ログインRenataFor days I hadn't smiled. I simply sat in that hospital room, staring at my mother's still, lifeless body, crying until I thought there could not possibly be any tears left inside me. And yet they kept coming, endless, relentless, soaking through tissue after tissue until my eyes burned raw.This could not be possible. My father had died when I was six years old, and I had spent my whole life believing I had already survived the worst thing life could throw at me. Now my mother was gone too. I had nobody left.She had been the reason I accepted the contract with Drent in the first place. At first, I only needed him to cover the cost of her surgery, nothing more. After that, I told myself I would simply endure the arrangement long enough to earn enough money to give her the kind of life she deserved, comfortable, safe, far from struggle. That had been the entire point. That had been the only reason any of it made sense.But now it was all gone. My mother, my plans, every single
DrentI ran back into the building where bullets were still flying, having already told Renata to get her mother to the hospital as fast as she could.I walked back inside because I felt like this was finally my chance to end Marcus once and for all. To finally put a stop to everything he had put us through.The moment I stepped back into the building, I grabbed one of my men, Peter, by the shoulder. "Where's Marcus?" I demanded, the rage in my voice impossible to hide.Marcus had gone too far this time. Almost ending Renata's mother's life, nearly killing me more times than I could count. It was time to finish this. Time to end Marcus for good.Peter looked terrified, his eyes darting toward the door. "Stand up," I said, shaking him slightly. "What are you doing hiding here?"The words tumbled out of him fast, almost too fast to follow. He told me Marcus had already fled, but before leaving, he'd hired an assassin specifically to eliminate me. Peter said he'd assumed I had already le
RenataI whispered to Drent, my voice barely audible over the tension pressing down on us. "What are we going to do?"Marcus caught sight of me leaning toward him and shouted over, his voice dripping with mockery. "Drent, just walk away. You're never getting to her mother."Drent didn't even flinch. "Either he gets out of our way, or there's going to be blood," he said, his voice low and steady. "One way or another, we're leaving with her mother today.""Drent," I said, my stomach twisting, "we're outnumbered."He turned to me, his expression unreadable. "Do you really think I was foolish enough to come here alone?"Before I could ask what he meant, gunfire erupted from behind us. Marcus's men scrambled to return fire, and out of nowhere, more men, ones I had never seen before, moved in around us, clearly aligned with Drent, working to counter Marcus's side.Drent grabbed the back of my head and pulled me down. "Stay down, peach," he said, using his body to shield me as bullets tore t
RenataI burst into his room the second the presentation ended, Marcus's words still ringing in my head on an endless loop.*End her.*"I've replaced you. The presentation is over, and Marcus didn't win. So let's go. Let's go find her."The nurse and Drent both looked at me in confusion, but Drent understood immediately. I could see it in his eyes.He had just been admitted after the chandelier crashed down onto his already broken arm, and he was still in the middle of being treated. But for the first time, I didn't care about any of that. After what Marcus had done, showing me that video call with my mother looking pale and barely conscious, I needed Drent to keep his word right now. We needed to find her before anything worse happened.He looked at me, then turned to the nurse. "Give us a minute."I stood there, my head pounding, my heart hammering against my ribs.He pulled out his phone and tapped something on the screen. "You know, peach, I'm a man of my word."He turned the scre
Renata"Replace him?" Mr. Cole's voice cracked with suspicion, his eyes narrowing on me.I didn't fully know what I was getting myself into, but I knew Drent needed someone to step in for him at that very moment, and there was no one else."Yes," I said. "Please, sir. Drent can't continue in this event.""Actually," Marcus cut in, stepping closer, "what exactly happened to him? He was just on that stage forty minutes ago.""Yes, but he's had some..." I searched for the right words, something believable enough to cover for him. "Umm. Please, sir, just let me step in. Drent deserves this chance."Mr. Cole studied me for a long moment, and before he could answer, Marcus walked up beside him."Dad, Drent can't make it. He's disappeared again at the most crucial moment. So just name me the winner already.""What?" Mr. Cole turned to him sharply."The presentation will continue," he said firmly.Marcus's expression twisted with fury. "What?""Yes. Renata will replace him, and the presentati
RenataI watched the blood pour from his arm and I knew there was no way he could go back out there without being medically attended to first.I moved closer to him, trying to steady both of us while we waited for Katya, the nurse, to arrive."How did this even happen?" I asked, my hands hovering over his arm, unsure where it was safe to touch."It's Marcus," he said through clenched teeth. "That whole thing earlier, about switching seats. He wanted me to move so he could get to me. I know he was up to something to drag me down because I was clearly winning."He hissed suddenly, a sharp cry of pain cutting through his words, and I flinched. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry. Don't worry, Katya will be here any minute."He kept his hand pressed over the wound, his jaw tight against the pain."Drent," I said, glancing at my phone, "you're up in ten minutes. You can't go.""No way," he said immediately. "I'd rather go out there bleeding than let Marcus just win. I've come too far."I pressed my h
DrentThe applause soon faded, the unexpected kiss between me and Renata had amused everyone. I didn't know we had the attention of everyone, and most especially, my father, who seemed to stand from afar with a smile of approval.That alone made me feel so close to getting the company than ever, bu
RenataAfter three straight days in the hospital, I had not taken calls from anyone. I had stayed off social media, away from school, and away from everything else. Just sitting beside my mom and watching over her, hoping she would be alright.I had applied for a job at Tinnies, a fast food spot ne
RenataA week passed and all my efforts to get into the tournament had failed. A part of me began to regret not taking Drent up on his offer, but another part of me was glad I had not. I did not trust him or his family.They were probably the kind of rich family that believed only money mattered, o
DrentThere was something unsettling about her. I had asked for a spa therapist, but instead they had sent me something I found far more amusing. A tiny, curvy girl who I found surprisingly tempting.Which was strange, because I had not felt that way about anyone in years. But it felt like a good s







