Chapter 6 This Is Your World

In the end, Maverick took me back to my gilded cage. He wasn't as furious as I had imagined. In fact, he was… strangely nice. Except, of course, I couldn't leave the villa, couldn't see the baby, and couldn't contact Noah. I lived like a walking corpse. A week later, it happened. It was Delmonta's Independence Day gala, and Maverick, as the celebrated hero, had to attend. To flaunt his prize, he forced me to be his plus-one for the evening. The gala was on the top floor of the Delmonta Grand Hotel—where the air was perfumed, gowns glittered, and glasses were clinked. Everyone was there to flatter him, calling him Delmonta's guardian. He wrapped his arm around my waist, chest puffed up with pride. "See, Louise?" he whispered in my ear. "This is the world meant for you. That shabby house and useless sucker? Just think of it as a nightmare." I stared blankly at the scene, a wave of disgust rising in me. Then, the grand doors of the ballroom suddenly slammed open with a loud bang.