Chapter 1
Honestly, my arranged husband’s diary is more dramatic than a prime-time soap.
Me, a laid-back rich girl forced into a business marriage, only had one goal: keep things strictly transactional with my contract husband, stay out of each other’s way, and divorce after two years with a fair split of the money.
But on our wedding night, my supposedly cold and abstinent husband got drunk and insisted on becoming sworn brothers with me. Then, clutching my arm, he cried out in anguish. “Bro, why are you wearing my wife’s wedding dress?”
Speechless, I dragged him back to the bedroom, and accidentally discovered a diary hidden beneath his pillow.
The moment I opened it, one line made me question my entire existence.
*****
On my wedding night...
I, Sarah Sawyer, was sitting alone in our 200-square-meter wedding apartment, wondering what I was doing with my life.
Sonny Knight and I registered our marriage at 9 a.m., held the ceremony at 7 p.m., and now it was 10 p.m.
We'd barely said ten words to each other.
Five of those were "I do" and "hello."
It was totally normal.
It was a business marriage, a trade of interests. The Sawyer family needed the Knight family's funds, and the Knight family needed our connections in Davern City.
Sonny and I were just the two most insignificant extras in this deal.
The only thing I knew about him was from a financial magazine.
He was the youngest heir of Knight Group, sharp, cold, and ruthless, 28 years old, and never caught in any scandals. Word was, he didn't care for women.
Perfect, I didn't care for men either.
I just wanted to coast through two years, grab the cash, get divorced, and then go see the world.
"Mrs. Sawyer, Mr. Knight is in the study. He said he has a cross-border meeting tonight and won't be coming home," the butler knocked and respectfully relayed the message.
"Got it."
I was loving the peace and quiet. I wiped off my makeup, slipped into pajamas, and got ready to sprawl out on my massive, luxurious bed.
Just as I lifted the covers to lie down, my hand bumped into something hard.
It was a black leather journal, tucked under the pillow, with a tiny combination lock.
A diary?
Who even usef something this ancient anymore?
I weighed it in my hand, curiosity getting the better of me.
What could the password be?
His birthday? The day Knight Group was founded?
Without really thinking, I punched in my own birthday.
The lock popped open.
My heart skipped a beat.
No way.
I flipped to the first page, and a line of neat, bold handwriting jumped out at me.
[X/X/X, Sunny.]
[I saw her at the Davern City business banquet today. Sarah, the second daughter of the Sawyer family.]
[White dress. Long legs.]
[Hot damn.]
I was stunned.
I kept rereading those two words, over and over again.
Hot damn?
Did Sonny, the guy everyone says is ice-cold and totally aloof, really write this?
I tried to calm myself and kept flipping through the pages.
[X/X/X, Sunny, then cloudy.]
[Grandpa said he was going to set me up in an arranged marriage. I was ready to say no.]
[He said the match was with Miss Sawyer.]
[I asked, "Which one?"]
[He said, "Sarah."]
[I can’t control myself anymore!]
[No, I need to play it cool and act aloof. I can't let her know I've been secretly into her for years.]
[I can't let her think I'm easy.]
I completely froze on the spot.
Secretly into me?
For years?
'How did I not notice any of this?
I flipped to the latest entry, written today.
[X/X/X, Wedding Day.]
[I got married.]
[I married Sarah.]
[She looked stunning today. I kept stealing glances at her while I was toasting.]
[She doesn't seem to like me. She barely even glanced my way all night.]
[She wants us to sleep in separate rooms tonight. Is my love life doomed before it even begins?]
[Boohoohoo.]
I stared at that line of "Boohoohoo," and only one thought popped into my head.
This ice-cold CEO... might actually be kind of cute?
Just then, the door burst open with a loud bang.
Sonny staggered in, smelling like a brewery, his tie all crooked and two buttons undone on his shirt. That drop-dead gorgeous face of his looked totally lost and wronged.
He came straight up to me and grabbed my hand.
"Sarah!"
He gave me this intense look, eyes practically blazing.
"Let's... let's become sworn brothers tonight!"
I was stunned.
"Look, my wife got married today, but the groom wasn't me... Wait, no, the groom was me, but she's totally ignoring me! I'm so bummed!"
He was pounding his chest and stamping his feet as he spoke.
"Come on, drink up! After this, you're my sworn sibling from another mother!"
I stared at the imaginary glass he was offering me, totally speechless.
Then he gestured dramatically at my silk pajamas, acting all devastated.
"Why are you wearing my wife's wedding dress?"
I couldn't hold it in anymore and smacked him on the back of the head.
"Shut up and go to sleep!"
He seemed to have written his script by hand long ago.
I guessed it was my turn to have some fun with it.
The next morning, when I woke up, Sonny was already gone.
The other side of the bed was cold, with just a faint wrinkle to prove he'd actually slept there last night.