Chapter 1

Asher Grant and I had been together for five years, and we were secretly married for a thousand days.

Over the years, Natalie Rivers had built an entire career by posting pictures with Asher, flaunting their so-called romance until it turned her into a massive internet influencer.

"Natalie isn't exactly loved at home," Asher told me. "If those photos help her get some attention and feel good about herself, just let her post them. You know there is absolutely nothing between us."

That was always his explanation.

Then, Natalie decided to completely trash me online, sparking a massive scandal that almost tanked the new television show I was starring in.

Asher stepped in, using his power to clean up the mess.

Afterward, he looked at me and said, "Don't be too hard on Natalie. She just misunderstood the situation. She wasn't trying to hurt you. She knew I'd step in and fix things for you anyway. She was just blowing off steam."

He slid a sleek folder across the table and declared, "Here's your new agency contract. I looked it over myself. There are zero issues."

He had barely set the contract down when his phone buzzed. It was a call from Natalie. Within seconds, he was pulled away, rushing out the door.

Once he was gone, I calmly tore the new contract into pieces and swapped it for the termination papers I had already prepared.

*****

Asher made it home just before midnight, carrying a beautifully wrapped gift and a cake to celebrate my birthday.

I unwrapped the present. It was a stunning necklace featuring a massive pink diamond.

Asher always knew exactly what I liked. He had a habit of buying me these flashy, eye-catching gifts, and there was a time when they would have made my heart flutter.

This time, however, I couldn't bring myself to care.

I pulled out the contract, flipped directly to the signature page, and kept my voice strictly business. "Sign this first. You're heading out on a business trip tomorrow, so I'll just drop it off at the company for you."

Asher let out a resigned sigh, as if he knew exactly why I was giving him the cold shoulder.

He knew that whenever I was upset, my go-to move was to deflect by talking about work.

Without a single shred of suspicion, he took the pen and scrawled his signature across the dotted line.

I picked up the contract and stared at it blankly for a long time.

Asher was the CEO of Starlight Entertainment, and I was one of the top artists signed under his label.

I had originally signed a ten-year contract with Starlight Entertainment, with two years still left on the clock. For any other artist, leaving Starlight Entertainment early was like walking through fire, but for me, it was remarkably effortless.

Noticing that I was lost in thought, Asher leaned in close. "Is something wrong?"

"No," I replied flatly, snapping the folder shut.

Late that night, I lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to find sleep.

Asher stepped out of the shower. When he saw that I was still wide awake, a teasing smile played on his lips. "Still up? Want to do something else?"

I pushed his hands away and rolled over, turning my back to him.

He just let out a soft laugh and gently squeezed my waist.

He said, "Are you mad because I got home late and made you feel neglected? Things were crazy at the office, but I came straight home the second I was done. Come on, don't be mad, baby. Happy birthday."

I let out a bitter laugh.

If it had actually been about work, I wouldn't have held it against him.

But I had clearly heard the custom ringtone Natalie had set for herself on his phone. Yet, here he was, feeding me that tired corporate excuse.

He hadn't even bothered to mention my birthday until the absolute last minute.

Asher wrapped his arms tightly around me, trying to bridge the physical gap between us.

I pulled the blanket up to my chin, murmuring with exhaustion, "Please don't. I'm just too tired."

He paused, his voice softening into a low rumble. "Are you still hung up on that internet drama?"

Hearing him reduce it to "drama" made me tremble with quiet fury. "Did it ever cross your mind that I could have been permanently blacklisted because of what she did?" I questioned.

Before this mess, Starlight Entertainment had routinely fed me to the wolves, pushing manufactured scandals onto the trending lists just to farm engagement and traffic.

The higher-ups in the industry had already singled me out for it. Since I couldn't stop the company's PR machine, I had begged Asher to intervene.

But in the end, Asher chose interest. He let his executives keep manipulating my name for profit.

This time, Natalie had posted a viral exposé accusing me of acting like a diva. She claimed I had bullied a female staffer, caused her to suffer a humiliating wardrobe malfunction in public, and then forced her to quit.

Natalie had posted candid, out-of-context photos, used the staffer's initials, and spun a wildly convincing, dramatic tale.

Because Natalie had a massive following built on her "spoiled rich girl" persona and frequently posted selfies with top showbiz executives, the public bought her story. They dragged my name through the mud for days.

If my new television series hadn't been on the verge of premiering, and if the producers hadn't put immense pressure on Starlight Entertainment to kill the story, the company would have happily ridden that wave of toxic engagement without ever giving me a chance to clear my name.

I couldn't even fathom how much I would have owed in breach-of-contract penalties if I had been officially blacklisted.

Asher gently pulled me against his chest, his voice dripping with forced concern.

"You are my wife. As long as I'm around, nothing bad is ever going to happen to you. Haven't I spent all these years protecting you behind the scenes? Trust me, the company would never actually hurt you."

He wasn't entirely wrong. Starlight Entertainment was the titan of the domestic entertainment industry; there was virtually nothing Asher couldn't make disappear.

Over the years, Natalie had constantly tried to smear me. It started small, like maliciously editing our group photos to make me look hideous, but it escalated to tipping off the paps with outright lies. And every single time, Asher killed the story.

And this time, even with the entire internet calling for my head, he had resolved it just as effortlessly.

It was as if he didn't care at all about the emotional toll it took on me, just so long as the company kept raking in cash.

How did things end up like this?

Back when Asher was pursuing me, he genuinely cared. He would threaten to sue online trolls until they issued public apologies, and he would personally ensure that any defamatory videos were scrubbed from the web.

But simply because the person attacking me was Natalie, I was just supposed to let it slide?