Share

The Billionaire’s Cherry Red Obsession
The Billionaire’s Cherry Red Obsession
Author: Bug

Chapter One

Author: Bug
last update publish date: 2026-04-16 00:08:46

CHERRY’S POV

“Good afternoon, Mrs. Vane. We hope you enjoyed your stay at the Grand Crest Hotel. We’d love to have you again—”

“I’m sorry… what?”

The plastic tray in my hand tilted, the edges digging into my palm. I stopped dead in the middle of the crowded café, the noise of clinking spoons and espresso machines fading into a dull roar.

“I think there’s a mistake,” I said, my voice sounding thin even to my own ears.

There was a polite, professional pause on the other end. “No, ma’am. Mr. Vane checked in three nights ago with his wife. You.”

The floor felt like it was tilting. I reached out a hand to steady myself against a nearby table. “That’s not possible,” I whispered. “I’ve never been to the Grand Crest.”

“The woman who checked in with him identified herself as Mrs. Vane, ma’am. She used the corporate card on file.”

Something inside me snapped. It wasn't a loud break—it was quiet, like the hairline fracture on a windshield right before the whole thing shatters.

Six months. That was how long I’d been married to Julian. Six months since I stood in a cold chapel and said vows I didn't mean to a man I barely knew. And the worst part? The part that made my throat tighten with shame?

I had actually started trying.

I’d tried to be a good wife. I’d tried to find something to love in him.

“Marry him,” my Uncle Arthur had told me, his eyes as cold as the Laurent family vault. “Or walk away with nothing.”

A year ago, I was an heiress. I had a name that meant something. Then came the car accident. No survivors. Just a girl left alone with a pile of legal documents she wasn't allowed to read and a "family" that turned into vultures the second the bodies were in the ground. They took the house. The company. My father’s legacy.

And then they sold me to Julian Vane.

“Ma’am? Are you still there?”

I swallowed hard, forcing the bile down. “Yes… thank you.”

I hung up before she could say anything else. I stood there, frozen, feeling the eyes of the customers on me. I didn’t even want this marriage, I thought bitterly. And somehow, I’m still the one being cheated on.

“Elara! Table six—move it!” My manager’s bark broke my trance.

“I’m coming!”

I moved on autopilot. My vision was a blur of shapes and colors. My mind was stuck on a loop: Another woman. Wearing my name. Sleeping in his bed.

I didn't see him. I didn't see the man sitting at the edge of the aisle.

My foot hit a wet patch on the tile, and the world went sideways. The tray slipped. The cup tilted. I watched in slow motion as a wave of scalding dark roast poured straight onto the crisp white shirt of the man in the corner booth.

“I—!”

The apology died in my throat. Because as I pitched forward, expecting the hard impact of the floor, a pair of hands caught me.

They weren't just hands. They were a solid, unyielding force. One arm locked around my waist, pulling me back from the brink of the fall with terrifying ease.

Everything stopped. The café noise, the shame, the anger—it all vanished. I looked up, gasping for air, and my heart stopped.

Dark eyes. Sharp. Dangerous. Unforgiving.

My fingers curled into his expensive shirt before my brain could tell them to stop. It was a physical jolt, a pull in my gut that I hadn't felt in exactly 365 days.

No. It can't be.

My mind tried to scream "coincidence," but my body knew better. This was the man from the night I’d tried to forget. The man who had seen me when I was a "Cherry," not a "Vane."

TWO YEARS AGO…

The club felt like a fever. Too much bass. Too many flashing lights. I felt like I was drowning in it, and I didn't want to be saved.

“Miss Laurent, another drink?” Jasper, the only bartender who treated me like a human, asked.

I laughed, the sound hollow. “Don’t call me that tonight, Jasper. That name is a ghost. It’s going to be gone soon anyway.”

Jasper raised a brow. “Then what should I call you?”

I leaned over the bar, feeling the alcohol buzzing in my ears. “Call her Cherry.”

The voice didn't come from Jasper. It came from right behind my shoulder—smooth, deep, and utterly certain. I froze. The air around me suddenly felt electric.

“Cherry?” Jasper asked.

I turned slowly. He was standing there, hands in his pockets, looking like a king who had wandered into a gutter. He was effortlessly commanding.

“Why Cherry?” Jasper asked.

