She nodded at the bodyguards, and they stood and crossed to the front of the sofa. They grabbed Madison's arms and marched her from the room. She dragged her heels and shouted insults all the way down the hall. Catherine smiled to herself and turned to leave the room. She froze in surprise—Sean was standing at the door.

"How long have you been there?" she asked.

​​

"I just arrived," he said with a smirk. "It seems I just missed your visit with Madison."

"It was a very interesting visit," she said, smiling up at him. "But I am a little bit worried. Are you really going to make Adam marry her?"

"Why shouldn't I?" he asked. "It's what she deserves. Besides, they'll make each other miserable—it seems like a good punishment, don't you think?"

"I guess," she said. "But he's a monster—what if he abuses her? Or kills her?"

Sean smiled again, "Why don't you just wait and see what happens? I highly doubt the wedding will ever take place."

"What have you got planned?" she asked.

He smirked and pulled her in for a hug.

***

Catherine's phone buzzed on the nightstand. She pressed her pillow over her ears, but the annoying buzzing continued. With a sigh, she reached for the phone and checked the screen: 17 unread messages. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she clicked to open them. They were all from Madison. She scanned the messages trying to make sense of the texts.

She read the last text out loud, "Nice try, bitch, but I'm still single."

She shook her head sleepily. Suddenly, she remembered the punishment Sean had thought of. Had it failed completely? She climbed out of bed, slid her feet into her slippers, and rushed downstairs, hoping to catch Sean before he left for work.

He sat at the breakfast table, squinting at his phone as he tapped at the screen. A plate of toast and eggs sat in front of him, untouched. He glanced up as she entered the room and nodded once before returning to his phone.

"Good morning," she said.

"Good morning," he replied without looking up.

"I got some messages from Madison," she said. "She said she's not marrying Adam after all?"

Sean lowered his phone and sighed, "That's right."

"What happened?" she asked.

He picked up his phone and started typing again, "That's what I'm trying to find out. Somehow it seems the Stewart family found the money to meet Adam's demands. Adam took the cash, slipped out of the country on a bus to France, and is now headed for somewhere in South America as far as my men can tell."

"Where did they get the money?" Catherine asked, her head spinning. "They don't even have enough to pay me back."

"I don't know, Sean said grimly. "That's what worries me."

She took her seat at the table, but she wasn't hungry. She stared at the food on her plate, pushing it back and forth with her fork.

"Don't worry," Sean said. "I'll catch him and bring him back here, and once I get my hands on him again—"

Catherine shivered, "Please don't."

He lowered his phone and stared at her with a piercing gaze, "What?"

"Don't bring him back," she whispered.

"Why not?" he asked.

"Because he's horrible," she whispered. "I never want to see him again."

For a moment, she considered telling Sean about the nightmares she still had. About the way, Adam's leering face always seemed to loom in the shadows. The way she was afraid to be alone in a dark room for fear he'd appear in some dark corner.

"But he needs to be punished," Sean said.

"You already took his hand," she replied.

"That's not enough," he replied, his eyes growing dark.

"Then find a way to punish him in South America," she said. "But please don't bring him back here."

She stared down at her plate to hide the sudden tears that sprung up in her eyes. She heard Sean's chair scrape the floor, and then his large hand stroked her back, tracing small gentle circles.

"What do you want me to do about Madison?" he asked. "With Adam gone, her punishment is gone too."

"You'll think of something," she said.

"I will," he agreed. "I have the pictures Adam took of her. And the video she recorded with her ex. He thought he had the only copies, but I have them saved on my computer."

Catherine felt her fear melt away. Her heart hammered in her ears, and her blood ran hot through her veins. She lifted her head and glared at Sean.

"You have naked pictures of another woman on your computer?" she asked.

A smile twitched on Sean's lips, "Are you jealous?"

"What?" she snapped, feeling her cheeks flush. "No, I'm not jealous. I just find it disgusting."

"Oh, do you?" he asked, his smirk growing wider.

"I do," she said.

"Well," he said casually. "I happen to agree. The images are disgusting. But your cousin wants to pursue a career in the entertainment industry. And just think what she'd do to keep those images out of the press."

Though she knew he had a point, her blood still boiled. She thought of Madison's large, round breasts and toned ass. She thought of her cousin's tanned skin and impossibly long legs. She thought of the men who had constantly followed her cousin around, begging for her attention. Her stomach twisted in a knot, and she pulled away from Sean's hand.

"You're cute when you're jealous," he said.

"I'm not jealous," she snapped.

He chuckled, "If you say so."

He slipped his phone into his pocket and headed toward the door. "By the way," he added. "Tonight is Leydon's grandmother's birthday. Do you want to come to the party with me?"

"Will Clara be there?" she asked.

"Probably," he said.

"Okay," she replied.

"Great," he said. "I'll have a courier bring over a special dress for you. Be ready when I get back from work at 6."

She nodded. Though she was upset about the pictures, she couldn't help feeling a flood of curiosity about the dress.