Novels by Esther Ernest

AriannaFive years laterThe girl name Arianna had died the night I ran from the Liam mansion. Now the world knew me as Dr. Aria Laurent, an award-wining cardiothoracic surgeon and medical innovator, founder of Laurent Biotech, and the woman they called the miracle queen.I’d built hospitals, developed life-saving technology, and performed numerous surgeries other doctors said were impossible. I had wealth, power and respect. Everything I had once thought only men like Damian Liam could have.But the most precious things in my life were my twins.I adjusted the cuff of my white blazer as the private jet descended through the clouds. Beside me, my son, Leo, pressed his face against the window.“Mommy! The buildings are tiny!” he shouted with excitement.I smiled softly. “They won’t look tiny when we land, sweetheart”My daughter, Lorna, rolled her eyes dramatically from her seat. She had my face, my stubbornness, and Damian’s dark, intense eyes.“Leo says everything is tiny.” She mutte

AriannaMy head snapped toward the door. Damian’s eyes locked with mine, dark and intense. I pushed away from the table and ran as fast as I could. “Arianna… stop!” Damian’s voice thundered behind me.I didn’t stop. My feet slapped against the cold floor. I held my stomach with one hand and my dress with the other. I can’t let him catch me after what I’ve heard.I turned a corner too fast and crashed into a servant. She gasped as her tray fell with a loud clatter.“I’m sorry,” I mumbled, but I kept running.My lungs burned, my chest ached and tears blurred my vision. When I finally reached my room, I slammed the door shut, twisting the lock with trembling hands.A second later, Damian pounded on the door. “Arianna, open the damn door!”The door rattled. I pressed my back against it, sobbing.“No!”There was a long silence. Then his voice came again, calm and cold. “Open it.”I shook my head even though he couldn’t see me. “Go away.”My legs gave out. I slid down to the floor, crying

AriannaI found Damian in a private hallway away from the crowd. Tears blurred my vision as I stood in front of him.“Who is she?” I asked, my voice shaking.He looked at me indifferently. “You already know who she is.”I grabbed the hem of my dress tightly. “Am I just her to replace her?” He said nothing. My heart ached. “Tell me the truth!” Tears rolled down my cheeks.His jaw tightened. “You were never meant to replace her,” His eyes turned cold as ice and I stepped back in shock. “Just play your role as my wife.”My stomach twisted painfully. I gulp, unable to hold back the irritation and the hurt, I rushed to the bathroom, dropping to my knees in front of the toilet, I vomited violently. My throat burned.I gripped the sink and forced myself upright when I was done. I looked at the mirror, my face was pale, my eyes red and swollen.My reflection stared back at me in horror, just then it hit me. I placed a trembling hand on my stomach.“No… No…” I whispered.The next day, I secret

AriannaI woke up in pain. An unbearable ache spread through my body the second I tried to move. I whimpered as the memories of last night flooded back.Damian’s cold eyes, his rough hands against my skin, his cruel voice and the conversation he had over the phone about how healthy I was to carry his heir.I jerked up on the bed and instantly regretted it as dizziness washed over me. The room spun. I pressed a hand on my mouth and forced myself to breathe. This wasn’t a nightmare. I was married, this was my life now.I looked down at the dark bruises on my arm and thighs. Tears sting my eyes, but I blinked them away. Crying wouldn’t help me. I can endure this marriage for Noah.I dragged myself out of the bed and into the fancy bathroom. My reflection mocked me. I stared at my swallow lips, purple marks covered my neck, and my eyes looked tired and empty.A knock on the door made me flinch. A maid stepped in with her head down. “Mrs. Liam, breakfast is ready.”I almost laughed at the

AriannaA loud pounding on the door jolted me awake. My heart jumped into my throat. I sat up fast on my old bed, breathing hard. For a second, I thought it was just a bad dream. Then the banging came again.“Open up!”It was 4:15 in the morning. Who would be here at this hour?Before I even stand, the door burst open with a violent crack.“Ah!” I screamed.Three men stormed inside. They wore black leather jackets and had mean, hard faces. My younger brother, Noah, stumbled out of his room, rubbing his eyes. “Arianna…?”“Get back, Noah!” I shouted, I jumped in front of him, trying to shield him with my body.One of the men smirked in a nasty way and cracked his knuckles. “Look at that, the brave little princess.”My hands trembled as I held Noah behind me. “What do you want?” I asked, my voice cracking.The tallest man stepped closer. “Your father owes us a lot of money.”I clenched my jaw in anger. It was always Dad. I had spent years working three jobs, barely sleeping, just to keep

