“Her body was the price. His obsession was the cost." Mona is out of options. With her mother’s life hanging in the balance, she’ll do anything for the money—even if it means striking a deal with a venomous socialite who wants to destroy Ian Harrison,the most powerful—and dangerous—billionaire in the city. The plan is simple: Get close. Get caught. Get paid. Easy right? WRONG. One staged photo leads to a night of rough hands, whispered threats, and pleasure that borders on pain. The deeper Mona falls into his world of power, deceit, and seduction,the more she realizes—this game was never hers to win. Now, the only way out is to play by HIS rules. But Ian doesn’t play fair. Will Mona escape or will she surrender?
Lihat lebih banyakChapter one
Mona
"Please you have to help me." I cried.
"And why would I do that?" The older woman sneered.
"If you don't help me, my mother will die," I dropped down to my knees, hanging my head while tears poured down my eyes, "All I need is a loan. I swear to repay."
"And how do you plan to do that," Mrs. Elliot rolled her eyes, "You don't even have the means to make any money or any property of value."
I didn't care what I'd have to do; selling my eggs, my blood, my organs, my dignity. I'd find a way to make back and repay that money. But right now, I was desperate and my mother was running out of time.
"I'll get you back your money," I sobbed, "Just help me. I need ten thousand dollars. You know my mother has served your family faithfully for many years."
I'd grown up in the Elliot household where my mother had been a nanny and maid. She'd strived and broken her back out of loyalty to the Elliot family, until she had fallen sick. As soon as she hadn't been able to do her duties anymore, the family had discarded her like she was trash.
They had completely forgotten about all the times she had gone the extra mile, in hiding Mrs. Elliot's affairs from her husband, subtly reminding Mr. Elliot anniversaries and birthdays too.
"What business of mine is that?" Mrs. Elliot sneered, "She was an employee, not a glorified family member. What happened to all the money she earned working here?"
I gaped at her. How did she expect that the peanuts she had paid my mother just because she wasn't educated would be of help now? In summary, they had taken advantage of mother and now they turned their back on her. I wasn't even asking for free money.
"How can you be so heartless?" I sobbed, "She'll die if you don't help. There's no one else that I can turn to."
The older woman rolled her well made up eyes, "I don't want to see you anywhere near this house with your pathetic request again. You think I care if your illiterate of a mother dies? Get lost!"
"No, wait!" I cried.
"If you're so desperate to save her life, then you'd better do what desperate girls do," she smirked, "You're not exactly a beauty, but neither are you hideous. I'm sure some men would be willing to toss some money your way if you pull the right strings."
Bile rose up my throat at her suggestion. The truth was that I'd had the same thought, but I knew my mother would prefer I left her to die than to prostitute myself to save her.
"Don't bother me again!" And with that, she banged her door shut, leaving me outside in the cold.
I hunched my shoulders, trying to fight the chill, but my thin blouse was no match for the January chill. I felt so hopeless at the moment.
Just then, my phone began to buzz in my pocket. I pulled out the phone and felt my heart leap in my chest as I stared at the caller ID. It was the hospital.
I picked it with shaky hands, "H-hello?"
"Miss Carter," the nurse said in a soft voice, "It's about your mother. Her situation is worsening and we need to move to surgery as soon as possible."
I hung my head, "I can't afford it right now."
"Oh," the woman said, "Well, you also have astounding bills that if you don't clear before Saturday, we will have no choice but to discharge your mother."
"No!" I cried, "You can't do that."
"I'm sorry, Miss Carter, but we're not running a charity organisation. This is a business, and we have other paying patients that are desperate for beds. We can't keep your mother here without any payment. I'm sorry."
Before I could say more, the line had gone dead. I buried my face in my hands, feeling so useless. After all my mother had done for me, I couldn't just let her go. It seemed I'd have no choice but to do what Mrs. Elliot had adviced me to do.
No matter how much the thought of letting strange men touch me turned my stomach.
Accepting my fate, I turned around to go home in shame, but just then I heard the door open. I spun around, hope coming to life in my chest. But instead of the silver haired woman, it was her daughter Mia who stood at the door.
She stared down at me from underneath her nose, looking like my presence revolted her, "You. I heard from my mother that you're in some trouble."
"Uh, yes." I sniffled, wiping my runny nose on the sleeve of my blouse.
Mia shuddered in revulsion, flinching back on her sky high heels, "Ew. Why can't you have some class at least. I know you're a pathetic beggar, but this is rock bottom."
For a girl like Mia who had lived her whole life being attended to by maids, and being given anything she wanted on a silver platter, I was sure she was unfamiliar with what it meant to be a normal person.
"Did you need something?" I asked her impatiently. I wasn't in the mood to be insulted further.
"What's wrong with your useless mother?" She yawned.
I gritted my teeth, "My mother isn't useless. She worked hard all her alive and_"
"That's not what I asked. That's none of my business as a matter of fact," she rolled her eyes, "I asked what's wrong with her?"
"She has a heart problem," I finally said, "She needs a heart transplant urgently, or she'll die." Tears sprung up to my eyes, and i tried to blink them away.
"Hmm," she hummed, looking sly, "What do you think about earning fifty thousand dollars? And it won't even be a loan. You can have the money."
I stared at her in shock, "What do I have to do?"
