Mag-log inIt only takes one unfortunate evening for Amara: she is jobless, she catches her fiancé with her stepsister, and her own father places the blame on her. One too many drinks led to Adrian Cole, a powerful CEO and the greatest rival of her ex-fiancé. Adrian gets to offer to treat her mother when she becomes critically ill, one of those very few moments in Amara's life when she doesn't have enough money for her treatment. He makes her one proposition: Amara must marry him for three years. Jealousy, lies, and an ex trying to return threaten to rip apart their contract marriage. Amara attempts to walk away, but Adrian refuses to let her go. Until the truth comes out. Now she wants her freedom. He wants another chance. And three years may not be enough.
view moreAmara's POV
I was typing a report when my office telephone rang. I did not pay much attention to it until the receptionist told me that Amara, “Mr. Collins wants to see you. Now.”
My stomach squeezed.
He would never summon anybody to his office unless something was amiss.
I stood and pulled my skirt, and had to walk down the hallway. I knew even before I knocked that there was something heavy on the other side.
"Come in," he said.
I stepped inside. Mr. Collins sat behind his desk with a solemn face. He pointed to the opposite seat.
"Sit, Amara."
I sat quietly, waiting.
He folded his hands. Your work has been declining in the past few weeks.
His eyes were on mine. "This isn't like you. What's going on?"
My heart thumped slowly. I didn't want to talk about it. Not here. Not with him.
"I'm fine, sir," I said.
He frowned. "I don't believe that. You have been one of my best employees in two years. One minute, you find out that your job is late, messy, and you are distracted. He leaned forward. "Talk to me. I will assist you, provided you are truthful.
I looked down at my hands.
It was no longer possible to avoid it.
I said at length, "My mother is sick. She should be treated... and it is costly. I have been trying to acquire the means to get the money. This is why I have been distracted.
His face relaxed only a little--only a little.
"I see," he murmured. "That's serious."
I nodded.
He held back a couple of seconds and said, You know... I can help you."
I looked up slowly. "How?"
His eyes changed, and the tenderness was gone.
"If you do something for me."
Something funny came to the bottom of my stomach. "What... thing?"
He sat back on his chair as though he was going to tell me the most casual thing in the world.
"I like you, Amara. I've liked you for a while."
His eyes were shamelessly roving over me. I will make you a promotion and increase your salary two times, should you spend a few nights with me. You will pay off the medical bills of your mother with ease.
I was unable even to breathe a moment.
He was married. With a daughter. A daughter almost my age.
I cleared my throat and maintained a steady voice. "Sir, I'm engaged. And you're married. I can't do that."
The good nature on his face disappeared at once; in its place came annoyance.
So you reckon you are better than me? He snapped. I am giving you the chance that many women would struggle to get.
I do not want that sort of opportunity, I thought to myself, and said, with all due respect, I do not want that sort of opportunity.
I jumped at his smashing his palm on the desk.
"Then you're fired."
My breath caught. "Sir--"
Pack your bags and get out of my office. Now."
I stood slowly. I didn't argue. There was no point.
The only thing I could do was to maintain my dignity.
I left his office quietly, taking my personal belongings, and walked out of the building. I did not feel angry at all; I only felt empty as soon as I went outside.
I got a cab and gave the driver the address of the house of Daniel. My fiance. The single individual whom I believed would get... at least to some extent.
Maybe he would comfort me. Hold me. Assure me that it was going to be right.
Upon arriving at his home, the front door was slightly ajar. Nothing suspicious--he never locked it.
But as soon as I entered, I heard it.
Soft moans.
Female moans.
My heart froze.
No, I said to myself, and slowly walked toward the sound.
The door of the bedroom was half-closed. I pushed it open.
And I saw them.
Daniel.
And Bella--my younger step-sister.
Together in his bed.
The legs of Bella were around his waist, and Daniel was too shocked to move from seeing me.
"Amara, what are you doing here?" he uttered and scrambled to conceal himself.
My head was not able to think for a few seconds. I was unable to feel my legs or my fingers.
"Why are you here early?" he said, as though that was the chief point.
"Why am I--?" I almost laughed. "Daniel, what is this?"
Bella did not even seem ashamed. She fiddled with the blanket and said with pride, I am pregnant.
My gaze fell upon her stomach. There was a small bump.
A bump that I had never noticed before.
My breath shook. "You're... pregnant? With my fiance?"
No, no, it is not like that, Daniel said hastily. "You've been so busy with work. I felt lonely. I needed company. And a child, too."
I stared at him. So you thought you would sleep with my sister?
It was reasonable, he said, like it was, that she was here, and you were not.
I picked up my phone and called my father at once.
I was not shaking in my voice; I was too angry.
"Dad, Daniel slept with Bella. She's pregnant," I said flatly.
His answer was immediate and without delay.
"Why are you overreacting? Aren't you sisters?"
