Chapter 1Partners, Not Wives

Gideon and I were once the deadliest duo in our covert ops unit. We breathed and bled together. Then, fate played a cruel joke. During a high-stakes op, we were forced to pose as husband and wife, and the fake marriage eventually became a real chain. He resented me for stealing the title of "wife" from the woman he truly loved. I hated him for marrying me out of duty, with nothing left of his heart to give. For five bitter years, we weaponized our silence, each hoping the other would vanish.

Until the past caught up with us. A cartel we had dismantled years ago came for revenge. They tied me to a C4-wired chair on a yacht and forced Gideon to choose: "You die, or she dies." The moment the shot rang out, Gideon did the unthinkable. Without hesitation, he threw himself over me, tackled the cartel boss, and dragged them both into the icy ocean—opting for mutual destruction.

Before the water swallowed him, he whispered up to me: "If there’s a next life, let’s just be partners. Never husband and wife." Then, the timer on my chair reached zero, and everything erupted in pain.

When I opened my eyes, I wasn’t in the ocean. I was back in the sterile briefing room at headquarters—on the very day we were meant to draw lots for the undercover mission.

This time, I didn’t hesitate. I stepped forward, snatched both wooden sticks from the table, and declared calmly, "Skip the draw. I'm taking the solo assignment."

In this life, I would set him free. I would not be the wall between him and the woman he truly loved.

When my fingers closed around both long sticks, a flicker of surprise twisted my stomach. I looked up at the Director. Arthur shifted his weight, his eyes darting away from mine.

A second later, his expression tightened into something complicated. "Raven, this syndicate is ruthless. Are you absolutely certain you want to go in completely alone?"

In my previous life, Ruby had drawn the long stick first, marking her as the mole. Gideon and I had been paired as her backup, posing as a married couple. Back then, my heart had fluttered at the thought of playing his wife. I was so blinded by my own foolish crush that I never realized Arthur, who had always favored me, had rigged the draw to keep me out of the direct line of fire.

But Arthur couldn't have known his protective gesture would doom Gideon and me to five years of mutual torture.

I gave Arthur a look of genuine gratitude. "Ruby is too impulsive. Her cover would blow in a week. I'll take the inside job."

Seeing the finality in my eyes, Arthur gave a stiff nod.

With me going in deep, the backup roles fell into place. Ruby would automatically pair with Gideon to play the married couple running surveillance.

The moment we stepped into the hallway, Gideon came striding around the corner, his tactical boots heavy against the linoleum.

Ruby’s face instantly lit up. "Gideon!"

His expression was as icy as ever, but his eyes locked onto hers with a gravitational pull. They stared at each other for a beat too long, and Ruby finally looked down, the tips of her ears burning scarlet.

The raw, unspoken tension between them felt like a knife twisting in my chest.

A split second later, Gideon grabbed my elbow and dragged me down the corridor, out of earshot. Behind him, Ruby’s flushed face morphed into a mask of pure jealousy.

"I am completely against this operational plan," Gideon hissed, his grip bruising my arm. "Silas is a paranoid psychopath. He’ll smell a rat the second an undercover agent steps into his inner circle."

He leaned closer, his voice vibrating with barely contained panic. "Ruby doesn't have the miles on her for this. I will not sign off on throwing her to the wolves."

I swallowed the bitter taste in my mouth. In my last life, he had fought just as hard when he thought Ruby was the one going in. He had argued every angle, torn apart every strategy. And when he failed, I had calmly waited until deployment day, taken his arm, and dragged him to the courthouse to make our cover unbreakable.

"You know the protocol," I said, my voice deadpan. "Someone has to get close to Silas. It was always going to be me or Ruby."

His jaw clenched. His eyes, usually so cold and calculating, burned with arrogant certainty. "If Command gives me just a little more time, I can find another pressure point. Pushing a woman into Silas's bed isn't the only tactical entry we have."

I offered him a hollow, pitying smile.

The only reason Command narrowed it down to me or Ruby was because we spent most of our careers sporting buzzcuts and tactical gear. Silas's intel stated our strike team was entirely male. Sending a female operative in high heels and silk was our only blind spot advantage.

"Captain," I said, my tone stripping away years of our partnership. "We are out of time. The op is green-lit. Show up to the briefing or don't. Your call."

I yanked my arm free and walked away, leaving him standing there in stunned silence.

I had no intention of telling him that I was the one going into the snake pit. Let him hear the good news from his precious Ruby. He’d be thrilled to know she was safe.

Gideon, I thought, the neon lights buzzing above me. In this life, I’ll trade the title of your wife for a glass of whiskey poured over your grave.