Her smile widened, "Something very simple."
Ian povI couldn't fathom the gravity of the situation unfolding before me. "Come on, this can't be happening, Uncle," I implored, my voice strained as I struggled to maintain my composure. "After all these years, you're actually here for the property?"Uncle Brown's eyes narrowed, transforming his once familiar face into a mask of cold calculation. “The property was merely a means to an end, Ian,” he sneered, his voice laced with venom. “Your father’s company was supposed to be mine—the rightful inheritance that was stolen from me. I’ll stop at nothing to reclaim what is rightfully mine.”Fury surged through me, and with a sudden burst of strength, I broke free from Vance's iron grip. "You’re a liar!” I shouted, adrenaline coursing through my veins as I charged toward him, my heart pounding defiantly in my chest. “My father’s company was never yours to take!”The air crackled with tension as the weight of our family’s troubled past hung heavily between us, and I felt the resolve with
Mona povI turned to Flynn, my voice barely above a whisper, laden with a mixture of anxiety and urgency. "What are you doing here?" I asked, striving to keep my tone neutral despite the tempest of confusion and dread roiling within me.Flynn's gaze remained locked on Ian, her finger pressing firmly against the trigger as if it were an instinctive extension of her will. "Shut up, Mona," she growled, her voice low and tinged with menace, sending an unsettling chill racing down my spine.As Vance took a deliberate step closer to me, the air between us crackled with tension. His eyes, ablaze with a potent mix of anger and raw, haunting pain, bore into mine. "You want to know why I’m here for Ian?" he asked, his voice thick with venom, as if each syllable were laced with deep-seated rage. "It’s because his family is responsible for the deaths of two cherished souls in my family."My heart raced as I processed Vance’s words, their weight hanging oppressively in the air like a dark cloud. "
Vance povI have waited an eternity for this moment, the chance to confront Ian face-to-face. As I lingered in the shadows behind Flynn, her eyes blazing with fierce determination, she brandished a gun tightly gripped in her fist, the metal glinting ominously in the dim light. I caught a glimpse of Mona, her jaw dropping in disbelief at my unexpected presence, but her reaction was the least of my concerns. I had sacrificed too much and endured too many trials for this long-anticipated day to finally arrive.FIVE YEARS AGOI sprawled across my couch, the soft fabric pressing against my skin as I enjoyed the sun-drenched afternoon. Davina sat beside me, her fingers gliding effortlessly over my body, a tantalizing touch that sent shivers down my spine. She wore a vibrant bikini that hugged her curves perfectly, the bright colors contrasting against her sun-kissed skin. Just as I turned my head to meet her playful gaze, my phone erupted with a sharp chime from the table, disrupting the mo
MonaIan’s grasp tightened protectively around me. “It wasn’t my intention, Mona. I was desperate to secure the contract. I thought it was just a one-time mistake, but… it meant nothing in comparison to what we have. You mean everything to me.”I pulled back slightly, lifting my gaze to meet his, my eyes swollen and reddened from the tears. “You love me?” I asked, the words almost escaping in a whisper, fragile and filled with uncertainty.He nodded solemnly, his eyes unwavering, fiercely locked onto mine. “I love you, Mona. I was foolish, and I made a terrible mistake. But I promise, from this moment on, I will do everything to make it up to you.”A surge of emotions collided within me, swelling in my chest like a tidal wave. Before I could grasp the weight of my feelings, the words escaped my lips, unfiltered and raw: "I love you too."Ian's face brightened instantly, a glimmer of hope igniting in his deep, expressive eyes. He pulled me close, wrapping his arms around me with a warm
Moña povI stood at the window, gazing out as the morning sun poured its golden light into the room, illuminating every corner with a radiant warmth. The sunlight danced playfully across the walls, casting whimsical shadows that flickered in the stillness. Yet, despite the beauty surrounding me, I felt no joy and no sense of peace. It had been two long days since I last saw Ian, and the ache of his absence lingered like a heavy fog, refusing to lift. I blinked twice, the brightness cutting into my eyes like shards of glass, and finally drew the curtain closed, effectively banishing the cheerful light that seemed so foreign to my mood.Turning away from the window, I trudged toward the door, the motion feeling mechanical and heavy, as if an invisible weight pressed down on my shoulders. I grasped the cool metal handle, feeling its firmness beneath my fingers, and turned it slowly, pushing the door open with a soft creak. The corridor beyond was eerily quiet, the air thick with a stilln
Moña povI stood at the window, gazing out as the morning sun poured its golden light into the room, illuminating every corner with a radiant warmth. The sunlight danced playfully across the walls, casting whimsical shadows that flickered in the stillness. Yet, despite the beauty surrounding me, I felt no joy and no sense of peace. It had been two long days since I last saw Ian, and the ache of his absence lingered like a heavy fog, refusing to lift. I blinked twice, the brightness cutting into my eyes like shards of glass, and finally drew the curtain closed, effectively banishing the cheerful light that seemed so foreign to my mood.Turning away from the window, I trudged toward the door, the motion feeling mechanical and heavy, as if an invisible weight pressed down on my shoulders. I grasped the cool metal handle, feeling its firmness beneath my fingers, and turned it slowly, pushing the door open with a soft creak. The corridor beyond was eerily quiet, the air thick with a stilln
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