He ruled as the powerful and ruthless king of the magnificent realm of Stonebridge, with the ability to shape his fortunes effortlessly. However, fate led him into a carefully planned marriage of convenience with her. While he projected an image of invincibility, keeping others at a distance, deep down, he held her close in his heart, yearning for her both physically and emotionally. "Marguerite, I searched tirelessly for fifteen long years just to find you. Please, I beg you, never leave me again, alright? I love you more than words can express. From the darkest nights to the first light of dawn, from twilight to every season, my love for you knows no bounds." He whispered gentle words of affection and endless declarations of love, wanting to share them all with her. Despite her unassuming appearance, she became the precious..
Chapter 1
The room was a hot mess. A man and a woman were tangled up like a pair of intertwined snakes. Under the sunlight, their bodies were twisted tightly together.
When Frederick Winston woke up, he found a woman snuggled into his arm, her face covered by her hair, making it hard to see her features.
This woman shifted her neck slightly, murmuring in her sleep and unconsciously burrowed into his embrace.
Frederick had a splitting headache and realized that the woman in his arms was naked. Her skin had a sexy glow under the sunlight that made his almond–shaped eyes squint slightly.
His eyebrows furrowed as he instinctively looked around. Then, he suddenly remembered all the things happened last night.
At the company's anniversary celebration, he had drank quite much and crashed in his hotel room.
In his half awake state, the woman wrapped herself around him. Their skin–to–skin contact filled the air with a steamy atmosphere.
So, in a blurry haze, they did the deed.
Turns out, last night wasn't just a dream, it was real.
Frederick's expression darkened instantly. He rolled out of bed, hurriedly put on his clothes, his gaze swept over the bedsheet and then came to a
sudden halt.
The red stains on the bedsheet, like a blooming flower, caught his eye.
To his surprise, she was a virgin.
All of a sudden, he had an urge to see what the woman, whose virginity he took, looked like.
His large hand was about to brush away the hair obstructing her face, but he stopped just before touching her.
This was just a one–night stand, no need to get hung up on it.
After all, the women who wanted to sleep with him were only after his money and status.
His hand moved towards the suit on the bed, and Frederick bolted from the room.
But what he didn't know was that as he picked up his suit, a necklace that had fallen from the woman's neck got caught on it. The necklace was swept away along with his suit.
Ten minutes later, a Rolls–Royce Cullinan raced down the bustling streets.
The CEO Frederick's assistant Chuck was respectfully reporting work, but Frederick seemed a bit distracted, his thoughts started to wander.
He thought about the sweet scent he seemed to have smelled last night. He began to wonder if it was just his imagination.
After all, he lost his sense of smell in a car accident three years ago.
"Mr. Winston, there's a resident on Cedarbrook Street that refuses to move. The demolition department is at a loss," Chuck reported.
"What's the reason?" he asked, snapping back to reality.
"That family runs a casino, they are drowning in gambling debts. They think the compensation we offered for relocation is too low, so they are asking for more. If that plot of land isn't demolished, it will affect our upcoming bids," Chuck explained.
Frederick, sitting in the back seat, squinted his eyes and immediately gave an order, "To Cedarbrook Street."
Chuck was surprised but quickly understood Frederick's intention.
It appeared that Frederick was going to handle this matter personally.
Soon, the driver changed direction, and the car started heading towards Cedarbrook Street.
Just then, the suit draped over his shoulder began to vibrate.
As Frederick reached into his pocket to find his phone, a pendant suddenly dropped onto the floor..
It was a necklace with a stunning sapphire. The surface of the gem was carved with a floral pattern surrounded by a ring of tiny, dazzling
diamonds.
Frederick bent over to pick up the necklace. His deep eyes landed on the sparkling gem, his pupils quivered.
Was this necklace hers?
Was it her?
The person he had been searching for over a decade, could it be the woman he spent last night with?
Chuck looked at Frederick with a puzzled expression, "Mr. Winston, this is...?"
Frederick clutched the necklace like a treasure, a small smile playing on his lips, "Track down someone for me."
"Who is it, Mr. Winston?"
