TOM’S POV Maxwell rolled the pen between his thumb and forefinger, staring at the contract in his hands as if it was calculus or something complicated. Sweat beaded his forehead as he read through the document. I would bet he couldn’t understand a single word in that document. That was what made Maxwell Ford an easy prey. I just wished he wouldn’t waste my time instead. I sighed against the sofa I sat on, making sure to keep a placid smile on my face. I couldn’t give off the impression that the fat ass sitting directly across me irritated the shit out of me. I had gotten the Maxwell contract with a very particular quality I had in abundance. Persistence. Yeah, I knew I was damned persistent. A buddy of mine had informed me that Maxwell was looking for a partner in building ballrooms in Manhattan. The robust man was New York’s number-one event organiz

EVE'S POV  The door to the basement was dragged open. Light filtered into the dark room, slowly, illuminating my surroundings. Blinking rapidly, I raised my head to see Tom's silhouette. He stood at the door. I couldn't see his face, but I could very well guess the look on it. It was the same look he had every time he let me out of the basement.   The look of annoyance. I trembled, burying my face back in my arms. Pain. I felt it everywhere. It trickled in doses into my limbs, flashing whenever I moved, however small it was. I couldn't remember much of what happened after the party.    Perhaps that was because I chose not to remember. It was nothing new that Tom had beaten the crap out of me. I ought to be used to it by now. After so many years, I ought to be used to his slaps, and kicks and punches. I should be used to his tantrums.  

Eve's POV I didn't want his hands on me.   Not after Golden.    I had laid there, perfectly still in bed, allowing myself to think about the one person that made me feel better about myself.    Adam.   The look on his face when he had seen me at the ball that night. Gosh. He stared at me as if I were the only one in the room. As if all that existed in the world was just me and him and everything else be damned.   How could I have resisted not going up to meet him that night? How could I remain in the ballroom, knowing that he was waiting for me? Knowing that he yearned for me.   My body trembled as I recalled the rough, surprising way he had claimed my lips the minute I stepped through that door. As if he had been starved.

Eve's POV  When I had seen Adam, I'd prayed for the earth to open up and swallow me. And like always, my prayers were unanswered. It had been so uncomfortable listening to Tom as he spoke to me while Golden glared daggers at me.   The shock in his eyes when Tom had introduced me as his wife had been evident. To me at least. Tom, however, seemed oblivious as usual, he was rather focused on glaring at me as well.    I knew it was a dumb idea to bring food for a man who didn't give a shit about me. He seemed quite annoyed with me. And that I was used to. What I wasn't used to was him calling me pet names. When he had called me honey, I could swear that my stomach dropped in fear.    I had messed up. That was the only thing I could deduce from his hard gaze when he beckoned for me to come closer. I never should have left the house. The

TOM’S POVI glared at the door after Eve had closed it. What the hell had happened? One minute, I was right in the middle of convincing Mr Stone to invest in the casino and I could swear that I almost had him. He seemed interested. Okay, scratch that, he was interested. I had seen the gears in his mind rotating and rolling trying to figure out what to do and what not, but he was interested. He would not be considering it if my idea didn't have merit. And Eve just had to barge in. Oh, I was furious when she did. Shocked too. Some nerve she had, leaving the house under the stupid pretense of wanting to bring my lunch. Why had she left the house when the driver wasn’t around to drive her? I had asked him to take the car to the car wash that morning. She knew the rules. She could not go anywhere unless her driver was around. And what was the damned security guard looking at when she left? I had told him ex