There he was. The deadly mafia lord. Dante Garvino. Seated across from me, his deadly green eyes locked onto mine with an intensity that could freeze anyone in their tracks. How was I supposed to come up with 400 million dollars? "You said you have an offer for me? Just tell me what it is. I'll do anything to get freed from this horrible place." I glared at him confidently. "Give in to my demand and be my sex slave." He thundered, and his words made my face go pale instantly. Ashley was kidnapped by the infamous mafia lord, Dante Garvino. A man known for his ruthlessness, trained to dismantle his enemies and his heart as cold as ice. He claimed Ashley had committed a terrible crime so she had to pay for it. Despite the danger, and everything that should have made her hate him, Ashley became captivated by the very man who held her life in his hands. Yet, with every step with him, she uncovered the secrets buried in his past, that could destroy them both. She was the woman who brought him down to his knees, but will that be enough to save them, or will his enemies tear them apart?
ASHLEY'S P.O.V
All eyes were on me as I walked to the the pole. I had a flirtatious smile on my face as I walked. I loved that feeling of men wanting to have me, but they couldn't. It was my trick. I make them thirsty for me, but I never let them get me.
The moment my hands met with the pole, I started swinging on it. I kept going higher and higher. I spread my legs wide on the pole, letting my body move to the rhythm of the slow music that was being played.
I was high on the pole. Very far from the floor. I looked at my audience with an evident smile on my face. Some generous men were already emptying thier pocket for me. I kept on smiling until my eyes met with someone and it dropped.
My smile wasn't the only thing that dropped. I dropped too. I lost balance and found my self slipping to the floor. I was supposed to have a bad floor, but I was able to catch myself before that happened.
"Holy fuck" That was the first thing that made it out of my lips.
Dante Garvino was seated right in front of me with his green deadly eyes pinned on me. I didn't even need to go close to him to smell the power he elicited. He was seated amidst other men. All of them looked dangerous. Those were probably his goons that would kill anybody at the order of their boss. Anyone including me.
My soul left my body and I felt guilty instantly. There was a high chance he didn't know me, but I was still scared. The sound of my heartbeat was even more louder than the music that was being played.
It was only a miracle that I was able to get up from where I was. I dragged my shaky legs until I got to the dressing room.
"Ashley are you okay? that was bad fall" Rachael rushed towards me, but I wasn't able to speak for the first few seconds.
"He is here Rachael" I began. My mouth felt dry. "He is going to kill us"
"Who is here?"
"Dante" I mumbled under my breath.
Her eyes widened in shock. It held fear for a while, but she blinked it off immediately. "I already told you Ashley, he wouldn't know it's us"
"Then why is he here? You should have seen the expression on his face when he looked at me. It felt like he was staring into my soul"
"Ashley listen to me." She cupped my chin."Breath in" she instructed and I did as she said."Breath out" I breathed out."Take it easy.
"Ashely!" I heard my name and my heart skipped a beat.
Mrs Isabella walked in with a grimace of irritation on her face. "You better have an excuse for what you did"
"The pole was just slippery" Rachael chipped in, trying to help me, but that she got a glare from Mrs Isabella and she kept calm.
"I slipped and fell" I defended myself.
"How long have you been doing this?" She asked, even though she already knew.
"2 years"
"And you can't get a grip of the pole properly. What do I pay you for! "
"I'm sorry" I said. The last thing I wanted was to loose my job. Billionaire or not.
She scoffed, informing me that my little apology was for nothing.
"One of the guest wants to see you" She blurted out and I gulped.
My mouth felt too heavy to speak. I wanted telling her a firm no, but my lips failed me.
"Which of the guest" Rachael asked on my behalf. She must have noticed how thrown off I was.
"None of your business"she said to Rachael."You come with me" she ordered and I found my self following her.
Rachael tapped me gently on my shoulder to calm me down, but I was too nervous too even pay attention to her comfort.
We walked back to tbe club. At first I kept consoling myself, thinking it was another guest entirely, but when Mrs Isabella kept directing me to the same place I saw Dante, I knew I was good as dead.
It was a matter of life and death and I chose life. Before Mrs Isabella could even comprehend anything, I took to my heels and started running as fast as I could, I ran out of the club.
I saw two men dressed in black standing just outside the club. I wasn't going to take any chances so i ran in a opposite direction.
