed.
Not anger.
Not disappointment.
Something more vulnerable.
Something I'd never seen.
He stepped closer.
He didn't touch me.
But his presence alone felt like a hand on my spine.
"You're not alone," he said quietly. "Not while I'm here."
My throat tightened. "Leon—"
The door burst open.
We spun.
Victoria stood there.
Her red lipstick was perfect.
Her heels are sharp.
Her eyes were venomous.
The woman who walked into his penthouse claiming to be his fiancée.
The storm that began all this chaos.
"Am I interrupting?" she asked sweetly.
Leon's voice turned arctic. "Yes."
She ignored him.
Her gaze locked onto me with a smile sharpened like glass. "Amelia. You look pale. Trouble in the little contract paradise?"
Heat flooded my chest.
Leon spoke before I could. "Victoria, leave."
"Oh, I will. But first—" She stepped deeper into the room. "Leon, darling, you should know your board is planning a private vote tonight."
My stomach plummeted.
"What vote?" Leon asked icily.
"A vote to appoint a co-CEO."
The world froze.
Leon's expression didn't flicker.
But something violent passed through his eyes.
"And who do they want?" he asked quietly.
Victoria smirked.
"Me."
My blood ran cold.
Leon didn't even turn.
"Amelia."
I met his gaze.
Hold.
Steady.
With me.
His eyes said all of that without a word.
Then—
"Let's go," he said.
"To stop a coup?"
"Yes."
I nodded.
I didn't hesitate.
Because somewhere between betrayal, revenge, and an impossible contract…
…I had chosen my side.
Beside Leon Hale.
Even if it meant stepping into the storm.
Even if it meant being burned.
He reached for my hand as we walked past Victoria.
He didn't grab it.
He offered.
And God help me—
I took it.