Chapter 82

Silvia The word "Yes" glowed on my phone screen, burning into my retinas like a brand. Just one small word, yet it felt like a boulder crushing my chest, forcing all air from my lungs. So that was it. As long as I fulfilled my "physical obligations" five times a week as stipulated in our contract, Alpha Alpha Sherman would leave me alone. Just sex. Just business. My stomach twisted into knots as the reality of our arrangement crystallized with painful clarity. To him, I was nothing but a debt repayment plan with a body attached. Our entire relationship—from the wedding vows to the tender moments I'd foolishly treasured—had been nothing but a transaction. I stared blankly at Professor Anthony's wildly gesticulating hands as he explained the intricacies of whole-tone scales, but his words might as well have been in another language. My mind was elsewhere, dissecting every interaction Alpha Sherman and I had shared, wondering how I could have been so blind. It's just physical. It doesn'