The panicked man’s voice crackled through the dark alley, desperate and sharp. “If you dare touch me, I’ll make you pay dearly. ”
“Chill out. You’ll enjoy it in a minute,” a voice purred back.
“You’re harassing a handsome man in broad daylight? ” a new, confident voice interrupted. “Who are you? Where are my guards?
” the man screamed. “The guys outside? I already handled them,” the stranger said calmly, turning to face the woman. “Lucy, your list of crimes grows longer.
Now you stand accused of assaulting a gentleman, as well. ”
“Wait, help me. I’ll give you $100 million,” Lucy begged. “That much?
You’re loaded, handsome,” she mused. “I can help. Beg me. ”
“Please.
Help me. ”
Later, Charles Palmer studied the hotel security footage. “We’ve identified the woman from last night. ”
“Send me the address.
I’m going now. ”
“Mr. Palmer, she was in a car crash after leaving the hotel at dawn. Her body’s burned beyond recognition.
”
He hired a woman named Paisley, a top agent from his uncle Jackson’s organization, to find the mystery woman. But the trail went cold. A year passed. Preparing for his arranged marriage to the Dixon family heiress, Charles was stunned when Hudson, his cousin, showed him a photo from a local market.
“Mr. Palmer, that’s her. The most suitable marriage candidate for you in all of Releda. Evelyn Pierson, 23.
”
“She does look familiar. Have we met? ”
He went to the market and found her, a pig butcher with a sharp tongue and a sharper knife. He offered her a deal: a contract marriage for a year for $5 million a month.
“You’re that billionaire heartthrob,” she said. “Look, you’re handsome, but I have principles. ”
“Don’t talk money between pals. You’re my hubby from now on,” she declared, her eyes gleaming.
On their wedding day, Charles’s family forced a second bride on him—the Dixon heiress, Claire. Everly wasn’t fazed. She confronted Claire in front of everyone, then charmed Charles’s aunts with a tall tale about his love for her pig-slaughtering skills. When his uncle Anthony threatened to disown him, Everly pretended to be pregnant, then claimed she had an incurable disease, only wanting one year with him.
Anthony, moved by her act, agreed to the marriage. “Welcome back to the abyss,” Charles said, leading her into the creepy, 200-year-old Palmer mansion where assassins lurked and his uncle Jackson watched her with a predator’s gaze. Everly, unfazed, saw through the family’s dangers. She’d taken the first payment to cover Anna’s heart surgery, her foster mother, and she was determined to survive.
Hudson tried to frame her for taking a bribe to leave the family, but she turned it around on Jackson. When Hudson told her he wanted her out, she and Charles outmaneuvered him, exposing Jackson’s failed business deal with the Dixons. She was chaotic, money-obsessed, and tough, which only intrigued Charles more. “You’re not a pervert, are you?
” she accused when he woke her one night. “I’m not. I was wondering why you specifically chose me. I thought you were impressed by my acting skills.
But it turns out you were captivated by my appearance. ”
“I’m not selling myself. Let go of me! ”
When Claire came to gloat, bringing a fake designer dress as a gift, Everly humiliated her instead, pointing out the old-fashioned design and then bribing a maid to slap Claire’s own assistant.
“Whoever slaps her, I’ll pay,” she announced, laughing at the results. Charles dragged her along on a business trip to South City, where she promptly ripped the door off his expensive car. “That’s coming out of your salary,” he said flatly. There, she confronted Claire again, warning her with baffling accuracy about fires and car crashes, “I can actually see the future.
Your happy marriage won’t begin until you stay away from the Palmer family. ”
At a Knight family banquet, Charles cornered Mr. and Mrs. Knight, asking about a star-shaped birthmark common to their daughters.
He was desperate to find the woman who saved him two years ago—the one he’d been searching for. As they prepared to reveal their long-lost daughter, Nova, Mr. Knight received an urgent call and was forced to leave. Charles received news that his uncle Jackson was in a car crash, a “coincidence” at the same spot his parents had died.
“We found the driver responsible for your parents’ accident,” a contact told him. But when they arrived, the man was gone. To get her mind off things, Charles took her to the office, where she auctioned off the chance to deliver his coffee to eager employees. “Next up for auction is the chance to deliver snacks to our Mr.
