After My Groom Gave Me to His Business Partner

The champagne flute trembled in my hand as the string quartet's melody faded to silence. Five hundred of Manhattan's elite turned their gazes toward us, their jewels catching the light like predatory eyes in the darkness. Something was wrong. Caden's fingers pressed against mine with unusual force, his palm damp with sweat.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Caden's voice carried across the Plaza Hotel's grand ballroom, smooth as aged whiskey. "I have an announcement to make."

My heart fluttered. This wasn't part of our plan. We'd rehearsed nothing beyond the customary toast to our future—a future I'd dreamed of since we were children running through Central Park, collecting fallen leaves and promises.

"I stand before you tonight not just as your host, but as a man who has made a difficult business decision." His voice hardened, each syllable landing like a stone in still water.

Business decision? My gaze darted to Phoebe, who stood near the champagne fountain in a crimson gown that hugged her curves like a second skin. Her lips curved into something that wasn't quite a smile.

"After careful consideration," Caden continued, "I've decided that the merger between Evans Industries and Montgomery Holdings will be best secured through a strategic alliance."

The room spun slightly. Strategic alliance? What was he talking about?

"Zelda will be marrying Elijah Bennett tonight."

The words hit me like ice water. Marrying... Elijah? The intellectually disabled heir to the Bennett fortune who stood awkwardly near the cake table, clutching a blue teddy bear?

Gasps rippled through the crowd. I felt hundreds of eyes boring into me, waiting for my reaction. My throat closed, unable to form words.

Caden leaned close, his breath hot against my ear. "It's temporary, sweetheart. Just for show. Phoebe insisted the board needed reassurance about our commitment to the merger."

His hand found mine, lifting it toward Elijah, who approached with hesitant steps.

"This is just business," Caden whispered, but his eyes wouldn't meet mine. "We're still engaged. You know that, right?"

Phoebe materialized at his side, her arm snaking possessively around Caden's elbow. "Congratulations, sis," she purred, her voice dripping false sweetness. "You're about to become a Bennett."

I watched in horror as Caden placed my hand in Elijah's. The young man smiled up at me with innocent eyes, his grip gentle but firm.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, as if he understood my pain.

---

"The papers are straightforward," Marcus Thompson, the Bennett family attorney, explained as he spread the documents across the antique desk in the hotel's private drawing room. "A standard marriage contract."

Standard? Nothing about this was standard. My engagement ring bit into my palm as I clenched my fist.

"Just sign here," Caden pointed impatiently to a line at the bottom of the page. "And here. It's all for show, Zelda. You know that."

I watched him check his watch, then glance toward the door where Phoebe waited. Their eyes met in silent communication.

"Is this what you want?" I asked quietly.

"It's what we