Afford Artinya

Luciano moved closer, closing the gap between them. An expressionless glare hardened his features as his rough hand clamped around her jaw, forcing her face up to meet his dreadful gaze. "Your husband sold you to me. I gave you the freedom you always wanted, yet somehow you ended up in my arms again." "I'm not one of those useless women who crawl back to you," she spat, ignoring the way his grip tightened on her jaw. "I despise you with everything inside me." "I bought you for seventy billion dollars," he said coldly. "If you can afford to give me back the money, I'll have no reason to deny you the freedom you want so badly. "But if you can't, you'll continue to serve me—" His lips curved into a cruel smile. "As my personal toy and plaything." \* \* \* Abandoned as a child and raised in an orphanage, she learned early that love never lasted. Years later, the same parents returned — not for her, but for their debt. To settle it, they handed her over to Davin, the man who became her husband. Just when she thought she was finally happy, everything ended. An evening after her birthday, her husband was shot dead. The man who pulled the trigger was her boss — Frederick Hayden. Until she discovered that everything happening to her from the very beginning was tied to him.

My husband, Francis Zouche, thought we weren't well-off and could not afford to raise a child. So, he forcibly took me to the hospital to get an abortion. Right after the surgery, I discovered that he had transfered 200 thousand dollars to his first love, Heidi Colman, for her birthday. Out of pure rage, I got into a huge fight with him in the car, which led to an accident that killed us both. When I opened my eyes, we had returned to the day before our wedding. In our previous life, we were married for ten years. We weathered storms and supported each other, but Francis never wanted us to have a child of our own. On the day I died, I finally understood that the one he loved was Heidi. After getting a second shot at life, I decided to fulfill his wish. We canceled the wedding, blocked each other's phone numbers, and never contacted each other again. Eight years later, Francis became a top lawyer in Alvren and publicly proposed to Heidi at a law forum. Seeing that I was still single, he mocked me with a sneer, "Yvette, I know you loved me for two lifetimes. But I am getting married now. Don't keep waiting for me to come back to you." I glanced at him wordlessly and bent down to pick up my daughter before walking away. As a shocking realization hit him, his eyes reddened. He questioned furiously, "Didn't you promise to love me forever and to only give birth to my children?"

I'm one of the entertainment industry's most popular celebrities. One day, the Holmes family, the richest family in Hemmingville, comes to me and tells me I'm one of them. The day I return home, the city's paparazzi follow me to capture every second of my return. When I arrive at the Holmes residence, my adoptive sister stops me from entering. "We've looked into you and found out that you shot to fame after starring in an adult film. "The Holmes family has its rules—you have to change your clothes in public before you can step foot in here. Dad said that I'm the one who calls the shots when he and Jason aren't at home, so I hope you can understand me." In my past life, I would've acted cautiously and adopted a lowly stance for the sake of my image. But I've been reborn. I kick aside the things in my way and shove Nancy Holmes aside. "How ridiculous! You'd better stop and think whether you're worthy of telling me what to do. How dare you ask me to strip in public? "I'm insured from head to toe—you can't afford to pay me back if you even touch a hair on my head! And you call yourself the heiress of the family, huh? I'd like to see you grovel at my feet and beg me later!"

During my graduation trip, my friends and I go on a road trip to the plateau. That's when I get afflicted with altitude sickness. As dark spots begin to form in my vision, I realize that my anti-sickness medication, which can definitely save my life, has been swapped for ibuprofen instead. I'm about to start demanding answers from the group when my fiance, Zayden Lowry, stops me. "Sorry, Noelle. I've given your imported medication to Erica. You should take some ibuprofen and try to ride out your sickness for the time being." I clutch the box of ibuprofen, already finding it difficult to breathe. "So, you're just going to make me wait for my death after taking ibuprofen, huh?" Zayden frowns deeply at me. "How could you say that? Erica is frail, but you shouldn’t curse her like that! "This trip is meant for us to enjoy Mother Nature's beauty, not an opportunity for you to show off your expensive medication! "My mom is right. You really need to change that spoiled temperament of yours. If not, I won't be able to afford your expenses, seeing as you're the frail type who collapses over the slightest inconvenience." I no longer pay Zayden any attention. Using what's left of my strength, I send my dad a text. "Dad, send someone here to take me home. Also, you can terminate the collaboration between our company and Zayden's."

She gave up a throne for love. He threw her away like trash. Khione was born to rule continents—a silver wolf heir to the Primal Alpha. But she abandoned her destiny for Kieran, a nobody Omega she built into a billionaire Alpha. For ten years, she played the dutiful wife while he climbed to power on her hidden connections. Then he came home with another woman. Pregnant. And called Khione worthless. Big mistake. Now she's back to claim what's hers, her magically gifted twins at her side and vengeance in her heart. But reclaiming her throne means accepting a new bodyguard—Emrys, a maddeningly persistent warrior who sees past her titles to the woman beneath. He notices when she's tired. Remembers how she takes her tea. Looks after her in ways no one ever had. She can't afford to fall again. Especially when she discovers Emrys is the Alpha of her enemy kingdom—the one responsible for her sister's murder. Especially when she's betrothed to that same enemy Alpha to broker peace. Especially when she realizes they're the same man. As a shadow villain orchestrates war from within her own family, Khione must decide: can she trust the mate bond pulling her toward Emrys, or will letting someone see her again destroy everything she's fought to reclaim? Some wolves are born to lead. Others are forged in betrayal.

