"Sometimes, we are so smitten with happy endings, that we believe we'll end up with one too." Ambrosia Bellemore never believed in happy endings, even though the books she read said otherwise. The closest she ever came to magic was when she found the most beautiful pair of ruby red heels on Amazon. "Lives aren't stories. Stories end, happy or otherwise. But lives don't. We die, and there's nothing happy or otherwise in dying." Calum Achorn never believed in magic. The closest he ever came to magic was when he met an infuriatingly wonderful woman on a flight to New York, wearing the most beautiful pair of ruby red heels he'd ever seen.
I hate everybody.
"Yes, even you, Mr. Cadwallader." I mumble at my golden retriever as he snuggles deeper into my lap.
"The fact that you can sleep while I'm distraught with worry amazes me, Mr. Cadwallader." He looks up at me with his head cocked to one side and his ears flat against his head. He gives me an assuring whimper. I melt.
"I was correct in the decision of bringing you home, Mr. Cadwallader, even though I had to go against my Mother." I shudder as my mother's disapproving face fills my head.
Mr. Cadwallader gives me a huge grin, as if he were brimming with happiness. I didn't feel quite so optimistic.
"What am I going to do?" I question myself and God as Mr. Cadwallader's head droops and he goes back to sleep.
Great company.
It's been three days since the letter arrived, and a month since I gave that horrendous interview.
I still remember making an appearance at the Achorn House, clad in just my white cotton shirt and plain blue jeans, my hair falling straight and lifeless past my shoulders, and deep, dark circles under my pale blue eyes. A hung-over, hippie of a woman.
I didn't mean to party the previous night of my interview, I swear on the River Styx. It just happens so that my best friend, Cecelia Blythe, could be very persuasive if she needed something. And this time, it was Lionel Francis, the new model she'd managed to snare for her rising career in model photography. I don't know what that means, but that's what she told me.
After an hour of champagne and watching Cecelia straddle some other poor guy when she realized that Francis already had a boyfriend, I finally managed to make it home and sleep, already dreading the horrible day that I was sure was about to come.
And boy did I dread that day.
The doors that led to Achorn house were made of glass, my numb head noticed as I got out of my beat down Prius. The glass shone magnificently as it caught the sun, but given my sorry state, I couldn't quite enjoy the view.
I would treat myself with a generous cup of coffee if I walk out of this office with a job.
If.
I'd never heard of the Achorn house before, much to the horror of Cecelia, since, I quote, "It is owned by the richest man in all of America and has a lovely boy for a son, who was twenty three, a perfect match for me, with bright blue eyes that shone like beautiful Lapis Lazuli, and who also happens to be an author, and given my 'excessive compulsive obsession with words' would be the man who mans me. And then as his personal secretary, I might, I should, manage to capture his heart with my sweet, heartwarming, yet underdeveloped charm, or in simple words, I must dress scantily in one of her dresses to catch the eyes of a guy who didn't sound so promising in the first place.
No wonder my mother hates her.
Back at the Achorn house, I enter through the sliding doors, the kind that senses your presence and swishes open of its own accord, and peer anxiously at my queer surroundings.
It's so bland, was my first thought.
I shouldn't be here, was my second.
I swallow to keep the urge to hurl down. But before I could find the bathroom, a cool, collected voice calls out from behind me.
"Miss Bellemore, so glad you could come."
Let's see the Lapis Lazulis, shall we?
To the public, she was the CEO's executive secretary. Behind closed doors, she was the wife he never officially acknowledged. Jenessa was elated when she learned that she was pregnant. But that joy was replaced with dread as her husband, Ryan, showered his affections on his first love. With a heavy heart, she chose to set him free and leave. When they met again, Ryan's attention was caught by Jenessa's protruding belly. "Whose child are you carrying?!" he demanded. But she only scoffed. "It's none of your business, my dear ex-husband!"
They don't know I'm a girl. They all look at me and see a boy. A prince. Their kind purchase humans like me for their lustful desires. And, when they stormed into our kingdom to buy my sister, I intervened to protect her. I made them take me too. The plan was to escape with my sister whenever we found a chance. How was I to know our prison would be the most fortified place in their kingdom? I was supposed to be on the sidelines. The one they had no real use for. The one they never meant to buy. But then, the most important person in their savage land-their ruthless beast king-took an interest in the "pretty little prince." How do we survive in this brutal kingdom, where everyone hates our kind and shows us no mercy? And how does someone, with a secret like mine, become a lust slave? . AUTHOR'S NOTE. This is a dark romance-dark, mature content. Highly rated 18+ Expect triggers, expect hardcore. If you're a seasoned reader of this genre, looking for something different, prepared to go in blindly not knowing what to expect at every turn, but eager to know more anyway, then dive in! . From the author of the international bestselling book: "The Alpha King's Hated Slave."
Madisyn was stunned to discover that she was not her parents' biological child. Due to the real daughter's scheming, she was kicked out and became a laughingstock. Thought to be born to peasants, Madisyn was shocked to find that her real father was the richest man in the city, and her brothers were renowned figures in their respective fields. They showered her with love, only to learn that Madisyn had a thriving business of her own. "Stop pestering me!" said her ex-boyfriend. "My heart only belongs to Jenna." "How dare you think that my woman has feelings for you?" claimed a mysterious bigwig.
Janice, the long-forgotten legitimate heiress, made her way back to her family, pouring her heart into winning their hearts. Yet, she had to relinquish her very identity, her academic credentials, and her creative works to her foster sister. In return for her sacrifices, she found no warmth, only deeper neglect. Resolute, Janice vowed to cut off all emotional bonds. Transformed, she now stood as a master of martial arts, adept in eight languages, an esteemed medical expert, and a celebrated designer. With newfound resolve, she declared, "From this day forward, no one in this family shall cross me."
She was a world-renowned divine doctor, the CEO of a publicly traded company, the most formidable female mercenary, and a top-tier tech genius. Marissa, a titan with a plethora of secret identities, had hidden her true stature to marry a seemingly impoverished young man. However, on the eve of their wedding, her fiance, who was actually the lost heir to a wealthy dynasty, called off the engagement and subjected her to degradation and mockery. Upon the revelation of her concealed identities, her ex-fiance was left stunned and desperately pleaded for her forgiveness. Standing protectively before Marissa, an incredibly influential and fearsome magnate declared, "This is my wife. Who would dare try to claim her?"
"Never let anyone treat you like shit!" I learned that the hard way. For three years, I lived with my in-laws. They didn't treat me as their son-in-law but as a slave. I put up with everything because of my wife, Yolanda Lambert. She was the light of my life. Unfortunately, my whole world came crashing down the day I caught my wife cheating on me. I have never been so heartbroken. To have my revenge, I revealed my true identity. I was none other than Liam Hoffman—the heir of a family with trillions of dollars in assets! The Lamberts were utterly shocked after the big reveal. They realized what fools they had been for treating me like trash. My wife even knelt down and begged for my forgiveness. What do you think I did? Did I take her back or made her suffer? Find out!