“I've never loved you. You were just a warm body I used to pass time. Lilith is the one I love!” Those are the words my ex spat at my face on the day I proposed to him after dating for 6 years. Instead of the loving surprise I planned, I catch him cheating on me instead. He throws me out of his apartment with a sneer. Unable to take it anymore, I get drunk and find myself in the bed of another man. Deimos Escarrá, my ex's uncle. A billionaire CEO who proposes a contract marriage and more money than I could ever need. After all the things I went through, I won't let them get away so easily. It's my turn to come out on top and show the Escarrás that I won't be pushed around. If it's a wife he wants, then I'll be The Billionaire's Naughty Christmas Bride.
Lihat lebih banyakI'm staring at my boyfriend of 6 years in his apartment frozen in shock. There's a ring on the table, balloons tied up, a cute banner that says "Will you marry me?" He's on the other side of the room and he's not alone. There's a woman on his waist, kissing him and she's not me. Their clothes are strewn along the floor, hands busy on each other's bodies. She tells him she loves him and he says he loves her back. My feet are stuck up the ground and my heart is beating a mile a minute, trying to deny what I'm seeing. I had planned a surprise to ask my boyfriend, Max, to marry me so why am I the one getting shocked?
Then it finally clicks. Max, the love of my life, is cheating on me. A couple of hours ago, I'd snuck into his apartment to plan a surprise engagement with a ring I got custom made. I'd spent all my savings on it and a good part of my rent. But it didn't matter because we were in love. A lot of things didn't matter to me. The fact that his mom hated my guts and always went out of her way to humiliate me. The fact that he didn't once try to step in for me because he didn't want his mom to be offended. The fact that my mother never respected my relationship and always tried to set me up on dates with old, rich men. The fact that he never showed up in public with me or got me gifts. I didn't care for all that. All I needed was Max. He was the love of my life. "Max?" I call out to him, barely able to hold myself up. I can't think. I can't even scream. My body won't cooperate and move like it used to. "Max..." I say and it comes out like a whimper. He turns to me in shock. Lipstick smeared around his lips. He doesn't even try to fix his shirt or wipe it off. "Fuck." he spits out. I can tell he's annoyed from his tone and the anger burning in his eyes. "What are you doing here, Anesha? What the actual fuck!" "I–" The words die on my lips. The woman turns to me, amused. "Wait, is this your little girlfriend? The brokie with the mom who's trying to pump her out?" I freeze instantly at her words. What? He told her about me. About everything. I grow limp, waiting for him to deny it. "Shut up, Lilith. This is not funny. I didn't think she'd be here." He says instead, trying to fight back a smile. "You told her about me? About that?" "It's nothing serious. Just pillow talk between lovers." I can't believe my ears. "Lovers? You love her?" "What do you expect? We've been together for a year now. Mom invited her for the anniversary." "Oh baby." she croons, delighted. She pulls him in for a kiss and they get lost in the moment like I'm not there. My heart is beating loudly in my ears, threatening to burst out my chest. His mother knew this? She was in on this. All this while she'd been nothing but a thorn in my flesh for no reason when her son was cheating on me for a whole year. "Maybe we should hire your little girlfriend to decorate. This is quite the setup." she says to me and sits at the table, fingering the steak. "You seem like a sweet girl. Very homely. Don't worry, I'm sure something is gonna work out for you soon." she snickers as I struggle to get to my feet and rush at her. Max grabs me as they laugh together and throws me, kicking and screaming, out the door. I slam my empty glass on the table in the rowdy bar. "And that is how my night went." I say drunkenly to the stranger I'd been venting to the whole time. He looks at me, eyes unreadable. Those deep green eyes make me feel hot all over. Or is that just the alcohol? I can see the well-defined muscles on his arms and my mind starts racing with bad thoughts. I've never been one to feel attracted to an older man but I can't help it. There's something about him that's pulling me in. "You've been through quite the ordeal." His voice, slow and smooth, rolls through me, comforting and understanding. I launch into another rant, tears rolling down my eyes. "Damn right I have! All for the overgrown mama's boy. That retarded, piece of shit! I should have yelled at his mother when I had the chance. Told her her style was wack as fuck and she could shove her dresses up her snobby ass. I should have put him over my legs and beat him up but he'd probably like that. That crazy, no good, lying brute!" There's a glimmer in his eyes when I'm done speaking. He sips on his drink to hide his smile. I stare at him as best I can. It's hard not to see how handsome he is despite his age. He cocks his brow at me and I smile sweetly. "You're not married, are you?" "No, I'm not. Marriage isn't on my to do list but it seems like I won't be able to avoid it for long." he says bitterly, downing the rest of his drink. "Let's get married then." I blurt out. He looks at me like you'd look at a child doing a trick. "I'm much too old for you, darling." "I don't mind. The older the berry, the sweeter the wine." I mumble, hiccuping. What the hell was I saying? I just got dumped. "You don't even know my name." "I can just call you Daddy till I find out." His eyes darken for a minute. He gives me a slow once over, settling on my lips. I gulp, a heat rising in me that I can swear isn't the alcohol. "Can I call you that? Daddy?" I whisper. "Deimos." he drawls, eyes finally settling on mine. "Deimos." I roll the word in my mouth, moaning it softly. It's familiar but I'm too drunk to care where I've heard it. I move towards him, emboldened by the alcohol swimming in my veins. "Don't you think couples should be compatible before they get married? Should we