Tricked in a Marriage with the Ruthless CEO

Chapter 1: Let Her In

In office number 66 of Lennox Companies, a handsome thirty-one-year-old man reviewed his documents with the gravity of a cold, calculating king.

Draco Lennox sat there going over everything as always — meticulous and perfectionist to the core.

His assistant Milan walked in looking pale and rattled. He hadn't seen this coming.

Draco looked up at him, waiting for him to speak, though his assistant seemed to have gone mute.

"Talk," he said flatly.

"Sir, it's... it's Miss Victoria Levin. The younger sister of... your ex-girlfriend," Milan managed, doing his best not to stutter.

Victoria was the younger sister of Draco's former fiancee, Virginia Levin. Five years ago, Draco and Virginia had been in love for several years, but on the day of their wedding, Virginia ran off with her personal trainer from the gym, leaving him standing at the altar. In retaliation, the powerful man had driven the Levin family to ruin — especially since Virginia's parents had known about her plans and said nothing. Victoria, however, had been living abroad with her maternal grandmother during that time, studying there ever since she turned twelve. Her relationship with her mother Carolina had been terrible. She refused to be a doll on display like her older sister, who was twelve years her senior. Victoria had always been fiercely independent, with her own ideas about who she was, and being an obedient, submissive woman was simply not in her nature. Though she was shy and gentle by temperament, she was also stubborn and headstrong — and that had sparked an all-out war at home. It got so bad that her father Mirko decided to send Victoria to live with his mother-in-law. His wife had resorted to hitting their rebellious daughter to try to break her, and it couldn't go on like that.

Draco had seen little Victoria a few times. When he first started dating her sister, Victoria was exactly eleven years old. By the time the wedding was supposed to happen, she was fifteen, but they barely crossed paths that day. Victoria was whisked out of the country immediately by her father. He knew what was coming — and it did. They went bankrupt and moved abroad to try to survive. Despite Carolina's objections, Mirko refused to go to his mother-in-law's house. He didn't want to drag Susana, his wife's mother, into the mess, and it was also for Victoria's sake. She was doing well there — she had everything she needed, even if not in abundance. At least she had stability.

Now Draco was more than puzzled by the visit. His brows furrowed in confusion, and he assumed she must want money or some kind of compensation for what had happened. And yet, something in him made him accept the situation.

"Let her in," he said, his voice deep, almost guttural, startling his assistant.

"Yes, sir. Right away," Milan replied, a little frightened about what might happen to the poor young woman.

Draco went back to his papers until he heard a soft but warm voice.

"Hi, brother-in-law. It's good to see you after all this time," she said, making every hair on Draco's body stand on end. He was about to snap at her for calling him that when he looked up — and what he saw struck him speechless.

Standing in the middle of his office was a beautiful young woman with hair as dark as night, stunning eyes somewhere between gold and green that shone against her snow-white skin.

Who is this damn doll? Draco thought, unable to process what he was seeing. This was Virginia's little sister?

"Draco, I'm Victoria. Virginia's sister. I know you don't want anything to do with my family after what happened, but I need a favor. I'd just like you to hear me out, please," she said, polite and composed, though she looked a little uncomfortable with the situation.

"Well, well. Just call me Draco — I'm not your brother-in-law anymore, and I never will be again. Now tell me, what's going on?" the man said with irritation, though his eyes couldn't stop taking in the beauty standing before him. There was nothing left of the scrawny, loud, mischievous little girl he'd known years ago.

"W-well, I've been studying here for two years, but I'm only on a scholarship, and I've been having problems with some students and professors. You know how it helps to have a patron — someone backing you so they don't get rid of you. Well, I need your help with that. I was wondering if you could talk to the dean and tell him you're my sponsor. I have good grades, but there's a student who does everything she can to make me lose my scholarship. She's even gotten one of my professors to lower my exam scores. I've complained, but no one helps me. In short, I'm the campus charity case," Victoria said, looking at him anxiously.