I woke up like it's just another day. I opened my eyes and somehow everything feels right. I did have a good night's sleep, I'm so tired that I feel like I'm sound asleep tonight. I turned to the left and hugged my pillow. I have a class today and in the afternoon I have to go to the restaurant for my duty. Oh my, speaking of my duty. I opened my eyes widely thinking about what happened yesterday. I don't even know if I can still do restaurant duty. I was right when I heard what I heard loudly. I turned back to the right to pick up my cellphone but before I could even see my cellphone I heard a deep voice. "Yes. Furnish it and provide anything that's needed. " My eyes widened as I saw him standing and leaning on the sink holding a cup of coffee. His wide chest and bars on his stomach is greeting my hella morning. What the fuck? How could I forget that I had someone with me? One of his hands was busy holding the phone while one of his hands was holding my single white mug, he sipped into while staring at me. I looked at his eyes down to his lips, his neck, his chest and on his packs. I would have continued to look down if he hadn't spoken again. "Alright." He ended the call and casually placed the cellphone on my small desk. My eyes widen as I slowly get up to sit on the bed, I don't want to talk because my breath might smell terrible knowing that I just woke up! He slowly approached me I thought he was going straight but he picked up the brown paper bag on top of the desk and someone took it from there. It's a dress shirt, again. Only now did I realize that someone else was wearing his slacks because they were ironed and fixed. Did someone came in here or what? Why did I wake up so late? Oh Lord! "Pack all of your things and you should be done at the end of the day." He said with a tone of finality. "W-what?" I gasped. I look at him tiredly looking like a mess as my gaze follows him. He seems to be in a hurry. "I found some good place for you. Much convenient, comfortable and... "he stopped and looked around. "Nice than this." I snapped at what he said. "What? No! " Now he wears his neck tie. Before he continue doing that he looked at me in the eye and uttered. "Yes." He turned his back on me and took his belongings. "I'm not leaving this place! I just moved in here! " I still complained. I can only see his bare back. As I finally got up from my bed and didn't care how upset I looked. He turned his gaze back to me, I saw he was fixing the definitely expensive watch on his wrist. "Just do as I told." He said and picked up the phone and wallet on the desk. I can't be bothered because he seems to be leaving without us even having a good conversation. My heart sunk when I saw that he don't have any interest of telling me what the hell is happening. I will leave my apartment like for what, seriously? His shoulders went up and down, I think it's because of his heavy breathing. A few more seconds before he looked at my direction now holding his things with his hands. His eyes are serious and my eyes are almost begging him to give me the information that I'm asking. Our conversation last night appeared somewhere in my head. That's when I realized I was talking to someone else last night and I'm talking to someone else today. They are way more different. This guy, is someone that I wouldn't want to talk to. He's cold, he's rude, manipulative and... heartless. "This filthy place won't do good for someone who'll bear my child." he uttered with a cold slashing tone. I pursed my mouth looking at his dull eyes. His use of vocabulary made me want to just shut my mouth. Filthy, yes. "In order for you to be worthy of me, you need to at least have a good place to stay in. Bear my child in a healthy place, so my grands will be worth it. " I gulped the pressure in my throat. My eyes watered because of what he said. I feel a dagger being thrust into my chest every word he says. "What?" he asked with a ruthless smirk in his face. I blinked and tried to stop my breathing because anytime I feel like bursting. "Your ready made coffee even taste like shit. That explains how shitty this place is. " I gritted my teeth and looked at his cold eyes. Because I want to memorize every part of it. I want to remember every single thing about him, remember how he stoop so low of me and how confident and rude he is. He raised an eyebrow and cocked his head to the other side probably saying what I'm staring at. I averted my gaze and held back the tears that dripped down my face. I swallowed all the resentment and remembered what my position was in the set up we both had. Right, I'm just his surrogate who'll bear his child and that was it. He walked to my direction, nearer that before. I only looked at his feet because I didn't want to see his bad behavior. But when he touched my chin again, I couldn't help but look at him. This time I'm sure he just saw the pool of tears in my eyes. It seems l
-- Ashina's POV --
At the beginning, it's all cliche and normal.
