30 Days of Passion and Revenge

Surveying the expansive room, Lily rose from the bed, gathering her undergarments and blouse as she made her way towards the bathroom.

Ethan watched her through hooded eyes, his gaze darkening. "Change in front of me."

"Go see a doctor if you're sick in the head."

Lily tossed the words over her shoulder, only to have her arm seized in a bruising grip.

She had already agreed to be his mistress; couldn't he give her a moment's respite, just for today?

Frowning, Lily turned to face him, meeting Ethan's fury-filled eyes. His finger jabbed towards her face, and his voice was a low growl. "Lily, I'm warning you. You're nothing more than a mistress. Don't act so high and mighty in my presence."

If she had consented to be his kept woman, why was she still putting on airs? Was this some sort of coy game to her?

"Or what?" Lily countered calmly. "You'll rape me again? Go ahead."

She had already hit rock bottom, her dignity and self-respect were shattered beyond repair. What more did she have to fear?

This woman...

"Lily!" Ethan snarled through gritted teeth. "Don't force me to beat you!"

Beat her?

He was a violent brute on top of everything else?!

"Mr. Blackwood, let's get one thing straight. This is a mutually agreed-upon exchange, a trade of equals." Lily enunciated each word clearly, her bearing regal and unyielding.

"An equal exchange, is it?" Ethan scoffed, retrieving a file folder from a nearby cabinet and tossing it to her.

He would show her the true meaning of an equal exchange.

Strip away her veneer of a privileged heiress, and what value did Lily truly possess?

Perplexed, Lily opened the folder, only to find photographs of Kevin, Korea's top celebrity, locked in a passionate beach-side embrace with Sarah. The photographer had clearly been skilled at their craft, capturing the stars' faces with damning clarity...

It was undoubtedly a scandalous exclusive.

She should have been elated, but instead, Lily felt the sting of tears behind her eyes.

The sordid images seemed to mock her, a cruel reminder that her worth amounted to nothing more than a few tawdry snapshots of someone else's disgrace.

But she had no right to shed tears, not when she had sold herself so cheaply.

Ethan settled onto a nearby sofa, his fingers steepled beneath his chin as he regarded her with a mixture of amusement and disdain. There was no trace of pity in his eyes as he spoke. "Well? Don't you just want to run out of here with that little treasure trove?"

Lily met his wicked gaze in silence, unable to muster a single word of defiance.

"Drop the act. Strip."

He would shatter her lofty demeanor, her pride, her dignity, until nothing remained.

And he would savor every moment of her destruction.

Lily's hands trembled as she reached for the buttons of her blouse, her fingers clumsy and uncooperative. Each one slipped free with agonizing slowness, exposing more of her creamy skin to Ethan's hungry eyes.

She felt like a lamb being led to slaughter, helpless and vulnerable in the face of his ruthless desire.

But she had made her choice, and now she must see it through.

One by one, her garments fell away, until she stood before him, naked and ashamed, her eyes fixed on the floor.

Ethan rose from his seat, circling her like a predator stalking its prey. His fingertips skimmed over her bare shoulders, down the length of her arms, leaving goosebumps in their wake.

"Look at me," he commanded, his voice a silken purr.

Slowly, reluctantly, Lily lifted her gaze to meet his, steeling herself for the cruelty she knew she would find there.

But instead, she saw something far more terrifying: a glimmer of triumph, of savage satisfaction.

He had won.

And she had lost.

In that moment, Lily realized the true price of her bargain. It wasn't just her body she had sold, but her very soul.

She had placed herself at the mercy of a man who knew none, a man who would stop at nothing to break her, to mold her into the perfect plaything for his twisted amusement.

As Ethan's lips crashed against hers in a brutal, punishing kiss, Lily fought back the urge to weep.

She had sealed her fate, and now she must endure the consequences, no matter how devastating they might be.

For the sake of her family, for the magazine, for her own survival, she would submit to Ethan Blackwood's every depraved whim.

Even if it meant losing herself in the process.