Page 56 of Maddening Fixation

At the heart of that inheritance was a rare diamond worth billions—a stone they had purchased together in their youth when they still believed they would one day become husband and wife.

The agreement bound both families.

The woman chosen for me would also have to marry me before she could gain access to the trust fund waiting in her own name.

I stared at the words for a long moment.

Old people.

Making promises.

Binding the lives of grandchildren who had never been asked whether they wanted any part of them.

Then another realization struck me.

Yarina...

She was one of the Sokolov granddaughters.

But she wasn’t the first daughter.

The blood drained from my face.

My chest tightened as though an invisible hand had closed around my heart.

No...

Slowly, I lowered the pages.

My mind raced as a terrible possibility began to take shape.

I slowly lifted my head from the document.

Across the room, my eyes found Yarina’s.

She was already watching me.

Her expression held questions she was too afraid to ask.

Around us, the Flynn family remained frozen in uneasy silence.

Even they seemed to understand that whatever I had just read had changed something fundamental.

I didn’t know who the hell the first Sokolov granddaughter was, nor did I have the slightest desire to find out.

I hadn’t survived ten years in Ravencliff...

I hadn’t clawed my way back from hell...

Only to shatter Yarina’s heart.

“There has to be another way,” I said through clenched teeth.

No one around the table understood what I meant.

No one except my grandfather.

A knowing look settled over his face.