Julian Astor and I had been together for seven years. And now, he was finally ready to get married. But what he handed me wasn’t a ring. It was a prenuptial agreement. The terms were brutally clear. After the wedding, most of the future income from the Astor family trust would be transferred to Chloe, the girl he’d grown up with, to support her art foundation in perpetuity. I’d given him seven years of my life. I’d given him a son. And in return, I was expected to bankroll his childhood sweetheart. He’d even told his friends I would sign without a fight. “Elena can’t live without me. Give her the title of Mrs. Astor, and she’ll agree to anything.” He was right. I stared at the agreement, my mind a complete blank. What he didn’t know was that yes, I would sign. But before I did, I would take a very large sum of money. Then I would leave with my dying grandmother, and I would make sure he never found me again. *** Mark pushed a glass of whiskey a......
