Crave Me,Daddy's Good Girl

Chapter 1: I Almost Drowned

Isla’s pov

“Between you and me, Isla, if we both fell in, who do you think he’d save?” Bianca’s voice dripped with fake sweetness, her glossy lips curving into that sharp, knowing smile she always wore around me.

I barely had time to register the words. “What are you”

She grabbed my wrist, nails digging in like claws, and yanked us both backward into the pool.

The water hit like ice. My arms thrashed uselessly, legs kicking against nothing. The soft blue dress I’d chosen so carefully clung heavy and suffocating now. I was sinking fast, chlorine burning my eyes, lungs screaming.

He didn’t even glance back.

“Bianca!” Alex’s shout cut through the chaos as he dove straight toward her flailing form.

Water flooded my nose and mouth. Still underwater. Still fighting. Invisible.

How ironic. Three years of being the good girl the one who stood by him through everything and this was how it ended. Drowned at a rooftop pool party because my boyfriend chose his childhood sweetheart over me.

I’d supported him when his family business nearly collapsed. Ignored the late texts, the sudden “work” trips, the way his eyes lit up only when she entered a room. I had been the safe choice.

And this was my reward.

“Alex! Your girlfriend is still in there!” Someone yelled from the side.

Only then did he turn. His face paled, but it was too late. Black spots danced in my vision. My limbs felt like lead.

A powerful splash cut through the water beside me.

Strong arms locked around my waist, pulling me against a hard, muscled chest. Warm lips sealed over mine, forcing air into my burning lungs. He propelled us upward with powerful strokes.

My back hit the rough edge of the pool. Another breath from his mouth. Firm hands pressed against my chest in steady compressions.

I lurched forward, coughing violently. Water poured from my mouth and nose as I gasped, chest heaving. A large, warm palm rubbed slow circles on my back, steadying me.

“Bianca! Baby, I’ve got you.” Alex cradled her like she was made of glass, her dramatic coughs muffled against his chest. He shrugged off his jacket the expensive one I’d helped him pick out last month and draped it around her shoulders, pulling her closer.

My teeth chattered. Cold seeped into my bones. Tears pricked at my eyes, but I refused to let them fall.

Alex finally looked at me. “Isla… try to understand. Bianca has that heart condition. She can’t handle stress like this.”

My voice came out shaky and waterlogged. “Is that why you saved her first? Is that why you let me drown?”

He flinched, but the guilt didn’t last. “Don’t make this bigger than it is. You’re fine now, aren’t you?”

The words landed like a slap.

He turned back to Bianca, stroking her wet hair and murmuring soft reassurances. “She could’ve had an episode. You know how fragile she is.”

I stared at them, the picture-perfect pair. Through the curtain of her lashes, Bianca’s smirk of triumph was unmistakable.

The man who had saved me stayed crouched beside me, silent and imposing. Water dripped from his dark hair, his soaked shirt clinging to a powerful frame that screamed authority.

He hadn’t said a word. But his hand stayed on my back protective, steady. Like he wasn’t planning to let go anytime soon.

I turned my head slightly, finally meeting my rescuer’s eyes.

They were dark. Intense. Burning with something far more dangerous than concern.

A low, rough voice murmured near my ear, meant only for me:

“You’re safe now, little one. Breathe.”

And despite everything, a forbidden shiver ran down my spine.