Chained Up

I was never a novel person. Honestly? I couldn’t care less about them. That is, until “Three Hearts, One Love”... the reverse harem novel that took over the world… shoved itself into my life. Everywhere I turned: malls, newsfeeds, radios, TVs… Even the old lady at the bus stop was raving about it. Out of pure annoyance… and a little curiosity… I bought a copy, planning to skim it just enough to say it was overrated. Big mistake. Huge. One minute I was rolling my eyes at the melodrama, the next I woke up inside the story — not as the beloved heroine, of course. No, fate made me Luna Graves: the pathetic and miserable, jealous best friend doomed to crash and burn spectacularly by the end of the novel. With no way out, I figured I'd play my part, die dramatically, and call it a day. But then something weird happened. Scenes shifted. Strangers walked onto the page. And the swoon-worthy male leads? They stopped chasing the heroine... and started chasing me. Me. The villain. This wasn’t in the script... and I was definitely not ready.

My husband, Theodore, was about to take his childhood sweetheart, Rosalie, around the world in a hot-air balloon when I was kidnapped by his enemy. They were about to throw me into a snake pit. I gave up asking Theodore for help and called my father-in-law instead. In my previous life, I begged Theodore to save me, even kneeling in front of the phone camera. Hence, he abandoned the hot-air balloon ride with Rosalie and rushed to negotiate with the kidnapper. Rosalie was all alone and angry. She took another hot-air balloon, but it exploded mid-way, causing her to die on the spot without even leaving behind an intact corpse. Hearing the bad news, Theodore showed a rare calm expression. He seemed to forget about Rosalie's existence and took me on a trip around the world. As we were sailing in Norwol, he suddenly pushed me into the sea. "I should never have saved you. Snake pit? Kidnapper? How could they have had the courage to push you into it? I should've never saved you if I knew it'd kill Rosalie. You should go to hell sooner!" When I opened my eyes again, I had come back to the day I was kidnapped. This time, I chose not to call for help. Humble love would only leave you bruised and battered.

"Whose illegitimate child are you pregnant with?" My parents demand to know, looking crazed. They want to know whose child I'm carrying. I look at them and laugh. "One of the kidnappers, of course." My parents and brother are stunned, and they turn ashen. I continue softly, "Don't you guys remember? The kidnappers asked for a ransom, but you guys were only willing to save your other daughter. You wanted to teach me a lesson." Mom collapses on the couch. "That can't be. We wanted to teach you a lesson so you would stop bullying Eden. I didn't… We didn't…" I crouch before her. "You guys never expected the kidnappers to violate me, right?" I don't wait for an answer. "Do you think a few kidnappers would have morals and ethics?" She parts her lips to speak, but I don't give her the chance. "I was covered in injuries when I got home. Why didn't any of you ask me about them? "You guys took Eden away without bothering to save me. You didn't return for a day, for two days, for a month… Did you think the kidnappers would think that they could still receive the ransom?" They should be happy now—I'm about to die.

"Everything was fine, until it wasn't. And that was because I was carrying a billionaire's baby from a one-night stand. A cold-hearted billionaire with an enormous ego. The question is, will that baby be my escape from my narcissistic parents, or will it bring even more complications, as I strike a deal with a billionaire? "I am your typical billionaire, the kind who walks around with a proud aura. A one-night with a woman brings me a solution to all of my troubles. But the problem was, I couldn't understand if this woman was bringing me another chance at happiness, or she was just karma, here for a payback."

Biyenan:“Layuan mo na ang anak ko! Hindi siya karapat dapat para sa isang basurang katulad mo!”Makalipas ang tatlong araw, bumalik ang manugang nito sakay ng isang mamahaling sasakyan.Biyenan:“Parang awa mo na iho, huwag mong iwan ang anak ko.”

Sa Charlie Wade ay ang manugang na nakatira sa bahay ng kanyang asawa na kinamumuhian ng lahat, ngunit ang kanyang tunay na pagkatao bilang tagapagmana ng isang makapangyarihang pamilya ay nanatiling isang lihim. Sumumpa siya na isang araw, ang lahat ng tao na nanghamak sa kanya ay luluhod sa kanya at hihingi ng awa sa huli!

Naging masalimuot ang kanyang buhay matapos siyang i-kasal. Matapos siyang makakuha ng kapangyarihan, parehong lumuhod sa harap niya ang kanyang biyenan at hipag. “Huwag mong iwanan ang anak ko,” pagmamakaawa ng kanyang biyenan. Sabi naman ng kanyang hipag, “Bayaw, ako’y nagkamali…”

Kahit na nagbalik ang Supreme Warrior sa Middle Province upang mamuhay ng payapa, minamaliit pa rin siya ng lahat. Sa araw ng kanyang kasal, sa isang kumpas lang ng kanyang kamay, dumating ang Nine Great Gods of War at tinawag nila siya na master...

Si Alex ang batang master ng pinakamayamang pamilya sa buong mundo, ang lalaking gustong pakasalan ng maraming prinsesa. Gayunpaman, mas masahol pa sa katulong ang trato ng bayaw niya sa kanya.

Si Michael Luna ay isang bilyonaryong abogado, malakas ang dating at malamig ang titig—parang pader na imposibleng maabot ng sinuman. Sa kanyang mga kamay, ang batas ay isang larong kanya nang napagtagumpayan.Siya ang bilyonaryong tagapagmana ng Luna Hotelier, isang marangyang hotel chain na itinayo ng kanyang pamilya, at may-ari ng Luna Law Firm, ang pinakaprestihiyosong law office sa bansa. Ngunit sa kabila ng yaman at kapangyarihan, si Michael ay tila baga natutulog na bulkan, puno ng galit at pagkamuhi sa pagmamahal, isang damdaming sinira ng isang taong kanyang minahal at pinagkatiwalaan nang lubusan. Si Michael ay may nakaraan na puno ng sakit—si Isabella Lopez, ang kanyang dating fiancée, ay nagtaksil sa kanya kasama ang kanyang pinakamatalik na kaibigang si Brent. Ang pagtataksil ay natuklasan ni Michael dalawang araw bago ang kanilang kasal, nang makita niya ang kanyang fiancée sa kompromisong sitwasyon sa loob ng condo nito. Labis na nasaktan, si Michael ay kumuha ng video bilang ebidensya ng kanilang pagtataksil at plano niyang isiwalat ito sa mismong araw ng kasal. Mula noon, isinumpa niya ang pag-ibig at naging mailap sa mga babae. Ngunit ang pusong matagal nang sarado sa pagmamahal ay biglang nayanig nang makilala niya si Jasmine Estrada, isang matapang at makatarungang prosecutor sa Pasig Police Department. Sa kabila ng kasikatan bilang “diyosa” ng departamento, si Jasmine ay may paninindigan at puso para sa mga naaapi—isang bagay na labis na humanga kay Michael. Sa bawat pagharap nila sa korte, sa bawat tunggalian ng prinsipyo at batas, unti-unting nabuksan ang pinto ng kanyang pusong matagal nang nakakandado. Magiging handa kaya si Michael na buksan ang kanyang puso para kay Jasmine, o patuloy siyang magiging bilanggo ng nakaraan? At si Jasmine, kaya ba niyang lumaban hanggang dulo sa pagmamahal niya sa lalaking puno ng sakit at galit?