"So, you're Ashina Hartz?"
I nodded and smiled lightly. I applied as a waitress in a bar near our village. The salary is not that big, but that'll do for me, especially because I didn't want to depend on my step-mother and step-father's support for me.
"You're not yet legal. How am I supposed to hire you?" The red headed middle aged woman raised her brow.
I gasped yet was so ready for my answer. "I'm turning eighteen next year, and I promise my age will not be a hindrance for me to work in your business." I convinced her.
She seems hesitant about my reasoning, but I can also see that she's convinced by the way she protrudes her lips. She couldn't do anything. I may be seventeen, but my body looks mature and almost like a well-grown woman. She later glanced at me and suddenly her brows furrowed.
"What's wrong with your hair?" she asked.
"Uhm, they're alright." I stuttered a bit.
"Your roots are white, yet the ends are black. Did you dye it?" she asked curiously.
I get her. My roots started to grow white a few months ago. My stepmother explained to me that my mother used to have long silver-white hair, who I've known to be Luna. I didn't have time to explain everything to her, so I just changed the subject.
"Please hire me. I need this." I spoke.
She sighed. And that's how I get to work for my needs. See? It's all normal. Just a teenage lady who seeks experience and dreams of being an independent woman.
"Mom," I called my step-mother one morning.
"Ash, it's almost night. I told you that you don't need to work. Are we starving you for you to pursue that?" she asked wearily.
I just grinned and reached for the loaf of bread on the table.
"I need this experience, trust me." I convinced her confidently.
She sighed and shook her head. Obviously, she doesn't like the idea of me going to work everyday.
"We are so fine in this country, Ash. What experience are you still talking about?"
"Hmm, are you gonna send me away too like what my parents did?" I asked with a smile on my face.
Her face became serious.
"I'm joking." I laughed and came to her to kiss her on the cheeks. "Bye, I'll be home early."
She was about to say something but words didn't come out of her mouth. I sighed thinking about what we've talked about. I hope she'll not dwell on it that much.
It's true, my mother is Luna and my father is an Alpha, which makes them the leader of their clan. I don't know, somewhere far from here where I will not be able to see them.
I'm a human. And I have no doubt about it, since I've been living like one since then. No changes at all.. I don't smell pheromones just like what my step- parents used to tell me and convinced them that maybe it's the reason why my parents gave me away, because I'm not like them.
I'm fine here. I love my life and I don't have any hope of seeing them and living the life of being a werewolf. I desire to be normal. I don't look forward to being one of them.
Not until this one night happened.
"Ash, are you alright?" my co-hostess asked me.
Shivered traveled down my spine as I felt the unfamiliar sense of me. It's like some strong force is trying to be unleashed inside of me. My breathing started to get heavy and I smelled the strongest scent I've ever smelled all throughout the years of my existence.
"Y-yeah, can you bring this to table two?" I pleaded.
"Of course, you should rest. You look fidgety." she uttered, and left.
I sniffed more when she left. I rubbed my arms as I felt my hairs standing up. I concentrated as I'm still feeling the heat inside of me. It's like I need to do something to let this pressure inside of me lash out.
"I think I need to go home now." I spoke to myself.
I told my boss that I'll do under-time because I'm not feeling well. Gladly, she understood and let me go.
I was in a hurry as I walked into the dark parking area of the bar and as I got closer the scent became stronger and stronger. It sits into my nose and it seems to affect my senses more. I'm more alert and more like a predator looking for its prey.
I shook my head and walked, but soon my steps halted. My eyes went straight into the car and into the man that's inside it.
The smell of warm fur and a strong scent of mixed cedar wood and musk embraced my nose. It made me dizzy, and as I grew more of that scent, my teeth clenched and rubbed into each other.
