THE LOVE I GAVE HIM

Sleep did not come easily to Amelia that night.The unfamiliar softness of the bed beneath her only reminded her that she did not belong here. The Kingsley mansion was quiet—too quiet—nothing like the small apartment she used to share with the noise of the city outside her window.As she lay staring at the ceiling, her thoughts drifted back to the night her life changed.The night she met Ricardo Kingsley.It had been a late shift at the bar.Amelia still remembered how her feet ached from standing for hours, how the air smelled of alcohol and cigarette smoke, how her smile felt forced as she moved from table to table taking orders.She had been working there for over a year.Not because she loved it—but because she had no choice.As an orphan, Amelia had learned early that no one would come to save her. Every bill, every meal, every school fee rested on her shoulders alone. The bar job barely paid enough, but it kept her alive.That night, she noticed him immediately.Ricardo Kingsl

For a brief moment, the world seemed to pause, the air between them thick with surprise and silent questions. Amelia stood still near the entrance of the living room, her fingers curling instinctively at her sides. The woman sitting across from her—elegant, poised, and undeniably beautiful—stared back with open curiosity, her sharp gaze roaming over Amelia as though she were an object placed there for inspection.The woman was the first to speak.“Who are you?” she demanded, her tone crisp, impatient.Amelia blinked, taken aback by the bluntness. She straightened her back, meeting the woman’s gaze calmly despite the unease stirring in her chest. Before she could answer, the woman spoke again, this time with a faint frown.“I asked you a question. Who are you?”Amelia hesitated, studying the stranger. Everything about her—from her expensive dress to the way she carried herself—spoke of confidence and entitlement. This was clearly someone used to being obeyed without question.“I live

Four years and six months had passed.Time had slipped by quietly, reshaping Amelia’s life in ways she never imagined on the day she signed that contract.She had grown—not just older, but stronger. The timid girl who once walked carefully around Ricardo, afraid of saying the wrong thing, no longer existed. In her place stood a woman of quiet confidence, her beauty refined by maturity rather than youth alone. Her eyes carried determination now, and her smile held a calm assurance she had earned through years of endurance.Amelia had completed her education with excellent results.True to his word, Ricardo had supported her throughout—paying her tuition, ensuring she lacked nothing financially, and opening doors she never would have reached on her own. With his influence, she secured a respectable position at a reputable company, where her diligence and intelligence quickly set her apart.Yet, despite all of this, their relationship remained distant.They lived under the same roof, sha

Ricardo sat in the quiet of his bedroom, the soft glow of the desk lamp illuminating the documents spread neatly before him. Contracts, reports, financial statements—normally, these were the things that demanded his full attention. Tonight, however, they meant nothing.His mind refused to stay in the present.It kept drifting back to the dining room. To Amelia’s hesitant gaze. To the way her voice had trembled when she finally confessed the feelings she had been hiding for so long.I love you.Ricardo shut his eyes briefly, his jaw tightening. His heart had betrayed him in that moment, racing in a way he hadn’t felt in years. It had startled him—not because of her words alone, but because of how deeply they had affected him.She wasn’t a child anymore.Somewhere along the line, the timid girl who had entered his life through a contract had grown into a woman—gentle, resilient, and dangerously sincere. When she looked at him, there was no calculation in her eyes, no ambition. Only hon

Stella tightened her grip on her handbag as she stepped out of the mansion, the iron gates sliding shut behind her with a quiet finality. The afternoon sun brushed her skin, but it did nothing to warm the cold resolve settling in her chest. She paused for a moment, drawing in a slow breath as her thoughts churned.During the remaining months of this contract, Ricardo will be mine.She repeated the words silently, letting them sink deep into her heart. The marriage might have begun as a transaction, but Stella had is feeling that things might go more than that,she won't allow Ricardo develop feelings for Amelia. She would not lose to Amelia. Not now. Not ever. With her decision firmly made, she slipped into the waiting car, masking her intentions behind a calm expression as the vehicle pulled away from the mansion.Evening arrived quietly, draping the sky in soft shades of orange and violet. The mansion, which often felt too large and too empty, carried an unusual warmth that night.Am