LOGIN"You still smell the same… You must like this cologne that much." Alex whispered behind her ear, his warm breath sending an involuntary shiver down her spine. "You don’t remember me," he murmurs, his fingers tilting her chin until their eyes locked. "But I never forgot you." Ariel’s breath hitches. His touch is hauntingly familiar. Then he leans in again, his voice a dark whisper. "I assumed only I could make you feel this way." Ariel Richmond’s life was shattered the night she was betrayed. Drugged by her fiancé and sister, she woke up to a reality she had never chosen—humiliated, abandoned, and unknowingly carrying the child of a stranger. Fleeing to Spain, she built a new life, determined to leave the past behind. Alexander Lucas never forgot her. The ruthless billionaire, known for his cold detachment, spent years searching for the woman who vanished after their one fateful night. Fate brings them back together in the cruelest way possible—Ariel, desperate to save her son, enters a contract marriage with Johny Lucas… only to discover that his stepbrother is Alexander. Now, trapped between the man who unknowingly changed her life and the husband she never wanted, Ariel must navigate a tangled web of secrets, power, and a past that refuses to stay buried.
View MoreThe parking lot air was bitter, the kind of cold that sank into your bones and made every breath feel sharp. The fluorescent lights still buzzed overhead, flickering faintly, casting long shadows over the cracked pavement. Ariel stood still, her coat pulled tight around hermDario was only a few steps away. He stood still, calm and composed. He watched her with a predator’s patience. But it wasn’t him that held her attention.It was Max.The thought of what he must been through, the constant desperation to be free from Dario's shackles“Young lady?” Dario called, straining her out of her daze. “I'll tell you about the dirt I got on Lucas Enterprise.” “My name is Ariel Richmond,” she began, her voice steady on the surface, though tremors rippled just beneath. “I met Johnny Lucas at my place of work while I was in Spain. He for some reason to a liking to me and...”She didn’t look at Dario as she spoke. Her gaze remained fixed on Max, like an anchor keeping her from drifting into t
The hour was late, and most of the city had gone to sleep, but Johnny hadn’t, he couldn't infact.He stood in his study, his jaw clenched, one hand resting on the edge of the desk as his security team gave him the same answer for the fifth time.“No, sir. We haven’t been able to track her since she stepped in Alpha Corp earlier in the day.”He ended the call without a word, the phone hitting the desk with a sharp thud. His eyes burned with deep frustration. He could feel a sick twist of intuition recoiling in his chest. Ariel was gone… again.She had slipped through the penthouse, just like before, and now her phone was off, no camera feed had her in sight, and no one knew where the hell she was.He should’ve never let her out of his sight, not even for a spilt second. Who knows where she coud be right now, or what she was doing?He yanked his coat off the hook, shoving his arms into the sleeves with a practiced fury. His keys jingled as he stormed out of the penthouse, nearly knoc
The mirror stared back at her, but Ariel wasn’t looking at her reflection, her mind was focused on trying to calm her nerves for a situation-changing steps she was about to take. He wore her soft pink lipstick, a sleek black coat, her hair pulled back with surgical precision. She’d stayed tucked away in the hotel ever since her encounter at Alpha Corp earlier today. She knew if she returned to Johnny's penthouse, he'll put her on permanent lock down, especially if he knew he went to Alpha Corp. She hadn’t told anyone what had happened there with Alexander and what they discussed, not yet. Some things were better left in the shadows, just like the war she was preparing to walk into now.Her phone just then buzzed once. An encrypted message appeared on her screen. It was just a location and a time. It was the same location as last time, and it was in thirty minutes. The meeting was on. Dario was ready to see her.Good, she was this close to finally getting her son back. She
The hotel room felt colder than before, though the air conditioning hadn't changed. Elena stood frozen in the center of the suite, her arms wrapped tightly across her chest and her fingers digging into her sleeves. She had been at her hotel for a few hours now, but she could only still hear the echos of Liam’s voice in her head. “Get off my porch before I call the cops.”Not even a chance to speak. He didn't bother to ask questions, or show a little curiosity or at the very least sympathy for his missing child. It was just a stone-faced rejection and a slammed door right in her face.She exhaled sharply, pacing in tight circles across the plush carpet. It was the worst-case scenario—and somehow, it had played out exactly as she feared.Her jaw clenched.She had needed him to corporate so badly she really needed his story, his perspective, his anger, not because she cared, but because his truth was the missing bullet in the chamber she was ready to fire at Johnny.Johnny had a patt
Ariel sat alone in the farthest booth of the café, her untouched tea had turned cold.The steam had long stopped rising, just like her hope.She managed to convince Johnny to let her go out again, although she had escort, in the form of two bodyguards standing by car parked outside. Outside, the
The hallway smelled faintly of bleach and fried oil as Luis stepped off the elevator of his hotel and headed toward his room with effortless strides.He reached into his pocket for the key card, his mind still fogged with the weight of the day, it was yet another normal day of work. He did everythi
Ariel stood in front of the bathroom mirror, staring at her own reflection like it might give her the answers she couldn’t find anywhere else. Her eyes were filled with exhaustion, dark shadows showed beneath them, as a sign of fatigue. She'd deprived herself of sleep for a few days now. She cou
The door to Alexander’s office shut behind Kelvin with a weight that settled deep in his chest. He didn’t stop walking as he left, he now had a delicate task assigned to him. Every stride he took was precise, his jaw clenched tight as he moved through the corridor and out of the building.The Veg






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