Chapter 3Gilded Cage and Cold Revenge

This wasn't the first time Tiffany had snatched him away.

She was "drunk." She had "fought with friends." She was "being harassed at a club."

She always had an excuse to bring Silas running.

The paparazzi, used to the scandals of the wealthy, were stunned by how much he indulged her.

Once, on a flight to Aspen, Tiffany complained of a stomach ache. Silas ordered the private jet to turn around immediately.

He lost a nine-figure deal that day, but he didn't care. He stayed by her side.

Rumors flew that Silas was simply waiting for her to grow up.

But years passed, and they never became "official."

Meanwhile, every woman who tried to get close to Silas was either blacklisted, disappeared, or had her reputation ruined in the most public way.

Tiffany proved, time and again, that her position was untouchable.

She was the one in his heart.

Until I showed up.

Silas protected me fiercely, keeping me out of the spotlight.

We met at NYU.

I was a finance major—beautiful, sharp, but seemingly untouched by the world.

I was a hard worker, a girl from a rough background who had clawed her way into an Ivy League circle.

He had me investigated.

He found a father with a history of violence and a mother who died young. My background was as clean as white paper.

I was the perfect project: innocent and aspirational.

I’ll never forget the day Tiffany found out about me.

She trashed my apartment and slapped me across the face until I bled.

Silas screamed at her for the first time, shielding me behind his back.

Tiffany wailed, "Uncle Silas, don't you love me anymore?"

His heart softened instantly, and he let her sob into his chest.

"You’ll always be my first priority," he promised.

But men have weaknesses.

Lust is a powerful thing.

To take the top spot in Silas’s heart, I didn't just work on being his "muse." I spent my nights studying how to be his greatest addiction.

Hard work pays off.

When he left me now, he was no longer so decisive.