I groaned inside and shook my head, almost waking up to the slightest sense that's following my inner persona. I turned my back three-sixty and walked my way home.
That went on for how many days, weeks, and soon became a month. I stared at myself in the mirror. My deep winter gray eyes are now wide open; my white strands of hair are now half the length of my hair.
And that's when I realize this is not normal anymore. I tried to conceal it all, but not all the time, can I do it.
The image of the lean and tall man appeared again one night at the bar. I stared at him with the same overwhelming feeling I'm having every time I'm seeing him. His lashes were long and it made his eyes even more enigmatic. His hair is the darkest shade of black, the same as his eyes.
I gulped. I wonder how it would feel if I ran my nose into his neck. His smell is out of this world. I clenched my teeth again while feeling the slow revolving of my world.
His dangerous eyes suddenly darted into me. My mind suddenly went back into the realm of reality, seeing his eyes curiously and madly looking at me. I turned my back again so that I would not see him, trying to act so normal.
"Ash, I'm sorry. I feel so sick today, can you please bring this to the mart and ask for a refund. It's broken." My step-mom handed me a box, I think some electrical wires.
"Of course, just rest mom." I suggested and walked my way to the nearest mart.
And again, with the accidental and unpredictable encounter. I bit my lip, confirming the reason why I'm suddenly feeling the unfamiliar itch under my skin while I'm nearing the mart.
As soon as I opened the glass door I saw him on the counter and I gulped nervously because his head turned in my direction right away. His cold eyes beamed as he raised an eyebrow at me.
There you go again. My heart beat is going wild, just like what it is whenever he's around. I couldn't take my eyes off him. My body was ogling deep inside, but I tried to remain calm. His scent is too strong and my face is heating as he continues to stare at me.
He walked into my direction and halted in front of me. I almost cursed when he stopped. What now? He should have gotten away before I could not even stop myself.
He cocked his head on the other side as he checked me out. I'm suddenly feeling conscious wearing my simple pair of clothes.
"Move aside, miss. You're blocking my way." Coldness dripped into his tone.
I gasped and immediately moved aside, realizing that I'm causing congestion at the door. I shut my eyes tight as his presence bids it's goodbye.
There, I'm sure that he's the one who's triggering this static inside of me. I need to know why I feel like that every time he's around.
People who fuck for convenience. That’s the supposed set up. Hugh Rockwell pays her dime in return of bearing his child. Angel Brook who desperately needs thousands of grands in order to make a living. That’s the supposed set up. Surrogacy. A legal arrangement whereby a woman agrees to bear a child. That’s the supposed set up. But that’s not it, this is not the surrogacy sht anymore. The martyr Angel who always saves also needs the saving, and only one person could do that in the harsh world she’s at. He looks at her from afar, while she cries, he wept. While she’s in pain he’s tearing into pieces. While she falling for other man, he falls more of her. He’s the boss, and he is Angel’s salvation.
Warning: This story contains mature content. Deceiver. That’s what Athena is. She uses her beauty and body to deceive the famous businessmen in the city. Yet one night, her current target, Knight Augustus, appeared on her radar. She deceived and fooled him without knowing that he was a runaway alpha and even unintentionally gave her virginity. Will she be successful in fooling him? What will happen to her life when she discovers his true identity?
Emma Hampton is sold by his abusive father ever since life removed her from innocence. Growing up, she didn’t experience the life of being a child; playing with barbie dolls was not her game because she was the one who was being played with. Mistreated, misplaced and violated, that was her life all throughout. But not until she gained her strength and pulled herself up and learned how to fight back. A huge amount of money is placed into her head after she was sold to Elijah Koch, the CEO of high-end hotels in the country. With Emma manifesting the plan inside her head, she tried to fool the CEO to get her revenge. She wanted out, she wanted freedom, and all she wants is for the people who mistreated her to suffer. But all these things will not fall into her plan. Can she fool the CEO? Or will she just be fooling herself?
