I saved a stranger. Now, I belong to him. Luna thought she was doing the right thing when she helped the wounded man whom she stumbled into on her way going back home from work in the dead of night. She never expected to wake up in his world-trapped, claimed, and bound to a man who doesn't take no for an answer. Hardin DeVante is a kingpin in the business world, a man whose power extends far beyond boardrooms and balance sheets. He's ruthless, calculated, and dangerously captivating. And now, he's decided Luna will be his wife. She wants to fight. He wants to break her. But in the game of power and possession, will she escape... or will she surrender to the man who holds her fate in his hands?
View More"Jennaaa! Pakai baju mbok yo yang sopan! Masa baju kok kaos gombrong sama celana dalam tok iku lho!"
Jenna berdecak sambil memutar mata, lalu menghembuskan nafas lelah karena ibunya selalu mendramatisir keadaan. "Celana dalam apanya sih, Ma? Ini tuh namanya hotpants. Celana pendek," bantahnya. "Ck! Celana apa modelnya kok kelihatan pantatnya begitu? Ganti sana!" "Buat apa sih, Ma? Toh ini juga lagi di rumah aja. Ntar kalau Mas Rangga dateng, aku pasti ganti baju kok," jawabnya dengan malas. Bu Via berkacak pinggang sambil melotot. "Mama bilang ganti baju ya ganti baju! Yang lebih sopan dan tertutup." Jenna tidak menggubris. Masih sibuk berbalas pesan dengan Rangga, pria yang menarik hatinya. Setelah entah berapa kali dia selalu gagal menjalin hubungan dengan lawan jenis, baru kali ini dia menemukan pria yang cocok dengan hatinya. "Nanti sore nggak boleh keluar sama Rangga! Mama nggak suka sama anak itu. Ayahmu juga nggak suka," teriak Bu Via sambil melenggang menuju ke dapur. Perkataan sang ibu membuat mood Jenna hancur. Entah kenapa orangtuanya tidak setuju jika dia menjalin hubungan dengan Rangga. Padahal pria itu baik dan tidak neko-neko. Tidak pernah kurang ajar juga padanya. Hanya Rangga yang bisa membuatnya merasa bahagia, setelah sekian lama dia harus terus memendam kebencian... Ting tong! Jenna menoleh ke arah pintu yang tertutup. Rasanya malas sekali jika harus menghadapi tamu saat mood berantakan begini. Ting tong! "Maaa! Ada tamuuu!" teriak Jenna sambil rebahan di atas sofa di depan TV, enggan beranjak dari tempatnya. "Bukain sana! Mama masih sibuk masak!" Lagi-lagi Jenna berdecak. Dengan malas bangkit dari tidurannya tanpa peduli dengan penampilannya. Paling-paling juga teman-teman arisan sang mama. Buat apalagi ibunya memasak banyak dan berat-berat kalau bukan untuk acara arisan? Ting tong! "Iya bentar!" teriak Jenna dengan kesal. Usia 21 tahun belum membuat Jenna bisa bersikap dewasa, meskipun dia sudah bekerja sebagai resepsionis di sebuah hotel bintang lima. Dengan sedikit hentakan, Jenna membuka pintu. Wajahnya ditekuk karena merasa hari liburnya sudah terganggu. "Ya? Mencari siapa...." Mata Jenna langsung melotot begitu melihat siapa tamu yang tak diharapkan itu. "Mas Arman!" Refleks Jenna melompat ke dalam pelukan kakak laki-laki satu-satunya itu hingga Arman sedikit mundur karena tak siap. Tapi pria itu dengan sigap menangkap tubuh Jenna yang mungil sambil tertawa terbahak-bahak. "Masih kecil aja sih kamu, dek? Mas tinggal tiga tahun aja kok nggak ada perubahan kamu? Masih kayak anak SMA." Jenna tidak mempedulikan ledekan kakaknya itu saking kangennya. Tiga tahun tidak pernah bertemu, karena sang kakak ditugaskan ke cabang perusahaan di luar negeri. "Lho, kok nangis? Nanti hilang imutnya," ledek Arman lagi. Tangisan Jenna malah makin keras. Dia terlihat seperti anak remaja yang sedang merajuk pada ayahnya dengan posisinya yang sekarang. Kedua tangan memeluk erat leher Arman, sedangkan kedua kakinya membelit pinggang pria itu. Sampai-sampai dia tidak sadar bahwa pakaiannya tersingkap dan memperlihatkan...bagian tubuh yang tadi diomelkan oleh Bu Via. "Kakak jahat! Kok tega sih nggak pulang-pulang? Padahal aku kangen banget..." Mata Jenna melotot ketika melihat ada 2 orang lain di luar pintu. Tubuhnya langsung membeku saat itu juga. Matilah dia! Buru-buru dia turun dari pelukan Arman dan memperbaiki bajunya yang tersingkap. Alamak, malu sekali! "Ehem! Eh, ada temen-temennya Mas Arman. Kok nggak ngomong daritadi?" ucap Jenna dengan tertawa canggung. Salah satu pria itu malah cengengesan sambil mengusap tengkuk. "Maaf ya, Jen. Kami nggak mau mengganggu reuni kalian. Kami cuma mau mampir sebentar kok, habis itu pulang. Kangen sama masakan Tante Via," jawab Bayu, pria berambut cepak yang memang sering berkunjung ketika masih masa-masa sekolah