The Pawn And The Puppet

All she ever wanted was to be loved. All she ever wanted was to escape the cage she was born into, but betrayal shatters her world when her fiancé elopes with her sister and her rival blackmails her into marrying him. Now, her goal seems far from reach. Zachary Wellington—cold, ruthless, and feared by everyone except one woman: Valerie Hampton, the one woman he has despised since high school. She bullied his first love, and the girl died after discovering a secret about Valerie. Years later, they are powerful rivals, well known in the business world. He calls her Ursula—the villain in his love story—and she calls him Dracula, the devil’s spawn. The next time they meet, Zachary drops a bombshell: she must marry him, or her father’s dirty dealings will be exposed to the public. Left with no choice and determined to protect her father’s reputation, she agrees to the marriage. Fueled by old wounds and a twisted thirst for revenge, Zachary turns their union into a twisted game of chess guided by cold rules, where every move is calculated and trust is a luxury neither of them can afford. But what begins as punishment spirals into something far more dangerous: desire, obsession, and secrets that refuse to stay buried. From betrayal and childhood trauma to a violent heir lurking in the shadows, Valerie and Zachary are about to uncover a truth that could destroy them both. Love was never part of the plan. But in a marriage built on lies and vengeance, it might be their only way out.

Arabella has been trained all her life on her to be a dutiful wife, her family's crumbling business empire, Arabella is coerced into a loveless marriage with billionaire Asher Blackwood, who sees her as a weak and insignificant pawn, he despises her due to her weak nature. Asher struggles in accepting Arabella, as he wants someone else than Arabella. Arabella is also drawn to Arlo, who cares for her more than Asher and sees her as human rather than a pawn. But slowly Asher and Arabella fall for each other but it seems too late, as Asher has bitten more than Arabella can handle and Arabella would stop at nothing to make him pay as he had underestimated the power of a pawn. Arabella's life has been defined by her family's crumbling business empire and the pressure to be a perfect wife. But when she's coerced into marrying Asher Blackwood, a ruthless billionaire who despises her "weak" nature, she feels trapped and alone. Asher's heart belongs to someone else, and Arabella is drawn to Arlo, who treats her with kindness and respect unlike Asher who always wants to manipulate her. What happens when a dutiful daughter is forced into a loveless marriage with a billionaire who sees her as a pawn, not a partner? Can a loveless marriage turn into a love that lasts?

"Yes, I know you have changed your mind. But has it occurred to you?" He paused, a cold smile appearing on his lips. "That I might have changed my mind about marrying you?" "What?" She blurted out. There was no way he could reject her. He was her last plan. Her final backup plan, and without him, she would lose her sister to the dangerous Mafia Prince, Andrei Andreevich. She would be his possession forever. A slave. ************************* Lyra Bennet heart was pounding as she stared at the ruthless Prince Viktor Andreevich. She had caused her sister to lose her freedom to her mafia ex-boyfriend. So now, she had to save her by selling herself in marriage to Andrei Andreevich's worst enemy. His younger brother. Viktor Andreevich. She might have agreed to marry him to save her sister, but the cold glimmer in Viktor's unflinching eyes warns that he’s not a man to be toyed with. A self-made Billionaire and Mafia boss, Viktor was well known to be a ruthless, heartless playboy whose primary interest, more than his cartel and dating supermodels, was destroying his elder brother. He was determined to take him down for cutting him off from their first cartel right before it could have made him hundreds of millions of dollars. Now the final piece of the puzzle had fallen into place and revenge was at Viktor's fingertips. But Lyra tests the one thing Viktor didn’t know he had—honor.

In her previous life, Everon Monique was just a simple girl living her life as a carefree teenager. She's content to live on her own. Alone and lonely. But that was until a very sudden accident change her existence for the worst. She died at the age of 18 and was reincarnated to a different world. She is now a new born heiress of a Grand Duke. Amazing, right? Far from it. She was still conscious about her past life and the new life she was given are full of hate and prejudice. Growing up in her new life, she witnessed how strange her new world was. A man was more powerful and more puissant and treated like Gods. While girls are being sold as slaves at a ripe age to every noble man that would live a brutalized life she had never imagined existed. Her time came. Full of terror and uncertainties, she had no choice but to obey. She was sold to become the Crowned Prince's Marionette. Will she ever survive at the hands of her diabolic master? Or will fate lead her to a life of adventure.

“If I am nothing more than a tool meant to satisfy your desire for another woman… then you will never truly have me.” His eyes darkened. “You will marry me, even if you despise me.” The words were not a request. They were final. Hated by the man she was once promised to, who now looks at her with nothing but contempt… and abandoned by her father and brothers, who chose her sister over her without hesitation… She becomes nothing more than a political asset—something to be traded, controlled, and used for alliance. But this time, she refuses to be reduced to a sacrifice. This time, she decides she will choose her own fate. That decision draws the attention of the King of Ardos— a ruler feared across kingdoms for his ruthless power and absolute authority. To him, she is not a bargaining piece. She is a fixation. A woman he intends to bind to his world, keep within his reach, and make impossible for anyone else to take away. A union born from politics soon turns into something far more dangerous— a battle of will, control, and desire neither of them fully understands. And beneath it all, something begins to shift… Because she is not as breakable as they believe. And he is not as in control as he pretends to be.

His sinful hands traveled to her waist as she looked at him; her breath hitched as he traced her belly button “You are so vulnerable right now,” his gaze landed on the gunshot wound on her chest, just between her breasts. The fact that she was not wearing a bra right now was very distracting. Even with the scar she was so beautiful. “So are you,” he whispered keeping the gun in her hands. The heat of their graze did not help with the hot atmosphere of the room; this was deadly. “We can’t deceive both agencies,” her murmur was soft, unlike the sound of his harsh breathing. “We can, we will,” He looked straight into her eyes as her lips trembled. So unlikely of the girl she was. “It's a matter of two countries,” she whispered, her last straw against him, she knew she would give up if he had an answer to this. That she would let go of the lust suffocating her insides after this. “It's a matter of two hearts,” her eyes snapped to his immediately. “I can't seem to forget the little girl who took a bullet for me,” He said as her lips parted in shock. “You… knew?” she could not form more words. He could not find himself to answer anything else than a nod, he was deceiving her in the name of love. ‘Ya Allah, why do I have to do this?’ she asked her god taking her eyes away from him for a second. “It's the matter of two hearts, two bodies, two souls…” and two deceivers, the word they both so wanted to add but couldn’t. “Have me,” He whispered. “Take me,” she obliged In which she deceived him before he could deceive her