"A woman."
Chuck's eyes widened in surprise, "A woman?"
What was going on here?
Mr. Winston wanted to find a woman? This was shocking.
It wasn't surprising that Chuck was surprised, after all, Frederick was a legendary figure in Stonebridge City.
In the world of wealthy families, the family business is always inherited by the rightful heirs, no exceptions. But Frederick, being an illegitimate child, broke this tradition.
In less than three years since he took over, he turned Stonebridge City's top wealthy family, the Winston Group, into the world's top business empire.
The Winston Group was involved in many industries, not only globally renowned real estate but also a perfume company. Its unique scent drove all women crazy.
But the man in charge of the Winston Group, Frederick, has been single for 28 years.
There were even rumors that he... didn't like women.
Chuck was stunned for a moment before he found his voice again, "Mr. Winston, can you give me a search scope?"
*Regal Haven Hotel, Room 1205. Between 11 PM last night and 10 AM this morning."
Regal Haven Hotel?
Did Mr. Winston take that girl to the hotel?
Chuck forced himself to calm down, his hand trembling as he pulled out his phone to immediately contact the person in charge of the Regal
Haven Hotel
Meanwhile, Frederick lazily leaned back into the comfortable seat, the necklace clutched in his hand. The sapphire sparkled under the sunlight.
The sternness in his eyes faded away, replaced by endless tenderness.
His mind was filled with the image of a little girl from fifteen years ago, who held a loaf of bread in her hands and saved him in the snow.
He was only thirteen then, an illegitimate son of the Winston Group who was not acknowledged by the family, cruelly kicked out of the house along with his mother and dumped in the middle of nowhere.
During those desperate times, if it weren't for the generous little girl, he and his mother would have starved to death.
Now, he was the king of this city, and the only one he cared about was that little girl.
He kept replaying in his mind how the little girl had told him in her soft, childlike voice, "Will you marry me when you grow up? This is my necklace, remember what it looks like, so you can find me in the future!"
He had to find her!
He had promised to marry her since he was just a kid, and he was damn sure gonna make it happen!
Aurora Wells, a lucky star who brought prosperity to the Wells family. However, her fortunes took a drastic turn when her illegitimate sister, Ruby, was brought back into the family. Aurora's brothers, Ethan and Lucas, began to turn against her. "Aurora, is there anything you won't do to win favor?" Ethan spat, his disappointment palpable. Lucas pointed a accusatory finger at her. "You're always framing Ruby, who's kind and sensible. We don't want a sister like you in our family. Get out!" Aurora hoped to find a place in the Wells family, but even her mother, who loved her dearly, favored Ruby. Aurora was left reeling: jail, a broken engagement, and a swift eviction from the family home. Aurora had had enough. She decided to unleash her secrets. And she had the perfect ammunition - a photographic record of the family's darkest secrets. As she stood outside the Wells' estate, a sly smile spreading across her face, Aurora whispered to herself, "It's time to watch you all burn..." But little did she know, Ruby was watching her from the shadows, a sinister grin mirroring Aurora's...
Frederick Winston wakes up in a messy room with a woman after a night of heavy drinking. Realizing the events of the previous night were real, he notices red stains on the bedsheet and discovers that the woman was a virgin. Despite a brief desire to see her face, Frederick decides to leave, but a necklace falls off the woman and gets caught on his suit. While on his way to work, Frederick recalls the sweet scent from the night before, which surprises him since he lost his sense of smell three years ago. His assistant, Chuck, informs him of a resident causing issues on Cedarbrook Street, and Frederick decides to handle the matter personally. As Frederick is on his way, he finds the dropped pendant with a stunning sapphire, realizing it might belong to the woman he spent the night with. Intrigued and determined to find her, he instructs Chuck to track down someone based on the information about the Regal Haven Hotel between 11 PM and 10 AM. Frederick reminisces about a little girl who had saved him fifteen years ago and gave him a necklace, promising to marry him in the future. He is now driven to find her, despite being the successful CEO of the Winston Group. The story ends with Frederick's determination to fulfill the promise made to the little girl...