Palmer. Only three spots today. Starting at $500! ”
“You’re auctioning me off?
” he said, stunned. “You’re talking behind my back? ” she shot back with a cheeky grin before feigning innocence. He grew more protective of her, buying her expensive gifts and taking her to a romantic dinner for his birthday.
After drinking too much wine, she mumbled, “That fake husband of mine, he’s always thinking about finding that Knight family heiress. He doesn’t care about me at all. ”
“I care about you. I won’t look for her anymore, okay?
”
“You’re lying. I’m just a butcher’s daughter. ”
They spent the night together, and the next morning, she accused him of taking advantage of her while she was drunk. “Don’t you know winning me over could get you more money?
”
At a critical company meeting, the timing was perfect. The phone in Everly’s bag vibrated, and the room heard Jackson’s recorded voice: “Even if he finds him, I’ll make sure the driver stays silent. ” With Jackson exposed as a traitor and his whole operation crumbling, Charles walked up to her. “Everly, why can’t you just give me another chance?
”
“I’m done. It’s over. ”
But when Jackson, the real mastermind, escaped with his remaining guards, Charles’s plan was exposed as a ruse. He had staged his own defeat—the lost project, the accusations, Everly’s seeming betrayal—all to lure Jackson into revealing his hand.
“I knew you were innocent the entire time,” he told her. “You knew! You suspected me, and you pushed me away! ”
“I had to protect you from Jackson and his father.
Please, Everly, understand. ”
“You used me! ”
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. I promise I won’t fight back.
Hit me, if you want. ” He closed his eyes, waiting. But when he opened them, she was gone. After a few days, he tracked her to her foster mother Anna’s home, but she refused to see him.
He camped out in the rain with a speaker, playing her favorite songs until Anna, softened by his determination, let him in. “Everly, I know you’re angry, but just give me a chance to explain. ”
“I’m not willing to listen. ”
“Then let me win you over again.
I won’t leave until I do. ”
Frustrated, his family and friends intervened. Claire, no longer angry, came to his defense. “Charles, just leave her alone for a while.
She needs space. ”
“Men are only welcome in my life when I say so,” Everly told her mother with a firm voice. As time passed, Everly returned to her old market stall, selling pork. Charles began showing up, asking to learn the trade.
“If one day I went to the market with you to sell pork, we’ll be a team,” he said, handing her a knife. Everly almost smiled, but she stopped herself. “Don’t get in my way, you fool. ”
He didn’t leave.
Instead, he walked into her stall, put on a pair of rubber boots, and began shouting in his expensive suit, “Fresh pork! Get your fresh pork here! ”
“Is that a new trick of yours? ” she asked, a rare smile escaping.
“I’ll do anything to win you back. Even become the best pork seller in Releda. ”
“You’re impossible,” she said, shaking her head. “And you’re the most impossible woman I’ve ever met.
That’s why I love you. ”
One afternoon, he appeared with a bouquet. “Everly, I’ve taken all the classes. Nanny training, parenting workshops, everything.
I just want you to take pity on me and let me experience the joy of being a father. ”
Everly choked on her drink. “Are you insane? We’re not even—”
The next morning, she found him standing outside her door, holding a black tuxedo.
“What do you think you’re doing? ”
“Today, we’re getting the license,” he said simply. “I’m still in my pajamas. ”
“You look perfect.
Let’s go. ”
At the registry office, a clerk asked for her ID. He handed over a folder. Inside was the original contract, marked “VOID” in red ink, and a new document: a marriage certificate application.
“You planned this,” she said, looking at him. “I told you I’d win you back. ”
After they were officially married, they spent the day wandering the city with a street photographer whom Charles had hired. “Newlyweds, time for photos!
”
Later, at a family dinner, his grandfather smiled, raising a toast. “To the Palmer family and our new heiress, Nova. ”
“It looks like you’re stuck with me now,” Charles whispered. “I guess so.
But I’m not giving up my place at the market,” she said, leaning into him. “You’re the one who’ll have to get used to the smell of pork. ”
“I can live with that.
“