dulu. "Oalah, pantesan mama masak banyak hari ini. Ayo, masuk aja." Jenna mengulurkan tangan untuk menyalami Bayu sambil tersenyum ramah, kemudian dia beralih pada pria yang sejak tadi hanya diam sambil menatapnya tajam. Senyum Jenna langsung lenyap saat itu juga, berganti dengan kerutan di antara kedua alisnya yang begitu dalam dan mata menatap tak suka. Pria itu adalah sumber penderitaannya sejak dulu. Pria yang selalu membully-nya, mengata-ngatai ukuran tubuh dan warna kulitnya, serta perlakuan-perlakuan tidak menyenangkan yang membuat Jenna sering menangis. "Ngapain kamu ke sini? Sana pergi!" hardik Jenna dengan hati dongkol bukan main. Kala Lakeswara Wisnuwardhana. Pria yang selalu memplesetkan nama Jenna Sekar Arum menjadi "Sekarang" atau "Arumanis", mengatainya berkulit dekil, bertubuh pendek, bahkan kekurangan gizi. Hal yang membuat Jenna marah bukan main dan sering memukul pria itu untuk melampiaskan amarahnya. Padahal Jenna berkulit kuning langsat. Gara-gara dulu sering bermain di bawah teriknya matahari, kulitnya menjadi gosong. Sekarang kulitnya sudah kembali seperti semula kok, malah lebih bersih karena sudah mengenal skincare. "Jenna, nggak boleh gitu dek," tegur Arman. "Kenapa sih mas ngajak si Kalajengking itu ke sini? Bikin polusi! Harusnya biarin aja dia berkeliaran di luar sana nyari cewek-cewek liar kayak dulu!" sentak Jenna dengan sengit. Satu hal yang membuat Jenna sangat muak dengan Kala adalah itu. Pria itu suka berganti-ganti pacar. Jenna sangat jijik dengan pria playboy. Apalagi pria itu dulu sering mengatai Jenna si dada rata. Hal yang membuat harga diri Jenna seperti diinjak-injak. "Ppfffttt! Kalajengking!" Bayu tertawa kecil sambil memegangi perutnya, terlihat sekali sedang menahan diri untuk tidak terbahak-bahak. "Pokoknya aku nggak mau kalajengking itu ada di rumah ini! Usir dia, Mas!" rajuk Jenna sambil menghentakkan kaki dan meninggalkan mereka. "Dek, nggak boleh gitu. Kala itu juga tetangga kita. Nggak enak sama Nek Sekar yang udah baik sama keluarga kita." "Bodo amat! Bikin mood hancur aja!" Ingin sekali Jenna menangis karena pria itu kembali. Padahal selama tiga tahun ini, Jenna merasa hidupnya aman damai karena tiba-tiba saja pria itu menghilang. Sama sekali tidak pernah terlihat di kompleks perumahan tempat mereka tinggal. Tidak tampak di sebelah rumah Nenek Sekar setiap kali dia lewat. "Nih, makanan kesukaan kamu." Tiba-tiba Arman menyodorkan satu kotak besar makanan yang aromanya langsung tercium. Mata Jenna yang tadinya berkaca-kaca, kini berubah menjadi berbinar-binar. "Eh, apa nih?" tanyanya pura-pura tidak tahu sambil merebut kotak itu. Perutnya mendadak lapar. Aroma dimsum begitu kuat dan menggoda. Dia tidak pernah bosan dengan makanan yang satu itu. Kakinya buru-buru melangkah menuju ke ruang keluarga dan mencomot satu buah begitu pantatnya mendarat di sofa. "Enak banget, Mas. Beli di mana? Kok aku nggak pernah tahu ada dimsum yang seenak ini?" "Itu Kala yang bawa. Dibuatin sama Nek Sekar." Dimsum kedua yang sudah separo digigit, langsung jatuh saat itu juga. Tubuh Jenna membeku.Epilogue Luna“Alice, calm down. It’s just a cake,” I said, stifling a laugh as I adjusted the small white rose pinned to my shirt pocket.Her voice on the other end of the line crackled with panic. “It’s not just a cake, Luna. It’s the cake. The centerpiece of the entire table. The one people will stand around awkwardly to take photos while pretending not to notice the crooked layer if anything goes wrong!”I smiled, pulling the curtains back in my office and watching as the last of the garden lights were being strung outside. “It won’t go wrong. It’s Vincent’s bakery. If they mess this up, Hardin will probably buy the entire street.”That made her snort. “You’re not wrong.”I hung up after calming her down and stood there for a moment, soaking in the quietness of the hospice. It had become more than a workplace. It was home. A sanctuary. And now, it was going to be the place where I’d marry the man who turned my entire world upside down—then rebuilt it with steady, calloused hands