The stranger’s eyes didn't leave mine. Not even for a heartbeat. “Because,” he said quietly, his gaze dropping to my hair, “it’s not a color people forget. It suits her.”

I lifted my chin, trying to fight the way my knees felt weak. “You don’t even know me.”

One corner of his mouth ticked up. It wasn't a smile; it was a challenge. “I don't need to. People like you don't hide unless there’s something worth noticing.”

That was the start.

I don't remember who moved first, only that suddenly there was no space between us.

His hand found my waist first.

Firm. Certain. Like he already knew I wouldn’t pull away. And I didn’t.

My fingers curled into the front of his shirt as he drew me closer, the heat of his body cutting through everything else.

When his lips met mine, it wasn’t gentle

My breath caught, but I didn’t break the kiss. Didn’t step back. Didn’t think.

For once in my life… I didn’t think.

His hand slid up my back, fingers pressing just enough to pull me closer, leaving no space between us.

And I let him.

The kiss deepened slowly, not rushed, not careless

“Still sure you don’t belong here?” he murmured against my lips.

I shook my head slightly, breath uneven.

“I don’t care.”

That was the truth. For the first time in a long time…

I didn’t care.

Everything after that blurred into sensation.

His hand in mine.

The way he guided me through the crowd like I was already his responsibility.

I didn't think about my dead parents. I didn't think about my uncle’s threats. I just felt. For the first time in my life, I let someone else take the lead.

PRESENT DAY

My heart hammered against my ribs so hard I thought he could feel it through his palms.

It was him.

But as I looked into his eyes, hoping for a spark, I found... nothing. Just cold, icy indifference.

“Do you normally throw things at people,” he said, his voice flat, “or am I just special?”

The words felt like a slap. He didn't remember. Or worse—he did, and he hated me for it.

“I—I’m sorry,” I whispered.

For a split second, his grip on my waist tightened. I thought I saw a flash of something in his eyes. Then, he let go.

He didn't just let go; he dropped me.

My knee hit the hard tile with a sickening crack. I let out a sharp gasp of pain, looking up at him from the floor. He didn't offer a hand. He didn't even look at me. He just looked down at his ruined shirt with a look of pure disgust.

“Sir! Oh my God, we’re so sorry!” my manager scrambled over, nearly shoving me out of the way. “Elara, what is wrong with you?! Get to the back. You’re done for the day.”

I stood up, my leg shaking, my pride in tatters. I didn't say a word. I couldn't. I just turned and walked away, the humiliation burning hotter than the coffee I’d spilled.

He looked at me like I was nothing. Like that night had never happened. Like I was just a clumsy waitress who had ruined his morning.

I hit the back door and leaned against the brick wall, my eyes stinging. I wasn't just a "Cherry" anymore. I was a "Vane." And apparently, to Adrian Knight, that made me invisible.

Continue to read this book for free
Scan code to download App

Latest chapter

  • The Billionaire’s Cherry Red Obsession   Chapter Fifty six

    CHERRY’S POVThe silence that followed the heavy thud of Adrian’s hand hitting the floorboards was louder than the gunshot. It was a vast, suffocating vacuum that sucked the remaining air straight out of my lungs. My palms were still pressed hard against his chest, but the terrifying, rhythmic pulse that had been pushing his life through my fingers just… stopped. There was no more warmth spreading. There was no more resistance. The large, invincible man who had filled every corner of my world was suddenly completely still beneath my hands, his broad shoulders sinking into the ruined white carpet like a discarded coat."Adrian?" I whispered, my voice sounding incredibly small, thin, and hollow against the massive mahogany walls of the penthouse. "Adrian, stop it. This isn't funny. Wake up. Please, just wake up." I shook him. I grabbed the front of his blood-soaked white shirt with both hands, my raw, split knuckles digging into the wet fabric, and I pulled him toward me. His head r

  • The Billionaire’s Cherry Red Obsession   Chapter Sixty five

    CHERRY’S POV The old truck engine died with a pathetic, metallic rattle in the overgrown weeds behind the Stone-Knight corporate headquarters. I didn't care about the black smoke pouring out from under the dented white hood. I didn't care about the tiny shards of glass still stuck in the sleeve of my grey hoodie from when I smashed the groundskeeper's window. My hands were steady on the steering wheel for the first time in three agonizing hours. The tears had dried into tight, salty streaks across my cheeks, tightening the skin over my bruised jaw and the ugly pink stitches in my eyebrow. They thought they had played me. Silas and Sandra thought they could treat my son like a piece of paper, a chess piece to be moved around to secure a board seat, a trust fund, or a legacy. They thought the waitress from Queens would just sit in the mud on the side of the highway and cry until the court signed the custody papers at dawn. They didn't know who they were dealing with. They had no i

