He Wanted a Wife in Name Only—Until She Became the One Woman He Couldn’t Lose

The car ride home was silent. Victor stared out the window, his expression dark and brooding. Lena wanted to ask questions, but she could not find the words.

Back at the villa, Victor dismissed the security detail and led Lena straight to their suite. Once inside, he poured a drink and drained it in a single swallow.

“I should have known he would try something,” he muttered. “Alessandro always was an opportunist.”

“What happened between you 2?”

Victor poured another drink, then surprised Lena by pouring one for her as well.

“My sister,” he said. “Giuliana. Alessandro was engaged to marry her 15 years ago. It would have united our families and strengthened both organizations.”

“What happened?”

“She fell in love with someone else. A civilian. No connections to our world. She wanted out.”

Victor’s expression was bleak.

“I helped her escape. New papers. A new life in Canada. Alessandro felt betrayed. He has never forgiven me for choosing my sister’s happiness over a strategic alliance.”

Lena processed that.

“You helped her leave?”

“She is my sister. Of course I helped her.”

“But you will not let me leave.”

The parallel hung in the room.

Victor’s eyes met hers, and something flickered there. Guilt, maybe. Recognition.

“You are my wife, not my sister. The situations are different.”

“Are they?” Lena set down her untouched drink. “You helped someone you love escape this world, but I am trapped here. You do not love me. That is the difference.”

“Neither did she love Alessandro. That is why she ran.”

Victor’s jaw tightened.

“This conversation is over.”

“Of course it is. You cannot have me pointing out your hypocrisy.”

He moved quickly, crossing the space between them in 2 strides and gripping her arms. He did not hurt her, but his hold was firm enough to make his point.

“You want to know the real difference, Lena? Giuliana was born into this life. She understood the risks and consequences. You are an innocent caught in circumstances beyond your control. If I let you go, you would run straight home and never look back. Alessandro and others like him would follow you there. They would use you to get to me. So yes, you are trapped here. But it is for your own protection.”

“That is a convenient excuse.”

“It is the truth.”

He released her and stepped back.

“I am not the villain in this story, Lena. I am the only thing standing between you and people far worse than me.”

“You are still a monster. You just admitted it.”

“Yes,” Victor said, his eyes blazing. “I am a monster. But I am your monster. In this world, that matters more than you know.”

He left her standing there, disappearing into his dressing room and closing the door with controlled force.

Lena sank onto the edge of the bed, her hands shaking.

The encounter with Alessandro had cracked something open. Victor’s world was even more dangerous than she had understood, filled with grudges, violence, and people who would use her as a weapon without hesitation. Victor, complicated, violent, controlling Victor, was apparently the only thing standing between her and that danger.

When he emerged 20 minutes later, he had changed into sleep clothes and his expression had cooled to neutrality. He climbed into bed without looking at her.

Lena changed in the bathroom and joined him. The routine had become familiar enough to feel almost normal.

They lay in the darkness, the space between them charged with everything unsaid.

“I am sorry,” Victor said finally.

Lena blinked in surprise. She had never heard him apologize before.

“For losing my temper,” he continued. “Alessandro brings out the worst in me. He always has. But I should not have grabbed you like that.”

“You did not hurt me.”

“Still. It was inappropriate.”

He turned onto his side to face her, visible in the moonlight.

“I meant what I said about protecting you. That is not a lie.”

“I know.”

And strangely, she did. Victor was a lot of terrible things, but he seemed to keep his promises.

“Can I ask you something?”