Carlos, born to be the heir to a wealthy and influential family, is very good-looking with an ideal body. He has a cold personality and is known to be aloof to women.Edith, without parents, is raised by her cousin’s parents for more than twenty years. She is a sweet, beautiful girl and intends to marry her fiancé after graduation but is betrayed by him.Edith is forced to replace her cousin to marry Carlos, who she has never met, but on their wedding day, he never shows up and leaves her alone at home. Edith mistakes her husband for someone else who leads a dissolute life and always has fun with other women throughout the night. Just as she feels that she’ll live in misery, a handsome, lofty man barges into her life and gets entangled with her…
"Ahh!" She was in a moaning mess. She did not want to feel anything for this man. She hated him. His hands began to move all over her body. She gasped when he pulled down the back chain of her dress. The chain stopped at her lower waist, so when he zipped it off, her upper back and waist were exposed. "D-Don't touch m-ummm!" His fingers rolled around her bare back, and she pressed her head against the pillow. His touches were giving her goosebumps all over her body. With a deep angry voice, he whispered in her ear, "I am going to make you forget his touches, kisses, and everything. Every time you touch another man, you will only think of me." - - - Ava Adler was a nerdy omega. People bullied her because they thought she was ugly and unattractive. But Ava secretly loved the bad boy, Ian Dawson. He was the future Alpha of the Mystic Shadow Pack. However, he doesn't give a damn about rules and laws, as he only likes to play around with girls. Ava was unaware of Ian's arrogance until her fate intertwined with his. He neglected her and hurt her deeply. What would happen when Ava turned out to be a beautiful girl who could win over any boy, and Ian looked back and regretted his decisions? What if she had a secret identity that she had yet to discover? What if the tables turned and Ian begged her not to leave him?
She thought she was the love of his life, and he became the love of her life that fateful day she had seen him at the pack's party. Selene Grace was only a replica of Alpha Leo's real mate, and when he spotted her, Leo immediately claimed her as his Luna in order to suppress the rumors of him being mateless. Being unable to conceive turns Selene's marriage into a nightmare, and as if that wasn't enough, Alpha Leo finally reunites with his long time lover and mate, rejecting a pregnant Selene as a result. 5 years later, Selene, a now successful doctor, receives an invitation to the moon shadow pack in order to rid the pack of a deadly disease which has struck it. Will Selene return back to the pack which had caused her so much pain, and what would she do when she realizes that she is mated to the Alpha who had betrayed her in the past?
After three secretive years of marriage, Eliana never met her enigmatic husband until she was served with divorce papers and learned of his extravagant pursuit of another. She snapped back to reality and secured a divorce. Thereafter, Eliana unveiled her various personas: an esteemed doctor, legendary secret agent, master hacker, celebrated designer, adept race car driver, and distinguished scientist. As her diverse talents became known, her ex-husband was consumed by remorse. Desperately, he pleaded, "Eliana, give me another chance! All my properties, even my life, are yours."
Eveline married Shane, an obstetrician, at the age of 24. Two years later, when she was five months pregnant, Shane aborted the baby himself and proceeded to divorce her. It was during these dark times that Eveline met Derek. He treated her tenderly and gave her warmth like she had never known before. He also caused her the greatest pain she ever had to endure. Eveline only grew stronger after everything she experienced, but would she be able to bear the truth when it was finally revealed? Who was Derek behind his charismatic facade? And what would Eveline do once she found out the answer?
When they were kids, Derek saved Norah's life. Years later, after Derek ended up in a vegetative state from a car crash, Norah married him without a second thought and even used her medical knowledge to heal him. For two years, Norah was devoted, seeking his affection and looking to settle her life-saving debt. But when Derek's first love returned, Norah, faced with divorce, didn't hesitate to sign. Despite being labeled as forsaken, few knew of her true talents. She was a race car driver, a famed designer, a genius hacker, and a renowned doctor. Regretting his decision, Derek begged for her forgiveness. Just then, a charming CEO intervened, embracing Norah and declaring, "Back off! She's my wife!" Taken aback, Norah blurted out, "What did you say?"
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."