Zaria Smith was in love with her childhood playmate, Elian Anderson, who was six years her senior, since forever. Now adult Zaria finally got her wish fulfilled. She was married to her one and only knight! But fate had other plans. The boy she loved from the beginning had changed. He hated her. She did everything to please him, but all she got was disappointment in return. When she at last, decided to let him go, he smirked cruelly and said: "Never think about leaving me again. I will never let you go."
The birds chirped outside the glass window of the room of Anderson mansion which belonged to none other than, Zaria Smith. The rays from the sun glazed the window glass, greatly.
Too shiny!
It made her stir in her sleep as she quickly yanked the light pink quilt over her head.
She was seconds away to close her eyes again, when she heard her maid, Elizabeth Jones, commonly known as Lisa in her friends, called her out.
"Ria, come on, get up! It's afternoon already." Of course, it was a lie. Madam Anderson had told Lisa to wake Zaria early today. Lisa clearly knew Zaria would not be awaken that easily.
Elizabeth and Zaria were the best of friends of the same age. They did not care about the master-servant relation between them. What mattered to them the most was their strong friendship which had been built for the past couple of years with their close bond of sharing things with each other.
In a nutshell, both girls had each other's back.
Elizabeth was brought five years back in the Anderson mansion to kill the boredom for Zaria. She was timid at first, but came out of her shell when she immersed herself among the lives of people living in the Anderson mansion, and vice versa.
"Lisa, please, let me sleep. I was awake the whole night for that eyesore assignment. I want to rest. No, I need some rest!" Lisa only shook her head.
It was common for Ria to say this every morning. For every subject.
But, Physics was something Zaria despised with her whole being. No matter how much time she invested in it, she could never be able to understand the subject, but she definitely did get good grades.
She also had some prejudice against Isaac Newton and apples. Oh her rotten luck!
"No means no. Madam Anderson has instructed me to wake you, so get up." Now, Zaria had opened her right eye a little. Lisa smiled. Finally!
Madam Anderson was the best friend of Zaria's late mother, Cassandra Smith.
Madam Anderson was a kind woman who had always treated Zaria fairly and had given her the love of a parent from the moment she brought Zaria home with her when she was informed that her beloved best friend had left the world along with her husband in an accident, leaving a bundle of sunshine alone in this selfish world.
At that moment, Madam Anderson wanted to protect her from all the evil in the world.
Madam Anderson, also known as Mia Anderson had never forced Zaria to call her mother, instead she told Zaria that she could call her whatever she would like, so Zaria insisted on calling her Aunt Mia.
Aunt Mia and her husband, Master Anderson, her Uncle John had always treated her like she was their own, and so was Zaria.
They were like her parents and meant the whole world to her. She could do everything for them.
It was rare for Aunt Mia to request her presence in the breakfast table this morning as she always had told Zaria to take her time in getting up, as well as Master Anderson.
The Anderson couple clearly knew Zaria was getting spoilt with such concessions, but the loving parents in them always got in between and told them to give everything she wanted.
If she wanted any dress, she could have it. If she wanted any perfume, she could have it. If she wanted the whole world, Anderson couple would give it to her without missing a heartbeat. That much, she was loved by the Anderson couple.
But waking her up in the morning, this seemed rather important. It aroused her interest.
"Why, is something the matter?" Zaria's voice was still groggy as she had not woken up clearly.
Lisa shrugged,"I don't know. She hasn't told anything to me yet, but I heard the other maids talking about some high esteemed guest coming here over today."
"Oh." Zaria said plainly. Some guest coming here at the Anderson mansion was nothing special to her. In fact, it was the most common thing. Meetings, discussions, eating with business partners.
It was not like her childhood sweetheart was coming.
Since, her aunt had told her to, then naturally she had to attend. She yawned and outstretched her body, getting up from the bed. Her white sleeping gown was crinkled, resulted in changing of sleeping positions the whole night.
Did she care?
No.
Her thick hazelnut wavy strands blocked the sight in front of her and she stumbled across the bedpost. She had a lavish four poster bed like a princess, just like her name.
Lisa was horrified. This girl..
Not a day would pass when Ria had not been clumsy.
She was clumsy and she was born clumsy, and she was proud of that.
"Heavens! Ria, you're a young girl. You need to watch your steps when you walk. What if something happened?" Yes, one thing in Lisa was, she was always that melodramatic.
If Zaria was conscious enough, then she would have rolled her eyes at Lisa, but nonetheless, she loved Elizabeth like her sister, her closet confidant.
"Yes, yes." Zaria waved her hand and proceeded to move to her attached bathroom for a quick shower.
She had the habit of taking showers whenever she woke up. At any hour.
Around 20 minutes later, she came out from her bathroom with her hair and body wrapped up in a pure white towel. Her face was still flushed red due to the warm water. Some water droplets were falling from her hair strands on the ground.
A dress was already prepared by Lisa for her. It was a teal pink floral dress for her, her favourite colour. Pink had always been her favourite colour.
It gave her a princess feeling. She made her way to the staircase and her gaze tried to find Aunt Mia, but aunt was nowhere to be found.
She next went to the kitchen.