test it out with a kiss?" I reach for his face gently and he doesn't back away. Suddenly I feel nauseated. I turn away from him at the last minute. Toppling the chair as I fall to my knees on the floor and vomit. Pathetic, I think to myself as my eyes close and my head hits the ground.Deimos' POV Perseus is smiling at me from across the table. For some reason today, he's dressed in extremely casual clothes like a normal person. I haven't seen him dress this way in a long time. Not since our Uni days. “What's the special occasion? Why do you look like a college student?” “No reason. I'm just trying out a new style. Do I look good, Mr. Escarrá?” “How would I know?” I turn back to my screen. “Pity. If only Anesha were here, I'd have been rolling in compliments.” I freeze at the mention of her name. My pulse racing as flashbacks of her lips pressed against my skin resurface. Ever since I got to work, I'd been trying desperately to forget about it. To wipe her off my memory. To remind myself that this is nothing to get worked up about. “While we're on the subject, how did it go yesterday? Did you run out to go look for her?” I scowl at him. “No, I didn't.” “I thought you wouldn't. You probably sat here while the suspense was killing you and kept quiet ab
Anesha's POV My mind is still reeling when I make my way to the La Roche. How could he even think about that? A side piece? He really was Max's Uncle. Cut from the same cloth. Enraged doesn't even begin to qualify how I feel. He says all of that and decides he's not coming home today? Where is he going and who is going there with? Where is he going to be spending the night? And why am I so pissed off that he might be spending his time with another woman? I want to say it's just the contract. The thought that someone else might swipe my money off my hands but I'd be lying. These days I find myself looking forward to spending time with him. To see him crack a smile at me. I want to know why. I want to know why I want to be around him this much. And the fact that he's deliberately pushing me away leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. I see Diana surrounded by other women. The sound of their fake laugh make me frown. Diana shows off her pearl earrings and says something to the women.
Anesha's POV I swallow and change expressions like a professional actress. A deep sigh escapes my lips as I turn away from him and grab my juice. “It was so exhasting. Ever since that day you came to work, it's been hard to even think without being quizzed by one of my coworkers. Half of the time, I'm wondering if they're clocking in everyday just because of me. But today, today was the worst.” He nods to himself, solemnly. “I'll call your boss tomorrow and tell him to increase your off days.” “You don't have to!” I can already feel him calling my bluff. “I mean, I love my job. I don't want to stay home and do nothing. I like working.” When he looks at me, it's resigned and sad. My heart pangs at the sight. Why is he like this today of all days? “Okay then. I tried calling you during the day. You must have been really busy.” When was that? “Oh, I didn't know you did. I wasn't on my phone for long so I didn't see it. Did you want to talk about the announcement then?” “Yes, but
Anesha's POV If Diana has no hater, then I'm dead.I'm dumbfounded as Ophelia tells me all about her mother's elaborate plan to sell her off to the Smiths to help Max become the CEO of Escarrá Corporation. “So what you're telling me is that your grandfather is pitting Max against Deimos to decide the next best CEO?” “Yes.” “And in order to get more investments from the Smiths, your mom arranged a marriage between you and the junkie.” “Martin, yes.” Ophelia twiddles her thumbs. “What about your other brother? Why isn't he in the running?” “Carlos isn't interested in the family business. He's an F1 racer. Besides, they had a huge fight and Carlos hasn't been home ever since.” Unlike Max, Carlos didn't seem so easy to control. Stanley's file said he'd left the family after his engagement with Rebecca failed and never came back. While Max grew up spoiled, Carlos paved his own way in life. And because of that, Max hates his guts. “What about you? You don't want in on the family bu
Anesha's POV I wait outside Max's family house in my car. For some reason, my phone has been ringing for hours. My chest tightens as I think about the article and the reporters. If Ophelia had told Diana what had happened, then wasn't she supposed to be grateful to me? Or is this because of the necklace? To think she'd put out a twisted article about me for a necklace that wasn't even hers. I need to clear my name in some way and for that, I need Ophelia's help. I text her that I'm right outside their house and sit inside the car, waiting. The door swings open, violently. At first, I'm confused and then I can barely keep my anger. “Why are you here?” I ask, fuming. Max turns to me in irritation. “Oh, don't act so coy, Anesha. Weren't you waiting here for me?” My jaw goes slack. Was this man really an idiot? I open my mouth to refute and close it. As much as I want to prove him wrong, telling him that I'm waiting for his sister seems like it's going to b
Deimos' POVI check the time as I wait for Diana. My phone's been buzzing nonstop. I hear my secretary turn down another interview and smirk to myself. The minute we touched down, I reached out to a friend who worked with the press and scheduled a one on one interview. At first, I wanted to believe that this was all just some exaggeration but after my phone call with Ophelia, I knew it was exactly what the reporter had said. Diana was working on marrying my niece off to some wretched family for more status. If she got what she wanted, then Max's position in the company could go higher with their help. Knowing Diana, that was definitely her plan and Anesha had thwarted it that day. Now she was out for blood. If Diana thinks she could hurt Anesha and I'd stand idly by, then it was high time I correct that analogy. I stare at the article on my tab and smirk to myself. Soon my sister will come barging down, waiting for an explanation. “Ma'am, you can't go in righ
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