Card Room

I was the son of the wealthiest man in Capital City, but I had never enjoyed the flattery and fake smiles that came with that title. All I had ever wanted was a normal life. Now that I was pushing twenty-eight and still single, my mom finally lost her patience. She gave me an ultimatum: go on a blind date or she’d disown me. On my way to the date, I passed by a luxury boutique and spotted a watch that immediately caught my eye. I was just about to pay for it when, out of nowhere, a man barged in from behind and slapped a black card down on the counter. “I’ll take this watch. Wrap it up for me,” he said. I stayed calm and said politely, “Sir, I saw this watch first.” However, he just scoffed and snapped back, full of arrogance, “A broke nobody like you can look but not afford it. Get lost. I’m the assistant to Ms. Jackson, the CEO of Jackson Group. In this city, if I want something, no one will fight me for it.” Ms. Jackson? Isn’t that the exact woman I was supposed to be meeting for the blind date? Without another word, I pulled out my phone and dialed her number. “Selena,” I said calmly, “do you know your assistant is out here throwing your name around to bully people?”

Like every princess in fairy tales, one must be elegant and prudent. Not Elizabeth after she sneaked out of her room in the middle of the night, only to attend a masquerade ball. One blink and she woke up in the arms of the ruthless General Kius, naked and under the white sheets. What will she do when one rebellious night will result in a child?

At three in the morning, I stare at the unknown transaction record on my phone screen, my fingertips turning cold. The record is for a payment of 2980 dollars, made for an executive suite at the Wisteria. The time of payment was 8:00 pm last night. My husband, Tristan Griffin, is a detective. He was on the night shift last night. I clutch my phone, my knuckles turning white as I text Tristan, "I just saw your credit card bill for a hotel stay last night. What's up with that?" His reply is instant. "Our team had to work overtime at the last minute, so they put us up at the hotel. I forgot to tell you about it." I scan the text and sputter. The Wisteria is located in the western region of the city, which is on the other end from where his squad is stationed. I don't press him for more details and click on the bank app on my phone. Having found the vendor's address through the payment record, I sent it to my best friend, Rowena Sheffield, who works as a private detective. She replies instantly with an "OK" emoji and follows up with, "Give me a second. I'll find out everything you want in a jiffy!"

The supplementary card I've issued for my grandmother shows that an eight-thousand-dollar purchase has taken place in another city. But the transaction records show that the money is used on hymenoplasty. I'm shell-shocked, to say the least. Grandma is 84 years old this year. She's been bedridden and paralyzed for years. Why would she even get hymenoplasty done on her, to begin with? But when my investigation leads me to a plastic surgery hospital, I find out that my wife, Stella Watson, is actually the lead doctor of said clinic. So, I call her to demand answers from her. However, Stella refuses to answer my questions properly. "Don't worry, honey. Something's most likely wrong with the system. Betsy is already this old—why would she have her hymen repaired?" That's just a bullshit answer coming from her. She seriously thinks I'm gullible enough to believe her. I merely huff coldly in return before calling my dad, who works in the Department of Commerce. "Dad, Stella is most likely cheating on me. I want her plastic surgery hospital as compensation for my impending divorce!"

Heavily pregnant, she was kidnapped and thrown into a life-or-death gamble. Her husband paid a hundred million dollars to save his first love, while she was left to die in a raging fire. At death’s door, she finally remembered the identity of herself. Five years later, she returned—not as the obedient wife of the past, but as Elianna Carrington, the esteemed Fifth daughter of the powerful Carrington family in Bryston. Loved by her father, cherished by her brothers, adored by her son, and pursued by the elites, her life was perfect. Joseph Kensington finally realized the truth. This elegant, untouchable woman was the wife he’d been searching for all these years. Desperate, he took her to court. Elianna: Give it up, Joseph. Both sons are mine. Joseph: The kids are yours. You’re mine. Overnight, Bryston was shaken. The dominant heir to a financial empire had now fallen at her feet. To win his wife back, he risked everything—his pride, his life, his heart. Too bad his two sons were his biggest obstacles. Eldest son: Daddy, my credit card swipes faster than yours. Second son: Scumbag dad, get lost!

“Fifty Thousand dollars, going once.” The words echo through the room, cold and final, as Bianca realizes her fate is no longer her own. Desperation has led her to a place where lives are reduced to bids, and freedom has a price tag. Just before the gavel can fall, a single voice cuts through the silence, calm, powerful, and undeniable. “Twenty Million.” The room freezes. The highest bid belongs to Stefano De Luca, a man whose wealth is limitless, whose influence is feared, and whose intentions are never questioned. Sold to a man who treats power like a weapon and emotions like weakness, Bianca is forced into a contract that binds her to a world of luxury, control, and dangerous secrets. What begins as a transaction soon becomes a battle of wills, where lines blur between possession and protection, fear and desire. In a world where everything has a price, Bianca must decide whether she is merely something that was bought or the one thing Stefano De Luca never intended to lose. But what if he never intended to set her free at all?

Eunice was happy when she married the man she loved, but she was also having a hard time dealing with him. Despite this, she cared for him and endured everything, as they had gotten married for the sake of their parents' wishes and their company. She hoped that one day her husband would learn to love her and accept their marriage, but she was wrong; he paid more attention to his ex than to her. One night, Eunice was surprised to see her husband standing in front of her room drunk. He suddenly pulled her into the room, and they had sex. She gave herself to him even though he was drunk. A month later, Eunice found out she was pregnant. Afraid that her husband would not believe her and would reject their child, she chose to stay away and walked away without saying anything about her pregnancy. A few years later, Eunice returned with their child. If their paths crossed again and destiny reunited them, what would Eunice do? Would she tell the truth that they have a child, or would she choose to keep it a secret?

Colleen Caddell is broke, jobless, and at the verge of being thrown out of her house. Desperate as she was, she conned her way into a program run by the infamous Andre Lourdes. But when she becomes the number one suspect in the murder case of his mother, Colleen has to explain to Andre, and the whole world, what she was doing in the room minutes after Camilla Lourdes was shot dead.

Luke Von Aleister had just become a billionaire when his friend/rival, out of jealousy, drugged him and an unknown woman in the same room where they had intercourse. Luke was unaware, until his wedding day when a strange woman arrived, pregnant with his child. This caused the bride and her family to withdraw from the wedding. A shotgun marriage took place instead.

“I am going to break you. That’s the whole purpose of this exercise. From the moment the door inside that room closes, I am not going to be Mr. Nice Guy. I am going to do everything in my power to hear you scream, and I won’t stop until I hear you beg for mercy. Do you wish to proceed on that basis?”