•Victoria Ford- A nature-loving girl, an A-grade high school student, and someone who used to be always surrounded by the perfect company of 3 best friends who meant the world to her. She is a highly optimistic person with a love for happily-ever-afters running in her veins. Keyword: Used to be. Tense: Past. She was a highly optimistic person. What could have possibly gone wrong causing her life to take a 180° turn? Five years later, now all that matters to her is the business her late grandfather left behind for her. Victoria is aware Aaron has motives so she actively avoids him. But who would have thought that he is too persistent!? •Aaron Atkinson- An arrogant magnate, 25 years old and a perfect partner– be it in bed or business. Success is his middle name and anyone who dares go against him, he never lets them off. He is used to conquering everything that comes in his path until he meets someone. His next conquest is the female CEO of the Empire Group of Industries. Cold, cunning, and a workaholic. But who would have thought she is too hard to be pleased!? * * * Entangled With The Billionaire Player: Miss CEO is Hard to Please
The whispers said that out of bitter jealousy, Hadley shoved Eric's beloved down the stairs, robbing the unborn child of life. To avenge, Eric forced Hadley abroad and completely cut her off. Years later, she reemerged, and they felt like strangers. When they met again, she was the nightclub's star, with men ready to pay fortunes just to glimpse her elusive performance. Unable to contain himself, Eric blocked her path, asking, "Is this truly how you earn a living now? Why not come back to me?" Hadley's lips curved faintly. "If you’re eager to see me, you’d better join the queue, darling."
Becky endured three years of marriage to the cold-hearted Rory. In all that time, she naively reasoned that one day, he'd gradually come to like her. But the second he forced her to kneel down and humiliate herself, she knew she had been wrong about him. This man had no feelings for her at all. So why should she still love him? When Rory gave her the choice between kneeling down and divorcing, she didn't miss a beat and chose the latter. After all, why should she waste her youth on this scumbag? Wouldn't it be nicer for her to just have fun every day with her billion-dollar family fortune?
Dear readers, this book has resumed daily updates. It took Sabrina three whole years to realize that her husband, Tyrone didn't have a heart. He was the coldest and most indifferent man she had ever met. He never smiled at her, let alone treated her like his wife. To make matters worse, the return of the woman he had eyes for brought Sabrina nothing but divorce papers. Sabrina's heart broke. Hoping that there was still a chance for them to work on their marriage, she asked, "Quick question,Tyrone. Would you still divorce me if I told you that I was pregnant?" "Absolutely!" he responded. Realizing that she didn't mean shit to him, Sabrina decided to let go. She signed the divorce agreement while lying on her sickbed with a broken heart. Surprisingly, that wasn't the end for the couple. It was as if scales fell off Tyrone's eyes after she signed the divorce agreement. The once so heartless man groveled at her bedside and pleaded, "Sabrina, I made a big mistake. Please don't divorce me. I promise to change." Sabrina smiled weakly, not knowing what to do...
"There will be no falling in love, we will only act as a loving couple when we are in public, we will share a room to make it believable, but no intimacy, touching is off-limits. We'll only have sex once a month, and that's solely to produce an heir. You won't interfere in my business, and I won't interfere in yours. You will be my wife in every sense and you will not be involved with any other man," he said, arrogance seeping from every word. I watch his mouth move, I'm not ready to fall in love with any man, especially not one as arrogant and egoistic as him. I can handle acting as a loving couple, and as for intimacy once a month. I can agree to that just to satisfy my sexual cravings with no strings attached. "Where can I sign?" I asked since I had nothing to lose. *** Nadine's wedding dreams turned to nightmares when she caught her sister and fiancé cheating! With a secret recording, she's ready for revenge. But then mysterious billionaire Logan West offers a deal: A Contract Marriage to take down her ex's empire. But what Nadine doesn't know is her life is getting complicated as she takes her chance to get revenge or risks everything for a chance at love?"
Belinda thought after divorce, they would part ways for good - he could live his life on his own terms, while she could indulge in the rest of hers. However, fate had other plans in store. "My darling, I was wrong. Would you please come back to me?" The man, whom she once loved deeply, lowered his once proud head humbly. "I beg you to return to me." Belinda coldly pushed away the bouquet of flowers he had offered her and coolly replied, "It's too late. The bridge has been burned, and the ashes have long since scattered to the wind!"
Trigger warning!!! Intended for mature readers who enjoy morally complex, slow-burn, poseesive, forbidden, dark romance that pushes boundaries. ***EXCERPT*** Blood everywhere. Trembling hands. "No!" My eyes blurred. His lifeless eyes stared back at me, his blood pooling at my feet. The man I loved-dead. Killed by the one person I could never escape - my stepbrother. *** Kasmine's life was never hers to begin with. Kester, her stepbrother, controlled and monitored her every move. At first, it was all sweet and brotherly until it began to turn into an obsession. Kester was the Alpha, and his word was law. No close friends. No boyfriends. No freedom. The only consolation Kasmine had was her twenty-first birthday, which was supposed to change everything. She dreamt of finding her mate, escaping the sickening control of Kester, and finally claiming her own life. But fate had other plans for her. On the night of her birthday, not only was she disappointed that she wasn't mated to the love of her life, but she found out that her mate was none other than him - Her tormentor. Her stepbrother. She'd rather die than be mated to a man whom she had known as her big brother all her life. A man who would do just anything to make sure she was his. But when love turns to obsession, and obsession turns to blood, how far can one girl run before she realizes there is nowhere else to run to?