Rivals In Love
I was eighteen when I'd given my heart to Julian Thorne, friend of my father and a silver-haired god who ruled the city. He'd laughed, called me a child, and then exiled me to Europe.
Five years later, I returned, no longer a naive princess but a desperate pawn, destined to be sold into an abusive marriage to save my bankrupt family.
Julian was the only key to my cage.
He agreed to save me. He bought my father's debt and claimed me as his own. His price was my submission-my body in his bed, my life under his thumb.
All along, I'd thought I was playing a game of seduction to survive, when, in fact, Julian was playing a game of war. And when I found out he used our nights to steal my inheritance and destroy my family, I ran. I disappeared, faked my own death, and took the one thing he could never reclaim his son.
Three years of freedom reduced to naught the instant he found us. He dragged me back into his gilded cage, intent on revenge. But before his vengeance could take root, a rival's sabotage put him in a coma.
The moment Julian opened his eyes, he remembered his empire, his rivalries, his treacherous ex-fiancée, Seraphina. He remembered everything.except the woman he'd risked his life for, and the son who carried his eyes.
Now, I am trapped: in a fight with a forgotten man, haunted by the ghost who swore his love to me in a final dying letter, facing an enemy who wants to eradicate the only thing Julian cannot forget: our connection.
To save myself and my child, I have to make the monster fall in love with me all over again-before his past decides I'm a risk worth killing.
Lire
Chapter: Chapter FourJulian POVIt was noon. My phone rang, and I glanced at the screen to see Silas name. I let it ring three times. Then I answered. "Hello, brother.""You crossed a line," Silas spoke angrily. "She was mine. We had a deal.""You had a deal with a bankrupt man,” I said. "I made a better offer.”“It isn't about the money,” Silas hissed. “It is about the principle. You took her to spite me.”"I took her because I could," I said. "Now, Silas, you must stay away from her. If you come near her, I will release the files on the Macau casino incident.”I smirked as he stopped speaking. His breathing became labored on the other side of the phone. "You wouldn't.""Try me!" I dared."Fine," Silas said. "Keep the girl. She is broken anyway. But this isn't over, Julian. You think you've won. But you're welcoming a Trojan horse into your home. She is a Vane. She will betray you. It is in her blood.""I'm aware," I said, then hung up.I glanced back at the monitor. Dahlia was now sitting on the couch.
Dernière mise à jour: 2026-02-27
Chapter: Chapter ThreeDahlia's POV Inside the limousine was quiet. Julian sat across from me. He was holding a glass of scotch. He had poured himself a glass as soon as we got in.He was typing on his phone, and I was fixed on the tinted glass of the train window."Stop fidgeting," Julian urged, without glancing up from the screen.I froze. I didn't realize that I was twisting my dress. "I am nervous."You should be," he said. He finally locked his phone and put it down. He looked at me. His eyes were dark in the dim light of the car. "You just sold yourself to a man who hates your family," he explained."You agreed to the deal," I said."I did," he said. "Because I want to see Marcus Vane's face when I tell him I own his debt. And his daughter.”I glanced down at my hands. "Is that all that I am, merely something that would otherwise harm my father?"Julian leaned forward. "The space between us narrowed, the air thickened. "You tell me, Dahlia. You came to me, offered your body, your life. Did you expec
Dernière mise à jour: 2026-02-27
Chapter: Chapter TwoJulian's POV The champagne tasted cheap. But it wasn't exactly cheap. It was a Dom Pérignon. But tonight, everything tasted like ash.I stood on the balcony that overlooked the Plaza Hotel's ballroom. Down below, there were hundreds of people scurrying about like ants. They were New York's elite. They were worth millions in their collection of diamonds and silk. And the majority of them were fakes."You look like you want to murder someone," a voice said.I didn't turn. I knew the voice. "Hello, Seraphina."She came walking up alongside me, wearing a red dress, with her hair down, cascading waves down her shoulder."Seraphina has always been one who likes to be seen.""You should smile, Julian," she said, resting a hand on my arm. Her nails were brightly colored. "You're the one with the party. Everyone is looking at you," she explained."That's the point," I said, taking a sip of my glass of champagne."Have you heard the news?" she asked. Now her tone sank. It became conspiratorial
Dernière mise à jour: 2026-02-27
Chapter: Chapter OneDahlia POVThe check was on the table, right next to the whiskey glass my father held.I stared at the paper, the number on it making my stomach turn. Five million dollars."Is that it?" I asked.Marcus Vane, my father did not look at me but at the whiskey. He swirled the liquid slowly. "It is enough to keep the creditors away for another month. Maybe two.""You sold me," I voiced.He finally looked up, his face red and sweaty; he looked much older than fifty-two. "Don't be dramatic, Dahlia. It is a marriage, and with someone powerful. Silas is a good man.""Silas Thorne is a monster," I said. "He put his last assistant in the hospital. Didn't he kill his first wife?"That never happened," my father snapped. He downed the drink. "It was just a rumor. Dahlia you're twenty three with no job, no money and have been living off my charity since you came back from Europe. It's fine you paid your way.Charity? Since when did training your child become a charitable case?"I won't do it," I sa
Dernière mise à jour: 2026-02-27
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