  • The Billionaire’s Cherry Red Obsession   Chapter Sixty four

    CHERRY’S POVMy heart slammed against my throat so hard it made my teeth click. Seeing that little orange bundle of fabric being pulled out of the backseat was like a shot of pure, unadulterated lightning straight to my nervous system. The pain in my ribs completely vanished, and the freezing cold morning rain didn't even register. Before my brain could tell me how stupid it was to take on two people by myself with no weapon, my legs were already moving. I burst right out of the wet weeds like a wild animal, my old sneakers snapping hard against the cracked asphalt of the service road. But as I got closer, the image of what I expected—heavy tactical mercenaries with black masks—completely shattered. Standing by the open door of the sedan was a normal, perfectly ordinary-looking man and woman. They looked exactly like a regular, everyday couple you’d see at a grocery store or a suburban park. The woman was wearing a neat, oversized knitted cardigan, and the man had on a casual fleec

  • The Billionaire’s Cherry Red Obsession   Chapter Sixty three

    CHERRY’S POVThe grand foyer was freezing. The white marble looked clean, but the whole place felt like a funeral home. Sandra Stone was standing at the top of the big stairs, holding her glass of white wine. Her hand was shaking just enough to make the alcohol slosh around.All that smug arrogance she had been wearing like an expensive dress since yesterday was starting to slip. Down in the shadows by the hallway, three of Silas’s personal corporate lawyers were just standing there. They looked like three black crows waiting for a piece of meat, holding their leather briefcases tight. They didn't move, and they didn't speak; they just stared at the wet New Jersey mud we were dripping onto the floorboards. Sandra took a deep breath, trying to force her face back into that plastic, high-society look. She took one slow step down the stairs, her dark blue silk gown rustling against the stone. It was a dry, annoying sound that made the silence in the room feel even worse. She tilted h

  • The Billionaire’s Cherry Red Obsession   Chapter Sixty two

    CHERRY’S POVThe tires of the armored SUV screamed against the wet asphalt as we tore across the state line, the quiet peace of the Connecticut woods completely vanishing behind a thick wall of freezing, black rain.The storm had returned with a vengeance, lashing against the windshield like handfuls of gravel, but the chaotic roar of the sleet couldn't cover the suffocating, heavy silence inside the car. I sat in the passenger seat, my arms wrapped tightly over my chest to keep the raw, throbbing pressure off my cracked ribs. My fingers were locked around the printout of my father’s dead diary entry until my split knuckles turned a bloodless, sickening white. My mind was a frantic, spinning machine of terror, going over the timeline of the clearing again and again until my brain felt like it was bleeding from the repetition.How could a child just vanish? Thirty seconds. That was all it took. No engine sounds. No heavy tactical footprints in the mud. No rustle in the blackberry bu

  • The Billionaire’s Cherry Red Obsession   Chapter Sixty one

    CHERRY’S POVThe silence of the clearing was a physical blade, hacking away at the remaining walls of my sanity. I was on my knees in the dirt, my fingernails tearing violently into the sodden grass where the wool blanket had sat only seconds before. The green clover was flattened, the yellow tennis ball still rolling lazily down the slope until it hit the mud with a soft, sickening splop. His stuffed lion toy was lying right there, its plush ears damp with morning dew—but the boy was gone."Leo!"The shriek tore from the absolute bottom of my throat, a raw, primal roar of a mother’s agony that shattered the quiet of the state park, echoing off the high stone ridges of the valley."Leo! Where are you? Leo!" My cracked ribs were on fire, the pink scar cutting through my stitched eyebrow throbbing with a violent, white-hot pressure, but I couldn't feel the physical pain. The savage fire that had kept me alive behind the clubs and inside the maximum-security cell block was completely i

More Chapters
Explore and read good novels for free
Free access to a vast number of good novels on GoodNovel app. Download the books you like and read anywhere & anytime.
Read books for free on the app
SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP
DMCA.com Protection Status