For three years, Jessica endured a loveless marriage while her husband pretended to be impotent. His lies unraveled when a pregnant mistress surfaced. After six months of secretly collecting proof, Jessica threw him out and built her own billion-dollar empire. After the divorce, she transformed into an irresistible figure, attracting admirers. As she left her office one day, she met Kevan, her ex-husband's brother. He stepped in, confronting her. "Was I just a tool to you?" Jessica's lips curled into a calm smile. "How much compensation do you want?" Kevan's voice softened. "All I want is you."
She went to a club with her friends to drink for the first time after finishing her third-year examinations. Gabriella was a 21-year-old virgin who had never kissed anybody before. She met a stranger at a club, accompanied him to a hotel, had her first kiss, and lost her virginity. She enjoyed herself. When she awoke the next morning, the man was gone, He left. She found out she was pregnant a few months later. She continued to go to the hotel in the hopes of running into the man, but after four months, she gave up. He abandoned her, leaving her to face the situation alone. She dropped out of university to raise her son. She returned to school a year later to complete her studies and get her degree. She then saw the person she had slept with on TV and realized he was now engaged, as well as the fact that he was the well-known multi-billionaire Javier Hills. What would his grandma do when she finds a boy who looks just like her grandson?
"Ms. Crawford, it’s time for you to divorce Mr. Larsen and come home. You're the only heiress the Master's waiting for.” ~•~ For the sake of love, Amara accepted the arranged marriage with Tobias William Larsen. She did everything to gain her husband’s heart but when his old love returned, she realized that all her effort was all for naught. Tobias demanded a divorce on the night of their wedding anniversary, even at the price of threatening her. Heartbroken, she finally dropped all her illusions about him and returned home to be the heiress. The next time she met Tobias, they were no longer couples but opponents. "Mr. Larsen, should I remind you again? We've divorced." "Amara, that's the stupidest mistake I've ever made. Please come back to me."
"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!
Katie was forced to marry Dillan, a notorious ruffian. Her younger sister mocked her, "You're just an adopted daughter. Count your blessings for marrying him!" The world anticipated Katie's tribulations, but her married life unfurled with unexpected serenity. She even snagged a lavish mansion in a raffle! Katie jumped into Dillan's arms, credited him as her lucky charm. "No, Katie, it's you who brings me all this luck," Dillan replied. Then, one fateful day, Dillan's childhood friend came to her. "You're not worthy of him. Take this 50 million and leave him!" Katie finally grasped Dillan's true stature—the wealthiest man on the planet. That night, trembling with trepidation, she broached the subject of divorce with Dillan. However, with a domineering embrace, he told her, "I'd give you everything I have. Divorce is off the table!"
Lindsey's fiancé was the devil's first son. Not only did he lie to her but he also slept with her stepmother, conspired to take away her family fortune, and then set her up to have sex with a total stranger. To get her lick back, Lindsey decided to find a man to disrupt her engagement party and humiliate the cheating bastard. Never did she imagine that she would bump into a strikingly handsome stranger who was all that she was currently looking for. At the engagement party, he boldly declared that she was his woman. Lindsey thought he was just a broke man who wanted to leech off her. But once they began their fake relationship, she realized that good luck kept coming her way. She thought they would part ways after the engagement party, but this man kept to her side. "We gotta stick together, Lindsey. Remember, I'm now your fiancé. " "Domenic, you're with me because of my money, aren't you?" Lindsey asked, narrowing her eyes at him. Domenic was taken aback by that accusation. How could he, the heir of the Walsh family and CEO of Vitality Group, be with her for money? He controlled more than half of the city's economy. Money wasn't a problem for him! The two got closer and closer. One day, Lindsey finally realized that Domenic was actually the stranger she had slept with months ago. Would this realization change things between them? For the better or worse?