/0/58591/coverbig.jpg?v=152eef2f85d38b90e1a394b883bd6476)
Octavia Swift's marriage to Richmond Howell was a union between two love birds. Things eventually took a downturn and and a once happy home became a living hell for Octavia because she could not birth a child. When Richmond announces his wedding plans to his secret lover, she divorces him and flees to Mexico, secretly carrying the heir he so desperately desired. There, she forged a marriage alliance with a rival billionaire in her desire for revenge, plotting her return to Miami to topple the Howell empire. Octavia's return sparks a dangerous game of cat and mouse, rekindling a forbidden passion with her ex-husband. As they navigate their secret affair, dark secrets surface, threatening to destroy everything they've built. Torn between her quest for vengeance and her rekindled love, Octavia must confront the consequences of her choices. Will she emerge victorious, or will her thirst for revenge consume her? And what other secrets lie hidden in the shadows?
Octavia sat in front of her vanity, combing her lustrous, wavy blonde locks. She stopped for a while and stared at her reflection in the mirror, the blue eyes staring back at her harboring a mix of sadness and determination.
She had to do it today or she feared she might fall ill with the mental illness of chronic depression.
She looked at her expression again and the blue eyes, once filled with the light of love and happiness, now bore the weight of five years of turmoil in this thing she called marriage.
Octavia gently placed her hands on her stomach, where a new life was growing, lovingly rubbed her stomach and said, "No one has to know about you till I leave this prison, little one, that's my way of protecting you. I will birth you into a world filled with joy and love, not the hellhole I am about to say goodbye to."
She had been pregnant for weeks but kept the secret to herself. Richmond or his family did not deserve this good news because it was a lack of it for years, that made life unbearable for her in her husband's house.
Octavia remembered the early days of her marriage to Richmond, it was pure bliss. Richmond had been her best friend, lover, and confidant. They had been madly in love with each other and couldn't bear to be away from each other for hours.
But as the years flew by and Octavia was unable to conceive and give Richmond and his family the child they desperately wanted, he changed.
The once sweet man had changed into a demon who had exchanged his tongue for a sword as he said so many cruel and hurtful words to her about her inability to conceive that they cut deep within her.
Over the years, she had had many lonely, tearful nights and even days because his cold, cruel and bitter mother, Dame Betty, had not made things easier.
She always reminded Octavia of her failures as a woman and as a wife. Dame Betty always thought Octavia beneath her and always looked at her with disdain. It was soul-crushing.
Octavia had found out about the bundle of joy growing in her stomach about a month ago. She had been feeling feverish and nauseous so she went for a medical checkup to catch the flu before it became serious.
Pregnancy never crossed her mind for the short time she sat waiting for the result, she remembered the conversation.
"Hello, Mrs. Howell. The doctor will see you now." The nurse at the receptionist stand explained.
"Thank you, Theresa," Octavia responded after reading her name from her tag.
Octavia moved slowly into the office, still feeling funny.
The doctor looked at her, smiled and said, "Truly, you are a walking miracle, Mrs. Howell."
She laughed nervously, wondering what her doctor was going on about until he gave her an envelope and said, "Congratulations, Mrs. Howell."
Octavia's hand shook vigorously when she accepted the envelope from the doctor. She opened it and, while checking the content, looked up sharply with immense surprise at her doctor, who was smiling and said, "Yes, you're two weeks pregnant, ma'am."
"What?! How?!" she tried to remember because Richmond had not touched her in a very long time, and even when he did once in a blue moon, it was just quick, rough, and meaningless sex, and then he was off till the next blue moon.
That once-in-a-blue-moon sex happened last month.
Octavia didn't know whether to laugh, cry or scream, but the only response that came was, "Can you do me a favor, Doctor?"
"Sure, Ma'am."
"This news must not get out of this room. My husband is going through a lot now with work and all, so I will wait for my own good time to tell him," she lied.
"Oh, ma'am. Of course, you know that one of the reasons why our clients loyally patronize us is our commitment to confidentiality. We don't mingle in anybody's business unless they ask us to," the doctor assured her.
"Good, thank you, Dr. Michael." she shook his hand and left.
Octavia didn't want to go home for a while, so she booked a hotel room and when she got in, she cried for a long time.
She cried with ache in her heart for all that she had endured with her husband and his family, then she cried with joy for the new life within her, and that was the day she resolved to leave the miserable toxic life she was in, which was sucking life out of her.
She wanted to start life on a fresh slate with her unborn child, who she didn't want anywhere near the Howell family.
While still in the hotel room, she had called her friend, Marietta, who lived in Mexico, as she had not heard from her best friend, Sophia.
Marietta had often urged her to visit, offering a place of safety whenever Octavia recounted her ordeal to her. It was about time she made that visit, although it was a permanent one.
After the call with Marietta, she started carrying out the departure plan and carefully carried it out with the money she had secretly saved for years.
She retained the hotel room she booked and started buying the essentials she would need for her travel and immediately she got there. She didn't carry any items from the Howell house apart from her documents.
She wanted nothing to do, with any Howell property.
She bought the ticket to Mexico too and kept the items in the hotel rooms she booked because her mother-in-law had a maniacal habit of going through her stuff and to date, she had not told Octavia what she sought.
Octavia looked at herself in the mirror in her vanity, took a very deep breath and said, "It's time for a fresh start, Octavia. Are you ready?"
She donned a normal jogging outfit, pretending to go for a morning run.
Good thing Richmond was not at home, as he had traveled for a work conference but she left her departure letter in his home office, where she was sure he would find it.
Octavia jogged down the stairs as quietly as possible, pretending to be in the mood for exercise.