I closed my eyes.
He went on, Why are you being greedy, when the man can take care of both of you? A man is supposed to be the provider of the family. Share him."
I put down the phone before he could continue.
I took the engagement ring off my finger.
I held it up, and Daniel looked nervous.
Then I hurled it at him.
He shuddered upon receiving it on his chest.
I said nothing else, but turned and walked out of the house.
A cab slowed up beside me when I got to the road.
I opened the door and slid in.
"Where to?" the driver asked.
I looked forward, my voice unshaken.
“Anywhere I can leave my woes behind.”
Adrian’s POVThe phone rang.The sound exploded inside the narrow metal vent like a gunshot.My heart dropped.For one second, the entire world became silent.Then chaos broke loose below.“There’s something in there!” the female doctor shouted pointing towards my location.Her chair scraped loudly across the floor.“I knew I heard something! Check the vents!”My blood turned cold.Boots started moving quickly across the room.Metal trays clattered.“Call security!” someone yelled.I grabbed my phone quickly and tried to silence it, but it was already too late.My fingers trembled as I pressed the screen.Below me, several men were already pointing toward the ceiling.“There! Above us!”“Open it!”I began crawling fast through the vent.The metal tunnel shook beneath my weight as I pushed forward.Every movement made noise.Too much noise.Behind me, I heard the sound of metal being forced open.“They’re inside the vent!”My breathing became heavier.I crawled faster.Dust filled my n
Adrian’s POVThe cold metal door closed quietly behind me.Darkness surrounded the narrow stairway leading underground.I paused for a moment.My chest rose and fell slowly as I listened carefully.No voices.No footsteps.Only silence.Every sound I made echoed back at me.I reached into my pocket and pulled out a small black mask. I couldn’t afford to be seen or recognized.I adjusted the black cap on my head. I was on all black. The more attractive the colors are then the better.A strange smell filled the air but I ignored it.Finding Liana was my top priority.Then I stepped forward.Slowly.Carefully.Every movement had to be quiet.Every step had to be controlled.Because one mistake could destroy everything.And more importantly—One mistake could get Liana killed.I pulled the door shut above me and carefully covered the entrance again so it looked exactly the way it had before.Then I walked deeper into the underground passage.The moment I reached the bottom of the stairs,
Adrian’s POVThe engine roared as my car sped down the empty road.My eyes stayed fixed on the small blinking dot on the GPS screen.Liana.Her location flashed again.Still moving.Still alive.I tightened my grip on the steering wheel until my knuckles turned white.My jaw clenched.“Hold on Liana… I’m coming for you” I muttered under my breath.The road ahead blurred as the speed increased.Wind rushed loudly against the windows.But I barely noticed.My mind was somewhere else.Back to the moment I placed the necklace around her neck.I remembered how gently I had done it.Like the necklace was something precious.But it wasn’t just jewelry.Hidden inside it was a tiny tracker.And something else.A listening device.I had known they would come for her.It was only a matter of time.Dr. Wally would never stop hunting for Amara.And Liana…Liana looked exactly like her.I had hoped they would take the bait.That they would bring her to their new factory.That they would lead me str
Liana’s POVThe men dragged me through a long, dark tunnel.My feet scraped against the cold ground as I struggled to keep up with their pace. My ribs still burned from the beating earlier. Every breath felt sharp and painful.The tunnel smelled damp and rotten.Water dripped slowly from the ceiling. Drop by drop.The sound echoed around us like a slow ticking clock.I could only think of one person at the moment.Adrian.Save me, please.That was all my heart wished for.Fear still sat heavily in my chest.I had no idea where they were taking me.And something inside me whispered that wherever we were going… it was not a place people returned from.Suddenly the men slowed down.We passed a large metal cage.My head turned instinctively.And my heart stopped.People.There were dozens of people locked inside.Men.Women.Even teenagers.Their bodies were thin and bruised. Some had cuts across their faces. Others had bandages wrapped around their arms and legs.They wore a white gowns
I ran through the streets like a man possessed. My chest heaved, my legs ached, but I could not stop. I had to see her again. I had to make sure.I turned to a corner and froze. There she was. The same hair. The same curves. The same height, walking down the street without a care in the world.My h
The knock did not come from the door.It came from the building itself.A vibration ran through the walls first, low and ugly, like the structure was clearing its throat before saying something terrible. I sat up in bed instantly, heart already sprinting, brain lagging half a step behind, trying to
The blackout lasted exactly forty seven seconds.That precision mattered.Long enough to be felt. Short enough to be denied.The lights cut out mid sentence while I was still standing near the window, still listening to the crowd outside, still breathing in that strange electricity that comes when
The fence did not fall all at once.That was the mistake they made later when they tried to rewrite it.It bent first. Groaned. Shuddered under the weight of bodies and momentum and something louder than fear. Anger sharpened by clarity. The kind that comes when people realize the rules were never
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