LOGINThey told me to sign. I didn’t know I was signing my soul to the devil himself. Arielle Brooks never expected a single signature to ruin her entire life. But when a paperwork mix-up accidentally marries her to Empire High’s most arrogant, untouchable senior—Xavier Knight—her quiet life explodes into chaos. He’s rich, cold, and ridiculously good-looking. She’s broke, invisible, and just trying to survive high school. But now, they’re bound by a legal contract that neither of them can escape. He wants her gone. She wants her life back. But the more they fight, the hotter the tension grows… And when secrets, betrayals, and a rival crush enter the picture, Arielle’s forced to ask herself the one question she swore she’d never consider: What if being married to the arrogant senior isn’t the curse she thought it was?
View MoreThe gates of Empire High stood before us, tall and imposing, just as they had when I first walked through them years ago with trembling hands and a heart full of doubts.But today, it was different.Today, I wasn’t just Arielle, the timid girl who once got swallowed whole by rumors and power games. I wasn’t just the student who’d spent sleepless nights fighting shadows cast by the Knight empire.Today, I was Arielle Knight. Wife. Mother. Survivor.And beside me stood Xavier, his hand intertwined with mine, his tall frame casting a protective shadow that felt more like home than fear. He was no longer the arrogant senior who once made me grit my teeth in frustration and secretly blush in the same breath. He was my partner, my anchor, the father of the little girl skipping ahead of us in her white sundress, pigtails bouncing with every step.Hope. Our five-year-old miracle.Her laughter rang out, bright as bells, echoing across the schoolyard. She stopped in front of the entrance and tu
The sky outside the hospital window was turning from violet to gold, the first promise of morning painting the world soft again. The night had been cruel, brutal, the kind of night that left scars you couldn’t see. But now, as the light pushed against the darkness, it felt like more than dawn. It felt like a rebirth.I shifted slightly in the hospital bed, my body still sore, still trembling from the storm it had endured. But none of that mattered. Not when she was here. Not when she was breathing, crying softly in the crook of my arm.Hope.Our Hope.Her tiny chest rose and fell against me, her warmth anchoring me to the present. I bent my head and inhaled her newborn scent, sweet, delicate, alive. The tears came again, but they were different this time. Not fear. Not grief. Pure, unfiltered joy.Xavier sat beside me, his arm draped protectively along the back of the bed, his other hand resting lightly over Hope’s small form. He hadn’t slept. His face showed it, red-rimmed eyes, tens
The car lurched forward, tires screeching as Xavier barked orders into his phone. My vision blurred, my body fighting me with every contraction. Sweat beaded on my forehead, dampening my hairline, and my fingers clawed at Xavier’s arm.“Xavier, it’s too soon,” I whispered, my voice trembling.His jaw clenched, but his voice stayed steady for me. “I don’t care if it’s early. You and the baby are going to be okay. Do you hear me? Okay.”But deep inside, fear pulsed through me like a drumbeat. My baby wasn’t due yet. What if something went wrong? What ifI squeezed my eyes shut, cutting off the spiral. I couldn’t break now. Not when the world was already waiting for me to.The car’s engine roared as it weaved through the city streets, headlights slicing through the night. Black SUVs flanked us, the motorcade’s speed barely contained.Xavier kept one arm wrapped around me, the other holding his phone. “Clear a path to St. Mary’s. Now. And if anyone tries to follow—deal with it.”“Yes, sir
The roar that greeted us when Xavier stepped out of the car was like thunder tearing the sky apart. Cameras flashed, microphones thrust forward, voices overlapped in a frenzy of questions, accusations, and praise. The red carpet stretched ahead of us like a river of blood, guarded on either side by men in black suits whose sunglasses reflected back the chaos.Xavier turned and extended his hand to me. For a moment, the world blurred. It was just him—his steady gaze, his palm open, waiting. The same hand that had shielded me from knives and bullets, the same hand that had cupped my face in the darkest hours, now reached out as though this was just another night, another gala.But it wasn’t.This was war dressed in silk and tuxedos.I placed my hand in his, and the crowd erupted again, their cheers and shouts weaving into a single deafening roar.“Arielle! Smile this way!”“Xavier, how does it feel to inherit your father’s legacy?”“Mrs. Knight, is the baby the future heir?”Their words
The silence after those men left clung to the suite like smoke that wouldn’t clear. Their footsteps echoed long after the door had closed, like ghosts pacing the hallway, waiting for the perfect moment to strike again.I stood in the middle of the living room, frozen, staring at the faint impressio
The photo fluttered against the glass as though mocking us, caught by the faint draft sneaking under the balcony doors. The red ink seemed to pulse in the dim light, One smile. One bullet. Choose wisely.Xavier’s entire body went rigid. His hand, still clutching the pistol, trembled with barely-con
The dawn was sharp, cold, and merciless.Shouts rattled the air outside the cabin, boots thundering against the dirt like war drums. The peace of our fragile moment shattered as reality slammed its weight against the thin wooden walls.Xavier’s hand was already around his gun. His movements were sh
The cabin was too small to contain the weight pressing down on us.The silence after their departure was louder than the gunshots, louder than the screams that had filled the clearing hours ago. My chest ached with the words they had left hanging in the air, “You will smile at the cameras… the baby
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