MasukArianna That night came slowly.The kind of night that didn’t feel like it belonged to the same world anymore.I couldn’t sleep.Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Liam walking away. Heard his voice. Felt the weight of that document still in my hands even though I had left it on the table.And underneath all of it… Aiden’s words from earlier.Collateral.Survival.Not safe.I sat up on the bed finally, exhaling softly.I slipped out of the room without thinking too much.I found him outside.Aiden was on the porch, leaning back slightly in a chair, looking out at the ocean like he wasn’t tired at all. Like his mind didn’t know how to rest.He noticed me immediately.“You should be sleeping,” he said.“So should you.”A small pause.Then, “I couldn't sleep.”I walked closer but didn’t sit.“I need to ask you something.”His eyes shifted to me.That alone made me nervous.“Go on.”I hesitated.Then I asked anyway.“Was any of it real?”He frowned slightly.“What part?”“All of it,” I s
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.My brother sat across from me like he hadn’t just dropped something that shattered everything I thought I understood about my life. His voice was steady, too steady, like he had rehearsed every word before coming here.Two of the most dangerous criminal organizations were on our trail.And I was part of the target.My fingers curled tightly against the edge of the couch.“No,” I said immediately, shaking my head.Liam didn’t flinch.“It’s already in motion, Arianna.”“That doesn’t make it real,” I snapped.Aiden stood a few steps behind me, silent, watching everything like he was reading something only he understood. I didn’t look at him. I couldn’t afford to.Liam exhaled slowly and leaned forward.“They’ve been watching you longer than you think.”A cold feeling spread through my chest.“I’ve done nothing,” I said, my voice lower now.“It’s not about what you’ve done,” he replied.That made me pause.Aiden finally spoke from behind me.“She’s c
AriannaThe ocean was too calm. That was what kept bothering me.It stretched endlessly in front of the porch, blue and quiet like it had nothing to hide. I sat there with my knees pulled slightly to my chest, watching the waves move in slow patterns I couldn’t match with my thoughts.Aiden had gone back inside earlier.I didn’t follow him.I wasn’t ready to.Everything still felt too heavy in my chest. His words kept coming back in pieces.Someone is looking for you.You’re not safe in the city.I hated how easily he said it. Like it was normal. Like it didn’t change everything.I wasn't used to begin his world. Have I faced danger before? Yes.But not this kind. This one felt real and scary. It made the hair on my back stand on edge.I wanted something simple, effortlessly but it didn't seem to be that way. It was upsetting and quite depressing.I let out a slow breath and leaned back slightly on the chair.Maybe I was overthinking.Maybe it was just another one of his ways to cont
Arianna Aiden’s words didn’t leave my head. You’re not safe in the city right now.He das whispered into my ear, almost inaudible. I kept looking at him after that, waiting for him to say something else, something that would make it sound less heavy. Less real. But he didn’t. The car moved slowly after we left the runway. The island was quiet in a way that felt strange. No horns, no noise, just wind brushing through tall trees and the sound of tires on smooth road. It should have felt peaceful. But it didn't. Aiden's words had scared me a bit. Aiden sat beside me like he always knew where everything was. Like nothing ever surprised him. “What do you mean I’m not safe?” I finally asked. He didn’t look at me immediately. “That’s not something I can explain in a moving car.” “That sounds like an excuse.” He exhaled lightly. “It’s not.” I turned slightly in my seat to face him better. “Then stop talking in circles.” His eyes shifted to me then. Calm. Too calm. “You’ll u
AidenThe moment the hostess tapped on the partition, I shut my eyes briefly and exhaled in frustration.Bad timing.Very bad timing.I rested my head back for a second, trying to gather myself. If it were up to me, I wouldn’t have stopped. Not yet. Not when I had finally crossed that invisible line she had kept between us for so long.But reality had a way of interrupting at the worst moments.I glanced at Arianna.She wasn’t looking at me.Her gaze was distant, unfocused, like her mind had slipped somewhere far away from this space… from me.And I knew that look.She was thinking again.Too much.Probably about everything.My jaw tightened slightly.I didn’t like that look on her face.Not because she was thinking—but because I knew where her thoughts could take her. Back into doubt. Back into uncertainty. Back into that guarded version of herself that kept me at arm’s length.“Arianna.”Her name rolled off my tongue softer than I intended.“Come on.”I stood, stretching my hand out
AriannaA gentle tap on the partition made Aiden groan in frustration.I almost laughed at the sound, but my mind was already drifting somewhere else.A hostess’s voice filtered through, saying something about food being ready, but I barely registered it.My thoughts had wandered too far.To my father.To Liam.To Aiden.To everything.Everything was happening too fast.Way too fast.I hadn’t even fully processed one thing before another came crashing in. One moment I was dealing with my mother’s manipulation, the next I was married. Then suddenly, I had a brother.A brother.And now…Now I was sitting here, in a private jet, on my way to who-knows-where, with a man I was married to… but only just starting to understand.A contract marriage.At least, that was what it had started as.Now?Now we were… what exactly?Dating?The thought almost made me laugh.Married… but dating.It sounded ridiculous when I put it like that.“Arianna.”Aiden’s voice pulled me out of my thoughts.“Come o
"Young master the young missus is in trouble" His staffs sounded worried. Why, what's wrong????? Aiden inquired. She had an argument with a student afterwards she was summoned to the principal's office, she made some quite serious allegations about the young miss Hamilton Hamilton of the Ham
What, what did you just say?????? How could that be? The bewildered Brooke kept muttering gibberish. Meanwhile some of the school staffs had arrived at the scene, immediately dispersing the student in an attempt to keep the peace and restore order. Move on, move on, there's nothing to see
The cheering and loud applauding drowned Arianna's voice, despite being only seventeen she had an idea about how territorial men were. While it was cute and all, her recent resolution had been to lay low, and this was in the opposite direction cause students were bound to blow thus out of proporti
Arianna was looking forward to her eighteenth birthday and to be honest, it wasn't like she had a choice seeing as her ever so cozy Father and stepmother was hell bent on organizing what they had termed so callously as the "birthday party of the century". No doubts to marry her off!!! With prom