I am in such a rush to pick up my daughter, Ava Pennington, from school that I don't have time to change out of my work attire. At the kindergarten gates, I run into the mother of one of her classmates, Candice Austin. She sizes me up from head to toe and says, "You must be Ava Pennington's mom." I politely nod. Just as I am about to say hello, her expression suddenly sours. "It's no wonder your daughter dresses so skimpily at school. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, does it?" I am so mad that I nearly forgot to respond. "What nonsense are you talking about?" Candice clicks her tongue and grows even more aggressive. "Nonsense? Your daughter wears skirts to school every day. She's distracting my son so much that his grades have slipped." Her words leave me utterly speechless. How is her son's failing grades somehow Ava's fault? When I don't respond, she gets bolder. "Look at you dressed from head to toe in cheap junk; how can you afford to send your daughter to this elite kindergarten? You must have pulled some shady strings to sneak her in through the back door, didn't you?" Has she lost her mind? Since when does Ava need strings to attend the school I built?

Victoria never wanted the spotlight. She wanted a quiet life with King Adeyemi,the self-made billionaire who's proposed three times and been refused three times because of a secret she couldn't afford to spill. But when Chief Donald Okereke her father,dies under suspicious circumstances 8 weeks before his crucial election, she is dragged into a world of power, politics, and forbidden desire. Seeing her brother shattered and her family's legacy crumbling, Victoria must choose either to run from her destiny or claim the Senate seat her father died fighting for. King has loved Victoria obsessively for three years. Every rejection cuts deeper, but he won't stop pursuing the only woman who's ever made him feel alive. When her father's death pulls her into the ruthless political machine King knows too well, he'll use every resource in his billion-dollar empire to protect her,even if it means exposing the dangerous connection between his business and her father's enemies. As Christmas lights flicker over a city drowning in corruption, Victoria discovers that politics is foreplay and power is the ultimate aphrodisiac. The man she loves might be her salvation or her destruction.In the middle of the noise, Victoria stood still,her heart cracked only when her secrets leaked and love was tested. Apparently obsession becomes the only thing standing between her and ruin,will it protect her or become the weapon that destroys her?

When I returned to the corporate research and development press conference, I knew Tyler Zach would step forward to accuse our team of plagiarism, yet I chose to turn a blind eye. In my previous life, Tyler’s accusation had caused Nelson Corporation to instantly lose ten percent of its core interests. Back then, I stepped up and single-handedly saved the day. Not only did I ensure the press conference ended smoothly, but I also used the opportunity to elevate the company’s reputation to new heights. However, I was eventually betrayed. My first love, Rosie Nelson, fabricated evidence against me and sent me to prison. Even the results of my project were falsely credited to Tyler. I refused to believe it. I bombarded her with questions and demanded answers. Rosie’s eyes were filled with guilt, but she only replied, “Evan, Tyler came from humble beginnings. He can’t afford to lose this once-in-a-lifetime chance to make a name for himself! “Don’t worry. We’ll get married once you’re out.” I fought desperately to appeal, but I was beaten to death in prison. I wondered if Rosie could handle the company’s losses without me fighting tooth and nail to turn things around this time. I did not expect Rosie to turn to me at the most critical moment of the conference with panicked eyes and urge me desperately, “Evan! Why aren’t you on stage explaining everything yet?!”

"I want you to love me, Layla Kavros. I want you to be mine. I want YOU and ONLY YOU." Layla Kavros knows one truth: ‎Home isn't a place—it's a distant memory buried under scars, shackles, and a frozen heart that is afraid to trust or love again. ‎After escaping a living hell, Layla wakes up in the last place a fugitive rogue should ever be—the dungeon of the BloodHounds Pack. There, she expects torture and death, but her captor is no ordinary wolf. He is Alpha Raelin Michaelson. Lethal. Possessive. And her fated mate. ‎Raelin has spent years waiting for his mate, but now he is faced with the one bond he cannot deny. He wants to hate the stubborn rogue before him, but the hunger to claim her is irresistible. Trapped between a mate she doesn't want and a hell she can't afford to go back to, Layla has no choice but to strike a dangerous deal: she will live under his roof in exchange for his protection. However, peace is an illusion for a rogue living in the BloodHounds Pack, especially a rogue who is the Alpha's mate. Caught in the jealousy of a rival and a dark enemy from her past that could shatter everything, Layla is forced into a cruel dilemma—‎choose the Alpha who is slowly melting her frozen heart, or save the family she thought she lost forever. In the end, can two souls survive for a love worth dying for? Or will they be torn apart by secrets and those who would love to see them destroyed?

In the fifth year of my spiritual practice, my phone suddenly exploded with messages. [Aria, why aren't you replying? Are you really that petty?] Puzzled, I opened Messenger, and froze. My cousin, who never seemed to measure up to me and always went out of her way to oppose me, was getting married, and she expected me to attend. "Sorry, I've been busy lately. I won't be able to make it," I replied politely. However, my courteous response only fueled their ridicule. "Stop pretending! You haven't kept in touch with your family for years. Are you too embarrassed because your life is such a mess?" "She won't even come to her own cousin's wedding? How heartless!" "Let me guess, the real reason she can't come is she can't afford a wedding gift." One cutting remark after another appeared, until Betty Stewart stepped in, feigning concern. "Come on, don't be so harsh on Aria. We're family, after all." "If she's really struggling, I could ask my husband to help her get a cleaning job." Then she sent me the digital invitation, the gold lettering gleaming. When I saw the groom's name, my pupils constricted in shock. Joseph Clark? Wasn't he the short-lived husband who had spent three years sucking up to me just to extend his life?