AIDEN'S POV “Aww, you finally made an account on OkCupid?” Henry put his hands together, acting all sweet. “Our parents have been on his case for a long time about being lonelier than a Satanist at a church camp.” “It’ll be a cold day in hell before Aiden King says ‘I do,’” Daniel said in a relaxed voice. “Better get a warm coat, mate because you'd be surprised.” Devon smirked. “Hell’s not ready for me yet. And Aiden likes too many women to settle for just one.” Daniel replied. “Women are like pancakes. They all taste the same,” I added. Daniel grinned. “Good thing I love pancakes.” The guy had slept with almost every woman in town. Every woman except my sister. It didn’t take a smart scientist to see that Ariella was deeply in love with Sterling. Whenever she was in the same room as her sister-in-law’s brother, she almost drooled on his lap. The second I figured it out, I made sure Sterling worked for me. I didn’t even have much work for him at the time, but hiring hi
AIDEN'S POV Jeffrey King, my father choked on his fancy fish eggs. The next day, he decided to fix my problem by putting me on a plane and taking me to Norway, where he had a visit planned at one of Royal Pipelines’ oil drilling sites. Maria, the Norwegian woman who took away my virginity, was in her early thirties, about a head taller than my teenage self, and looked completely confused when I almost threw up on her lap. I didn’t want to lose it, not that young, not to a stranger, and definitely not in a fancy brothel on a side street . But doing things to make my father happy wasn’t new to me. It was just another normal day in the King household, where my father held power over me like a reward to make me do what he wanted. Stand straight. Don’t use bad words. Don’t spell anything wrong, fall off a horse, eat with bad manners, or look my father in the eye. So, I put on a condom and did what was expected of me. When I walked out of the room, my father patted my ba
AIDEN'S POV She ignored Henry, Micheal, and Devon, showing more courage than all three of them. Petar stood beside her, protective as ever. Aurora lifted her chin, refusing to back down. Soaking wet and close to falling sick, she still looked breathtaking and in that moment, I finally understood why I always chose to focus on her older sister when we were in the same room. Annabelle didn’t shake me or completely take over my thoughts. Neither did she make me feel anything real. She was just another woman who was confident, loud, always demanding attention but Aurora was different. She is Honest and Real. “Your offer.” Her voice was smooth and sweet. “I accept it.” She accepted.I wanted to break something. No, not just something, everything. I wanted to bring my whole mansion down to the ground. Because the deal she was accepting? It was no longer on the table. Her cheeks turned red, but she didn’t move, standing her ground despite the puddle of water forming at her feet.
AURORA'S POV He was marrying someone else. I was really late. I showed up near midnight, looking and feeling like trash. And he didn’t even look at me. What did I expect? You thought he saw you as more than just someone to carry his baby. But that was my first and last mistake about Aiden King. I walked from my bike to my apartment, stomping on puddles on purpose. It was late, raining hard, and my windbreaker was ripped from the long ride back and forth from Back Bay. My fingers and toes were numb. Maybe they had fallen off, and I just hadn’t noticed. Not like it would matter when Peter and Kenneth finally cut me up and fed me to the crows. Wherever you are, Thomas, I hope you suffer twice as much as me. I opened the front door to my building, I mean Annabelle’s building. I had no home, I reminded myself. It was dark, cold, and smelled like mold. I took a step toward the stairs when something hit my face hard. My cheek burned so much that my eyes filled with tears. A loud noise
AIDEN'S POV "Employee pay in the oil and gas industry is going up, and we’ve come up with a great plan to keep our best employees and attract new talent to Royal Pipelines…" My mind wandered as my HR director, Keith, gave one of the dullest speeches I had ever heard in my long business career. Across from me, Henry was on his phone, probably renewing his Pornhub Premium subscription. Devon sat beside me, playing his part as the head of compliance by frowning at his phone and ignoring the foreign calls going straight to voicemail. He was supposed to inherit a dukedom in a few years if he ever went back to England. But he refused to step foot there. I tapped my pen against the table, staring out the window. Three days had passed since Aurora showed up at my door and accepted my offer. Three days where I had time to think about how a storm had really shut down most of Boston’s public transportation that day. Three days where I completely forgot Nina Pierce existed. Three days
AIDEN'S POV All I had to do was keep Aurora away from me after we got married. Casey: Your schedule is full today, sir. Aiden: You mean my schedule is clear because you used your few brain cells to fix it. That’s what I PAY YOU FOR. Casey: Yes, sir. What should I do about the engagement ring? Aiden: Send Ms. Pierce a big check and an apology note. I’m not marrying her. Casey: OMG, really? Casey: Sorry, I mean, is the spot still open, sir? ;) Casey: I would make a great wife. I can cook, fish, and babysat a lot of kids. I also know… other things.One day I'll really have to fire my useless assistants but for now I have other pressing matters to take care of. I got out of the elevator, my shoes tapping on the marble floor. Through the big window, I saw the black SUV waiting outside, with the freezing snowstorm behind it then I got in the back seat and told the driver Aurora’s work address. Casey: Never mind. Sorry. That was wrong of me. If you’re not marrying Ms. Pie