"Get her" one of the men yelled and before I knew it, I was being chased. The amount of fear I felt made me wonder why I hadn't passed from it.
Rachael was so damn fucken wrong. Dante knew me
He knew I was the one who stole from him. I was as good as dead if he got the chance to take me. How was I going to provide 400 millon dollars?
I turned around and saw a car approaching me at full speed. The two men were gone. I ran as fast as I could, but before I could beat the speed of the car. It overtook me and packed in front of me. I turned in the opposite direction and started running, but I stopped when I saw the two men approaching me.
I was dead meat. Dante was going to kill me.
I dropped to my knees as tears gathered in my eyes. Three men came down from the car and started running towards me. I recognized one as the man who seated with Dante at the club.
"Please" I placed my two shaky hands together. I wasn't allowed to say another word. One of them hit me at the back of my head with a rod.
I saw my life flash before my eyes. Everywhere began to spin. I became dizzy and my eyes began to close.
All of a sudden it became dark
Everyone was shocked to the bones when the news of Rupert Benton's engagement broke out. It was surprising because the lucky girl was said to be a plain Jane, who grew up in the countryside and had nothing to her name. One evening, she showed up at a banquet, stunning everyone present. "Wow, she's so beautiful!" All the men drooled, and the women got so jealous. What they didn't know was that this so-called country girl was actually an heiress to a billion-dollar empire. It wasn't long before her secrets came to light one after the other. The elites couldn't stop talking about her. "Holy smokes! So, her father is the richest man in the world?" "She's also that excellent, but mysterious designer who many people adore! Who would have guessed?" Nonetheless, people thought that Rupert didn't love her. But they were in for another surprise. Rupert released a statement, silencing all the naysayers. "I'm very much in love with my beautiful fiancee. We will be getting married soon." Two questions were on everyone's minds: "Why did she hide her identity? And why was Rupert in love with her all of a sudden?"
The dream of everyone with regards to marriage is to be able to find that special someone and settle down with them. Even arranged marriages grant you an opportunity to meet your partner briefly before the wedding. How will you feel about waking up in the morning with someone sleeping next to you who is not just anyone but your legally married partner yet with no memory of how that had happened in just a few hours of going out the previous day? This is the story of Jason Haward and Julia Harrison, two strangers trapped in a marriage they never planned. The quest to find out why led to the unfolding of a mystery which made them realize they are both living a lie. To find out more, read this amazing story of love, betrayal, revenge and murder.
After three years of loveless marriage, Kira was slapped with divorce papers. She has shown him her unrequited love throughout her entire marriage with him, but he decided to turn blind eyes all because of his lover. Distraught and heartbroken, Kira choose to sign the divorce papers with bitter heart. But then and there, she promised herself that when she's back, he will come crawling to her, but she will make him pay for hurting her. Join Kira as she transform to a wealthy heiress and soared as the CEO of a multi-billion-dollar empire, a remarkable healer and make her ex-husband pay!
It was supposed to be a marriage of convenience, but Carrie made the mistake of falling in love with Kristopher. When the time came that she needed him the most, her husband was in the company of another woman. Enough was enough. Carrie chose to divorce Kristopher and move on with her life. Only when she left did Kristopher realize how important she was to him. In the face of his ex-wife’s countless admirers, Kristopher offered her 20 million dollars and proposed a new deal. “Let’s get married again.”
Kaelyn devoted three years tending to her husband after a terrible accident. But once he was fully recovered, he cast her aside and brought his first love back from abroad. Devastated, Kaelyn decided on a divorce as people mocked her for being discarded. She went on to reinvent herself, becoming a highly sought-after doctor, a champion racer, and an internationally renowned architectural designer. Even then, the traitors sneered in disdain, believing Kaelyn would never find someone. But then the ex-husband’s uncle, a powerful warlord, returned with his army to ask for Kaelyn’s hand in marriage.
"Sign the divorce papers and get out!" Leanna got married to pay a debt, but she was betrayed by her husband and shunned by her in-laws. Seeing that her efforts were in vain, she agreed to divorce and claimed her half of the properties. With her purse plump from the settlement, Leanna enjoyed her newfound freedom. The constant harassment from her ex's mistress never fazed her. She took back her identities as top hacker, champion racer, medical professor, and renowned jewelry designer. Then someone discovered her secret. Matthew smiled. "Will you have me as your next husband?"