The Three Blackwoods

POV MADDISON

"You have exactly two minutes, Maddison. And you’ve already spent thirty seconds of them breathing my air."

Ethan Blackwood’s voice cut through the silence of the office like a blade. He didn’t even bother to look back at me. He remained standing right in front of the massive floor-to-ceiling window, staring down at the city skyline as if it were nothing more than his personal backyard.

To his left, his brother Asher was casually spinning a sleek pen between his fingers. He looked up, locking his dark eyes onto me with a heavy, mocking smirk that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

"Let her speak, Ethan," Caleb intervened from the back of the room. The third triplet was lounging lazily on the leather sofa, tossing his head back. "At least the red dress she chose to wear for our little meeting makes the wasted time somewhat worth it."

I clenched my fists so hard my nails dug into my palms. If I had come here yesterday, I probably would have turned around and run out of this skyscraper crying. But yesterday, I was still Richard Miller’s dutiful, submissive wife. Today, I was just the woman who had caught him tangled in our own bedsheets with my stepsister. I had no pride left to protect. I only had pure, burning rage.

"I have forty percent of the shares of Richard’s construction company," I blurted out, taking a sharp, firm step toward the heavy mahogany desk. "I know your family has been trying to hostilely take over his firm for the harbor project for months. I will give them to you for free."

Asher stopped spinning the pen instantly.

Ethan slowly turned around from the window, fixing his cold, calculating gaze on me for the very first time. The temperature in the room seemed to drop below freezing in a split second.

"For free?" Ethan let out a dry, humorless laugh. He walked toward the desk with an intimidating, slow grace. "Nobody gives anything to the Blackwoods for free, let alone the ex-wife of our biggest corporate rival. What’s the catch, Maddison?"

"I want you to destroy him," I said. My voice didn't waver, and honestly, that surprised even me. "I want you to leave him on the streets without a single penny to his name. Take his company, take his projects, and strip him of the legacy he brags about every single day. I want to watch him beg."

Caleb stood up from the couch and approached me with his hands shoved casually into his trouser pockets. He stopped so close to my front that I could smell his expensive cologne—a lethal mix of wood and amber. He tilted his head, a predatory glint in his eyes.

"That is a very expensive request, doll," Caleb whispered, his voice dangerously smooth. "We could erase Richard from the financial map of this city in less than twenty-four hours if we wanted to. But simple company shares don't pay for that kind of personal favor. We want something else."

"What do you want?" I demanded, refusing to back down. I forced myself to hold his gaze.

Ethan stepped up right next to Caleb, flanking me. The physical resemblance between the three brothers was terrifying, but Ethan’s sheer aura was heavy enough to crush the air right out of your lungs.

"Three months," Ethan dictated, his tone completely flat and non-negotiable. "You will move into our private estate tonight. You will live under our roof, you will eat at our table, and you will answer to every single command we give you. You will belong to us, Maddison. In every single sense of the word."

A violent shiver ran straight down my spine. I wasn't stupid; I knew exactly what he was implying by those words.

"And what if I say no?" I challenged, throwing my chin up.

Asher finally got up from the desk and walked over until he was standing directly behind me. He effectively blocked the office door, sealing off any possible escape route. I could feel the intense heat radiating from his broad chest just inches away from my bare shoulders.

"If you say no, you can go right back to your cheating husband and beg him not to throw you out on the street with nothing," Asher muttered gruffly near my ear. His deep voice sent an involuntary jolt through my veins. "But if you say yes... by tomorrow morning, Richard Miller will find out what a real nightmare looks like."

I looked at the three of them. They weren't knights in shining armor. They weren't my saviors; they were wolves. But Richard was the man who had torn my entire world apart without a second thought. I took a deep breath and locked my eyes onto Ethan.

"Deal," I replied.

Ethan’s lips curved into a dark, slow smile that made my blood run cold. He reached into his suit jacket, pulled out a thick manila envelope that was already waiting on the desk, and slid a document toward me.

"Excellent. Sign right here," Ethan said, tapping the paper. "And by the way... your ex-husband is already on his way up. In fact, his ride just cleared the private elevator."