HardinI sat in front of him. Every part of me wanted to stand up and walk out, but I didn’t. Not because I was suddenly ready for this. Not because I wanted to bond.But because Luna—my Luna—had fought like hell to make this moment happen. And I’d be a damn fool to throw her effort away.Her words still rang in my head. “Someone would kill to have that chance with their parents. Someone like me.”It hit me harder than I expected. I’d forgotten. Or maybe I’d never let myself truly think about how Luna had lost both of hers.And yet she still believed in second chances—for me, for him.Vincent had pulled me aside also. He didn’t lecture me. He didn’t even tell me I’d done the wrong thing.He just said, “When time runs out, regret doesn’t knock. It stays.”Now here I was. In front of the man who had disappeared from my life before I could even form a memory of him. He looked older than I imagined. Paler. Weaker. But his eyes… they were mine.He cleared his throat. “I didn’t think you’d
Luna"Where is he?" I muttered under my breath, glancing at my phone screen again.Hardin had told me for the millionth time that he was on his way, but it’s been almost half an hour now. I knew he’d freak out when he gets here—Hardin didn’t like surprises, especially ones that involved anything remotely emotional or vulnerable. But even if he threw a fit, I didn’t care. I had vowed to make things right, and I was going to do that, with everything in me.The phone buzzed again. His name lit up the screen.“My tire got a patch,” he said quickly before I could even speak, his voice rough like he’d been cursing out the entire road. “But I’ll be there soon.”I rolled my eyes, ready to vent, but my gaze landed on the man sitting quietly across the table. He looked… fragile. Hands resting on his lap, eyes darting around the restaurant like he didn’t know what to do with himself. Confused. Afraid. Nervous. And he had every right to feel that way.I swallowed the irritation and smiled instead
LunaIt’s been two days since I sat across from Hardin and showed him the truth I uncovered—the photo, the files, the history of a man he barely remembered but could never truly forget. And even now, standing in the sunlit hospice garden with a clipboard in hand, my mind still drifts back to that moment. To the way his voice cracked when he said he didn’t want to see his father. And the way I nodded… but didn’t really accept it.Because I know Hardin.And I know when he says he doesn’t want to, he really means he doesn’t think he can handle it.I’ve been working extra shifts at the hospice lately, not because I have to, but because it gives me a sense of balance. After the whirlwind of the past few days, I need something grounding. The patients—many of whom are nearing the end of their lives—have this calm acceptance about them. It humbles me. Puts things in perspective.Miss Genevieve, who loves humming old jazz tunes even when she forgets the lyrics, held my hand earlier and told me
HardinI took a slow sip of my coffee, letting the bitterness ground me as my eyes flicked to the clock again. Almost nine. Alice had said Luna wouldn’t be long. But she hadn’t told me where she’d gone, and that alone had my nerves wired.I wasn’t used to not knowing where she was. The headache from last night still pounded behind my eyes, dull but persistent, like a reminder of everything I’d tried to drown in the bottle. Alice had made me something for it—her version of a hangover cure—and I forced myself to drink it, even if the taste was vile.But Luna… she hadn’t been here when I woke up. That quiet, empty space beside me in bed had done more damage than the alcohol ever could.She had stayed. Even after everything I told her—everything I had spilled like broken glass across the floor—she stayed. And yet, here I was, feeling like something was slipping through my fingers again.I tapped my fingers against the mug, a restless rhythm. I tried calling her earlier, but it rang once
Luna“Are you sure you’ll be okay?”Alice’s soft voice broke through the silence as I adjusted the collar of my coat, my hand briefly brushing against the buttons while I nodded.“Yes,” I said, offering a reassuring smile. “I just want to make it to his office before he leaves. His secretary said his flight is by ten. I should be back before Hardin even wakes up.”Alice folded her arms, still watching me with concern, her hair pulled into a messy bun like she’d just rolled out of bed—and maybe she had. But her eyes held warmth as she whispered, “I’m really proud of how both of you are going out of your way to protect each other. This kind of love… it’s rare, Luna. It’s unique.”I smiled faintly, though it didn’t quite reach my chest. Truth be told, I hadn’t slept a wink last night.After Hardin poured everything out—the truth, the heartbreak, the scars—he’d drifted off, finally surrendering to the weight of alcohol and exhaustion. I stayed up, watching him sleep, the rise and fall of
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