I Lost Everything and Became My Husband's Thrall

For three days and three nights, Joseph gave me no respite.He had come to live with me as my husband, one I had little respect for. Not only would I never let him touch me, but I'd done everything in my power to belittle him.But now that my fortune had all but disappeared, and he was suddenly a rich man, it was like he was taking his revenge. He seemed to savor every last act we performed....My husband came to me with nothing.It wasn't even him I liked; it was his brother. But at a class reunion, I had too much to drink and he took advantage.Not only that, but everyone we knew found out.My father was disgraced. He felt the only thing to do to save our family honor was for me to marry this man. But he did have one condition, that the man who despoiled me would come and live with us in our family home.My new husband's parents were divorced. His father had all but abandoned him after remarrying and now he had nothing.As for me, my family was rich, and I was my parents' little pri

"Hey! Aren't you Anna? Joseph's wife? What's wrong? Feeling shy? Come have a drink."Hold on a second ... Why are you wearing that uniform?"As soon as he finished speaking, the table erupted in laughter.I gripped the sides of my drinks tray and took a deep breath.What choice did I have? They'd already seen me, and they were going to have their fun no matter what I did. It's not like I could escape now. Who knew, maybe I could even get a few tips from them if I weathered the storm.My family's creditors weren't going anywhere. My father was still proclaiming daily how he didn't want to go on living, my mother was a one-woman waterworks, and my brother was running himself ragged as a delivery driver. Now wasn't the time for clinging on to hollow pride.I walked back over to their table, working hard to force a smile.I put on my best attempt at a jaunty voice and said, "What a coincidence. I didn't expect to see you all here. We're all friends; if you're happy with the service, feel f

I glanced nervously at the bathroom door. He was striding back into the bedroom wearing nothing but a towel.He had broad shoulders and a thin but muscular build.His smooth skin glistened healthily in the light. He had a slight tan.I had never seen him naked before as I never allowed him to undress in my sight. The one night when we had slept together, at our class reunion, I was too drunk to even remember. I never knew he had such a handsome body.I realized I was staring at him and quickly averted my gaze.He walked over to me, his body still hot from the shower.I recoiled nervously, barely managing to stammer, "When ... When did you get back? Are you hungry? Maybe I could ... make you something to eat.""Something to eat?" He looked amused. When he spoke, his tone was mocking. "When have you cooked anything for anyone in your life?"His words left me speechless.In his eyes, I was nothing but a helpless, pampered princess.Not that he was completely wrong. Besides dancing and soc

My best friend Dani was calling.As soon as I picked up the phone, she shouted, excitedly, "Anna, I'm back!""For real?!"Hearing that my best friend was back in the country instantly raised my spirits.Dani had gone abroad three years ago. Ever since then, I'd had no one to spill my heart out to, nor anyone to really, truly go shopping with."My plane just touched down. I need some time to go home and rest. We can meet up this evening!""Sounds great!"I was so excited, I had completely forgotten about my current situation.Once the call was over, I suddenly remembered all about Joseph. I would have to ask him for permission before going out this evening.The way he was acting at the moment, the idea that he'd ever let me out to see my friend seemed beyond far-fetched.This sudden realization made my heart sink.I tried not to think about it. I'd just have to wait until the evening and see.I laid my head down on the pillow to sleep. In what felt like the blink of an eye, it was six o

Just then, I heard a familiar voice behind me.It was a voice I hadn't heard in a very long time.My heart started to beat faster as a tide of memories came flooding back.A youth in a pristine white shirt giving me a ride to school on his bicycle.That same youth clutching a pile of practice sheets, patiently explaining the latest math problems to me.The very same youth bringing me comfort food whenever it was my time of the month.The last memory was him pleading with me not to marry Joseph through red and teary eyes.Sweet, happy memories and regrets.All of them now faded by time.I calmed my beating heart and turned to face him.Reuben was standing there, right in front of my eyes.The Hertz family genes were enough to cause envy. Both Reuben and his brother had grown to become handsome men.While one of them was cold and aloof, the other was warm and gracious.In the three years since we had last seen each other, Reuben had only become more refined. The deep eyes beneath those g