AIDEN'S POV Now that I looked closer, her lower lip was swollen, her cheek was bruised, and even with heavy makeup, I could see a dark bruise around her left eye. She turned her head away, tilting it down to hide the damage. “It’s nothing. None of your business, anyway.” The loan shark had stopped making threats and moved on to actions. My pulse picked up. I cracked my knuckles. I wasn’t sure why her injuries bothered me so much. She was alive and mostly fine. But the thought of someone laying a hand on her…hurting her… “You have ten minutes to finish up and meet me outside. You should know by now, I don’t like waiting.” I turned and walked back to the Escalade, already regretting this marriage. No painkiller in the world could save me from the headache Aurora was about to bring into my life. She showed up minutes later, wrapped in a cheap coat with two holes in it. I opened the back door for her. She climbed in, and I followed. “Drive around,” I told my c
AIDEN'S POV I wasn’t used to being drawn to a particular person. Honestly, I wasn’t even sure if I could want a woman. And if I could, I was certain it would come with problems I wouldn’t enjoy. Aurora took another small puff of the cigar, then passed it back to me. Our fingers brushed. A jolt of electricity shot up my spine in a sensation I could only describe as both horrible and pleasant. I wanted to kiss her and kick her out of the car. Preferably at the same time but for the sake of my legal team, I did neither. “What else would this marriage include?” She looked down and licked her lip. "You will go with me to events, help at my charity, and play your part as a dutiful wife.” “Hmm.” She sank into the seat, stretching like a spoiled cat against the leather. “Anything else?” “You’ll sign a strict NDA and an ironclad prenup. But as long as we’re married, you’ll be well taken care of.” “What if you leave me for someone else?” I could barely handle the idea of one marr
AIDEN'S POV I let go of the empty vodka bottle, watching it roll to Henry's stall. That asshole almost cost me a wife. What a jerk. The car stopped, the engine turned off, and the person stepped out, the sound of boots on leaves really annoying me. “Aiden? Are you there?” Henry’s deep voice called. When did my brother start acting all serious? “No,” I growled, knowing he was coming in anyway. He did, stopping at the door with his hands on his hips. “Sandy had the baby. I have a daughter.” I thought I’d feel relief that it wasn’t a son, someone to take over Royal Pipelines, but I just felt nothing. Normal people would be happy for their brother, but I wasn’t normal. “Congrats,” I said with a bored tone. “Are they both okay?” “Yeah.” “Good. I set up a trust for your daughter. Three thousand dollars each month until college.” “That’s not why I’m here but thanks for the gift” Then he stepped inside and shut the door behind him. “Daniel found out Herold put Thomas Reynolds on t
AIDEN'S POV Aurora raised an eyebrow, looking at me with eyes so intense, if I had a heart, it would have broken for her. She clearly wanted me to care. “And you, what would you have done if Herold did something to me?” she asked softly. A cold shiver ran through me as I remembered the torture, burns , beatings and being locked in a dark church for hours, only with my demons to keep me company. Coming back to him, asking him for more. To pay for my father’s sins. To mourn our friendship. To numb my feelings and just like that, I remembered who I was. Who Herold Landon had made me. Who my father, my whole family wanted me to be. A sad smile twisted my face. I leaned down, my lips near my wife’s ear, my hot breath in her pale hair. “And I wish he’d finished what he started, Aurora, so I could finally marry someone better than you. You were a mistake. A stupid, careless mistake. I can’t wait for the divorce.” I felt, but didn’t see, her step back and that’s when I realized I
AIDEN'S POV She walked quickly toward me. “I kicked him out the night he came. You would’ve known that if you had answered any of my calls. Or if you had let me see you when I came to your house.” Your house. Of course, it was mine. Why would it be ours? I had taken her from the plain apartment I put her in, moved her into a guest room, and thought she would…what? Feel anything for the place? “Do you want a prize for staying loyal?. " She stopped right in front of me and her smell filled the room, making it hard to think. I wanted to grab her, shake her, push her out, kiss her, sleep with her, yell at her. All those things showed feelings and no control. “Daniel told you, didn’t he?” She tilted her head, watching me. She meant Herold Landon’s laptop. She must have seen the videos. “He works for me.” “So does the rest of the city.” “You too. So stop digging into my business before I cut you off.” “We both know I’m not here for the money. I want to talk about what I f