RileyI closed the door behind me and leaned against it for a second. The plastic crown was still in my hand. I didn’t know what to do with it, my heart was already racing from what he had just said, but I tried to calm my beating heart.Carl’s eyes moved over my face, then the dress, then the crown. He didn’t ask how the night had gone, he just waited.I walked farther into the room and sat on the couch. My feet hurt from the heels I had worn half the night, I kicked it off. “Prom’s over.” I said.“I figured.” I looked at the glass on the table. Carl rarely stayed up this late with a drink, something about the way he watched me made my heart race again.It felt awkward just staring, so I decided to say something. “Neil took me home,” I said. “We… talked.”Carl nodded, he just kept looking at me the way he always did when he was trying to decide how much space I needed.I licked my dried lips and set the crown on the coffee table. It looked ridiculous there. Carl looked away from

RileyMusic thumped through the speakers, and people laughed and dance all around me. Neil held my hand as we walked in. He smiled at everyone we passed. I tried to smile back, but it felt unreal on my face.I wasn’t really there. My mind kept drifting somewhere else. Ava found me near the punch table. She linked her arm through mine and leaned close. “You okay?” she asked. “You’ve been quiet all night.”I forced a smile. “I’m fine, just tired.” I lied.Eve searched my face for a second, then nodded. “Okay, if you need to talk later, I’m here. Between, you and Neil look so good together, everyone is talking about the both of you being the perfect couples.”I glanced in Neil’s direction, he was talking to few boys from basketball team, his gaze flickered toward me and he smiled, I could see those boyish grin on his face, he was handsome, and I felt they were talking about us, complimenting.“Thank you,” I told Eve and watched her disappear back into the crowd, her date was Edwin, our

CarlI stood in the living room, staring at the clock on the wall as I sipped my coffee slowly. It was prom night. Three days had passed since Riley’s birthday party and I had tried my best not to think about Riley.I had kept my mind on Nora, called her more, talked about the wedding plans, even forced myself to think about the future together with Nora.None of it worked, Riley still filled my thoughts.The way she used to look at me was gone after I had pushed her away and rejected her. She had stopped trying to get my attention, she stopped dressing seductively, and she stopped looking at me like I was the center of her world.I should be relieved, I should be happy my rejection had made her lose interest completely, instead I felt emptiness inside my heart and I wish I could ignore it, but I couldn’t.I heard the door bell ring and set my coffee down. Nora had told me she was going to dinner with her sister and was catching an early flight tomorrow for work, so I knew she wouldn’

RileyAfter school I walked home the long way. I thought about texting Carl to know if he would be home early, he had walked out that night, and I haven’t seen him till today.I shook my head, my fingers hovered over his number. I thought about deleting his number. I did neither and tucked the phone in my pocket, exhaling sharply.I got home and pushed the front door, the smell of cooking hit me right away. my stomach have felt hungry after school since I skipped lunch, but it just twisted instead.I was surprised to see Carl in the living room. He was home early today, and he sat on the couch with his elbows on his knees, phone in his hands.When he looked up, our eyes met. I let out a short breath through my nose. He had rejected me last night, I thought he would be away for three days, but he was here.I swallowed hard and wanted to take another step forward when I heard the sound from the kitchen, I froze.I turned to see Nora stirring a pot, she stood at the stove, and wore one o

I walked into school with my head down. My heart still ached from Carl’s rejection. I had expected him to say yes, to kiss me and say he also love me, to say he was going to fight for us, but he had still looked at me like I was a kid who didn’t understand anything and said no.I told myself I wouldn’t cry at school after crying for two days at home. I almost made it.The hallway was loud already, lockers slammed, and I stopped at mine and spun the combination. When the door opened, something soft fell out and landed on my shoe.I lowered my gaze to see a single red flower, the stem was wrapped in a little strip of paper.I picked it up, the note was folded twice. I opened it and read it.“Riley, I’m sorry about the party. I was drunk and stupid. I shouldn’t have tried to kiss you. Please forgive me. – Neil.I closed my eyes, it was the first time recalling Neil after the party, but now my mind turned back to when Carl had rushed forward and pushed Neil away saying I didn’t want him.

Carl“I love you, Carl. I’m in love with you.”I stood frozen as she said those words, unable to get words out of my mouth, unable to protest about her love, well, she left me no room to speak.She rose to her tiptoe and kissed me. I should push her away, I should say no, I should yell at her, but I couldn’t move, the touch of her lips on my felt like feathers to my skin.I had kissed Nora, I’ve kissed other girls before Nora, but no one sent shivers down my spine like Riley’s, none had made my whole body go rigid, none of those kisses made my heart hammer like it was doing right now.She parted her lips with mine, her eyes locked in my wide eyes, her forehead rested against mine, then she slowly closed her eyes.“Kiss me,” she whispered.I clenched my hand into first, trying to ground myself, but I wanted to test what made her lips so special, what made those butterfly go off in my stomach, wanted to have another test of this forbidden desire.My lips brushed hers like I was asking m