She got to the bottom stairs to see Dame Betty giving the house staff instructions for breakfast and any other business.
She had taken over this duty, deciding that Octavia had failed as a wife and therefore was not fit to run a household, and this decision she took loudly in front of most of the, if not all, the staff.
Dame Betty looked at Octavia and said, "You want to go for a jog? Good. I was wondering when you would stand up and do something meaningful with yourself since all you do is eat, go shopping and spend your money."
"You have no serious plan for your life, Octavia, but how could you? You've failed as a mother, a wife and even a woman, so what exactly are you good at?." She continued nonchalantly as if she were talking about the weather.
" Again, I say it is a good thing you are going for a jog because you have been getting unnecessarily chubby these past weeks and we all know it's not because you carry a child in that womb of yours. It's dried up and that's why my Richmond won't touch you affectionately."
Octavia gasped loudly at her harsh words, which had become her anthem.
She looked around because Dame Betty did not bother to be quiet. She saw the domestic staff, going about their business, pretending they had not heard anything when they had and had been hearing every single word.
One even dared to look at her and shake his head with pity for her.
She looked angrily at her mother-in-law and said "I have just about had it with your hateful, abusive words. You are just an old, bitter woman full of hate; if not, why exactly will you say such hateful words to someone else?"
Octavia saw her mother-in-law turn back to look at her with obvious surprise and she also heard a gasp or two from the staff who also heard what she said.
Octavia continued, "I, Octavia, am not a failed woman or wife. Maybe it's you and your family that need to be checked for failure tags. Excuse me, I am going for a jog this morning."
With that, she left stunned Dame Betty, who still stood at her spot, jogged a few miles and hailed a cab to the hotel.
Octavia's heart pounded with fear and determination but she couldn't let fear stop her now. She had to do this, especially for her unborn child. She placed her hands on her stomach to gain strength.
Hours later, Octavia sat aboard the airplane bound for Mexico, looking forward to a fresh start.
She thought about Marietta and her ever-smiling mother and knew that she would find a haven there. The Howells don't know about them.
Richmond would find her departure letter when he got back from the conference.
*****
Dame Betty, went up to Richmond's home office to find Octavia's departure letter. She dials her son immediately.
"Hi, Mom, how are you doing? Hope everything is fine back home?", Richmond asks from the other end of the line.
"Octavia has fled from the city", she responded with a smirk on her face.
"What?! Where did she go?"
Ellen Bennet's world is shattered when she is jilted on the altar by her groom, Hammond Kent. Feeling betrayed, she ends up having a one-night stand with an unidentified stranger that leaves her no trail except pregnancy and a necklace. Years later, Ellen's billionaire boss, Roderick Waltz proposes a contract marriage to her for political leverage; she accepts the proposal to get revenge on her ex-fiancƩ, Hammond who is now a close friend of her boss. But things take a different turn when she falls in love with her boss, derailing the purpose of the contract marriage. Now, her ex-fiancƩ wants her back so bad. How will she navigate the complexities of Roderick's secrets and learning that Hammond jilted her to keep her from harm's way?
Elena, once a pampered heiress, suddenly lost everything when the real daughter framed her, her fiancĆ© ridiculed her, and her adoptive parents threw her out. They all wanted to see her fall. But Elena unveiled her true identity: the heiress of a massive fortune, famed hacker, top jewelry designer, secret author, and gifted doctor. Horrified by her glorious comeback, her adoptive parents demanded half her newfound wealth. Elena exposed their cruelty and refused. Her ex pleaded for a second chance, but she scoffed, āDo you think you deserve it?ā Then a powerful magnate gently proposed, āMarry me?ā
"I've warned you from the beginning. Don't marry him, but you won't listen." She stood close to me and smiled with concern. "You are not a woman worthy of a man as handsome, rich, smart, and virile as Blaze." My whole body trembled at her words. "Have you no shame?" I asked in a quivering voice. "Take a good look at yourself, Heather." She looked at me in the mirror. "You can't even look at your ugly face. Do you think Blaze can endure a lifetime of looking at that face?" Heather Bailey had a surprise from her husband that night: a divorce agreement. After a year of marriage and facing ups and downs, she couldn't believe Blaze intended to divorce her. But she was devastated when she saw him gazing lovingly at another woman because that person was closest to her. Shortly after she put her signature on their divorce papers, shock waves caught her up. Her flower shop was severely burnt, beyond repair. Her father's company collapsed, and her parents blamed her. She struggled to rebuild her life from the ground up and became more successful than ever. Having many customers who came from influential families, she started her action against Blaze. She won the very thing he wanted. But that was just the beginning.
For ten years, Daniela showered her ex-husband with unwavering devotion, only to discover she was just his biggest joke. Feeling humiliated yet determined, she finally divorced him. Three months later, Daniela returned in grand style. She was now the hidden CEO of a leading brand, a sought-after designer, and a wealthy mining mogulāher success unveiled at her triumphant comeback. Her ex-husbandās entire family rushed over, desperate to beg for forgiveness and plead for another chance. Yet Daniela, now cherished by the famed Mr. Phillips, regarded them with icy disdain. "Iām out of your league."
In her previous life, Kimberly endured the betrayal of her husband, the cruel machinations of an evil woman, and the endless tyranny of her in-laws. It culminated in the bankruptcy of her family, and ultimately, her death. After being reborn, she resolved to seek retribution against those who had wronged her, and ensure her family's prosperity. To her shock, the most unattainable man from her past suddenly set his sights on her. "You may have overlooked me before, but I shall capture your heart this time around."
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-husbandās uncle, a powerful warlord, returned with his army to ask for Kaelynās hand in marriage.
"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 fiancƩ 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?"