AURORA'S POV The third time I ran to the bathroom to throw up, I gave up. I shut my laptop and hid it under my bed, like the videos could still hurt me. I couldn’t watch my husband back when he was just a teenager being hurt, beaten, stuttering, crying, laughing, losing control and getting it back anymore. I wanted to hurt Herold Landon with my own hands and I knew, deep down, that I really could do it if I ever got the chance. Herold’s face wasn’t in the videos. But his voice was. You could hear why he did what he did. At six thirty in the morning, I got up and went to the shower. My eyes were swollen from crying all night. I knew two things for sure: One, I was going to make sure Landon paid for what he did, even if it was the last thing I ever did. Two, Aiden didn’t know how to feel anything after all he’d been through. But even someone who doesn’t feel love still deserves love. He still deserved peace, a place to belong, and a real home. From now on, I was going to give my
AIDEN'S POV After weeks of not seeing or hearing from Herold at Evon, I finally saw him at the main chapel. I felt both happy and scared. I waved at him from across the chapel. There were lots of students between us, and we all wore the same uniform. Herold saw me and looked away. A sharp pain hit my chest. That scared me. I couldn’t feel anything. Feelings would cause more nerve attacks, and nerve attacks would make Father kick me out. I did like baby Henry, but I didn’t want him to take the oldest son’s spot as heir to King Royal Pipelines and Father, Mother, and Henry were the only family I had left now. Herold probably hated me. After Sunday Mass, I walked across the lawn with my hands behind my back, looking at the grass and frowning. I didn’t care much that I had Tourette’s. It was annoying, yes but after reading a few books and medical papers about it, I had made a decision. I would beat it before I finished school and went to college. And when I make a decision, I always
AIDEN'S POV "Well,I guess it's because I have something called Tourette's syndrome." I leaned back in the chair, looking at all the white around me. It felt calm, and that made me feel better. There was a long silence from the other side of the window. "How long have you known?" "About a week." I heard pages turning on a clipboard from the other side. I smiled sadly. Usually, it's the patient who doesn’t know. "How can that be? It says here your tic attack happened two days ago," another voice said. It was a middle aged woman's voice. Both doctors had accents. One sounded Italian, and the other probably Swiss from the French side. "Yes," I said slowly, giving them time to write. "But I felt the attack coming in the days before, so I looked it up." "So you knew it was going to happen?" the Swiss doctor asked, surprised. "The attack." I nodded. She gasped. "Poor thing," she said. It wasn’t very doctor-like. "Well that's a new one. I’ve never been called that before,"
AIDEN'S POV THE PAST The first time I went to a juvenile treatment clinic was when I was fourteen. Earlier that week, I hurt myself so badly that I was still bleeding and had lost some teeth. My face was so swollen that it took three people to recognize me when they found me on the library floor. My mother went with me to the clinic in Switzerland. She didn’t want to go. I wore a coat, hat, and sunglasses to hide my bruises, like a celebrity trying to stay unnoticed. My mother didn’t say much on the flight from England to Zurich, except for one quiet sentence after the flight attendants had passed by. “Your father can’t know.” That was the first thing she said. Not asking how I was. Not asking how it happened. “Your father can’t know.” I didn’t say anything. She was right. Father couldn’t find out. And honestly, there was no way to explain what happened. One moment, I was sitting in the library studying hard to be first in my class like always, feeling a strange pressure i
AURORA'S POV I couldn’t lie, so I gave a small smile and shrugged, trying to look confident. “Your secret is not really a secret anymore. That’s not good for someone who is the head of Green Living. Anyway, I’m here to tell you that was the last time you hit your son. I’m going to report this to Child Protective Services. I’ve done this before, so I’ll tell you what will happen. I’ll file a report, and CPS will come to your house within a day to check on the kids. They’ll see the bruises on Tinder and find other signs of abuse or neglect. When they do, they’ll take the kids to a foster home and charge you with a crime.” Morgana looked like she was going to choke. “I’ve worked with many schools and know some people at CPS. I can probably help Morgana get full custody, since she didn’t hurt the kids. Now, as for you” I looked at Morgana. She slid down the wall, crying hard on the floor and face was wet with tears. “You should always put your kids first.” “I did.” Morgana he
AURORA'S POV “I’m leaving after today, but things are going to change here. I wanted to tell you.” I sat Tinder down in front of the burnt cookies. We didn’t eat them. His big brown eyes looked at me like I was the only thing keeping him safe. “Change how?” he asked. “Your dad isn’t being nice to you. He’s doing bad things, and I can’t always be here to help you. One day, you’ll grow up and think about what I’m going to do. And even though there's a possibility that you might hate me, or thank me in the future.” I shook my head as my eyes started to fill with tears, but I didn’t let them fall because Tinder needed me to stay strong. He deserved more. He deserved everything. “No matter how you feel about me later, I’ll understand. I think your dad is going to get into big trouble soon because of me. But you will still have your mom and your brother. They are the ones I want you to think about, okay? They are what matter most.” He nodded slowly. It was a lot to hear. Even I didn’t