The night before her engagement, Valerie was tricked by her boyfriend and stepsister into spending the night with a stranger. After the night together, the man vanished. Later, her boyfriend accused her of cheating, revealing his affair with her stepsister. Pressured by her father, Valerie married an unconscious man in place of her stepsister. Valerie exposed the scheme, sabotaged her father's ambitions, and transformed herself. When her husband woke and chased her to the airport, she calmly refused him, saying, "It's over between us." He held her firmly. "You married me, so you must commit."
"Ah!"
A piercing scream shattered the silence of the hotel corridor, but it was cut short as a heavy door slammed shut.
Inside the pitch-black room, Valerie Brown's heart raced. She tried to scream, but no sound escaped-her lips were smothered by a rough, unyielding hand.
She froze, feeling the hot, alcohol-laced breath of a stranger against her neck, every exhale tightening the grip of fear coursing through her.
This wasn't Javier Barnett. This wasn't the man she loved.
"Let go of me! Who the hell are you?"
Valerie thrashed violently, her fists pounding the stranger's chest, but his hold was ironclad.
Shock flooded her. All those years of martial arts training, and yet this man overpowered her as if she were nothing.
In an instant, the world spun.
Valerie felt herself lifted, and then dropped onto the softness of a bed. Before she could comprehend what was happening, a crushing weight pressed down on her.
"Stay still!" the man growled, pinning her wrists to the headboard with one effortless hand.
The sharp sound of tearing fabric pierced the air. His touch was searing, every brush of his fingers like fire, while her attempts to resist were useless, as futile as pushing against an unstoppable force.
Tears spilled from Valerie's eyes, blurring her vision as panic gripped her. She choked out the words, trembling. "Please... I don't even know you..."
But her plea fell into the void, answered only by the low rasp of his breath against her ear, cold and callous.
When morning light crept into the room, it stabbed at her eyes.
Valerie blinked, her body radiating pain.
Every inch of her ached, especially her legs, which felt limp and powerless, refusing to move.
Flashes of the night before rushed back in fragmented pieces-intertwined bodies, forceful touches-but the face, his face, remained shrouded in shadow.
The memory of violation gnawed at her, her teeth grinding together as a flood of helpless anger surged within her. Her fists clenched so tightly that her nails bit into her skin, though she felt no pain. Only rage.
...
As the minutes dragged on, Valerie's mind gradually cleared, pulling her back to a harsh reality.
She glanced around the room-a wreckage of scattered sheets and torn clothes-and willed herself to stand, though every movement was a battle against the soreness in her body.
Still barely clothed, she stumbled to gather herself when the door exploded open with a deafening bang.
"You're a disgrace!" A voice, dripping with fury, filled the room. "You've brought shame to the entire Brown family!"
Valerie spun around, startled, only to see her father Craig Brown charging in, his face twisted in rage.
His eyes bore into her, scanning her rumpled clothes, her marked skin-his gaze lingering on the red stains of humiliation around her neck and shoulders. Hatred flashed in his eyes, raw and venomous, as if the very sight of Valerie stirred a desire to obliterate her.
"Valerie, how could you turn out to be such a disgrace?" Craig bellowed, his voice brimming with contempt. "You're just like your mother-an utter disgrace!"
Valerie's body tensed, a surge of defensive anger rising in her chest. Her eyes flashed with defiance.
"You don't get to talk about my mother," she shouted, venom dripping from each word. "Disgrace? Me? What about you then? The day you threw us out-me and my mother-for that vile Lacey and her scheming mother, you lost any shred of dignity."
Her words sliced through the air like knives, cutting deep. Craig's face contorted with fury, his body trembling with rage.
He glared at her, spewing curses, but Valerie didn't flinch. She had stopped expecting anything from this man long ago.
Yet, after enduring a night of violation at the hands of a stranger, and now being cursed by her own father, something inside her shattered. The bitterness she had kept buried began to spill over, coating her every thought.
Without another word, Valerie turned, desperate to escape the suffocating room. But as she reached the door, her way was blocked.
Someone stood in her path.
Elena, once a pampered heiress, suddenly lost everything when the real daughter framed her, her fiancé 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, “Do you think you deserve it?” Then a powerful magnate gently proposed, “Marry me?”
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.”
There was only one man in Raegan's heart, and it was Mitchel. In the second year of her marriage to him, she got pregnant. Raegan's joy knew no bounds. But before she could break the news to her husband, he served her divorce papers because he wanted to marry his first love. After an accident, Raegan lay in the pool of her own blood and called out to Mitchel for help. Unfortunately, he left with his first love in his arms. Raegan escaped death by the whiskers. Afterward, she decided to get her life back on track. Her name was everywhere years later. Mitchel became very uncomfortable. For some reason, he began to miss her. His heart ached when he saw her all smiles with another man. He crashed her wedding and fell to his knees while she was at the altar. With bloodshot eyes, he queried, "I thought you said your love for me is unbreakable? How come you are getting married to someone else? Come back to me!"
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.
⚠️ WARNING ⚠️ This Book Contains Matured Contents, reader's discretion is advised. *** "Do you have any idea how much I want to be inside you right now?" he asked as he stood to his feet. "Then why aren't you?" I responded, loving the feel of him pressed so close, my back to the mirror, my front to him. But even still, in some far corner of my lust-fogged mind, I realized that we were still in a bathroom. Anyone could walk in and see us. The thought of getting discovered was scary and erotic at the same time. "Oh, we're not done. Spread your legs a bit for me, Kitten." He commanded. When I did as he instructed, he settled between my legs again. "Now close your eyes. And try not to move." Dominic Rutherford murmured. I drew in a sharp breath as his fingers slipped into me with a silky, wet ease. First one. Then another. A feverish tide rose inside me, and I groaned. I jerked in response, causing me to unconsciously move my hips towards his teasing, clever hand, seeking more. "Ohh-" My body trembled under his touch. "Please..." *** Ruby escapes a stifling marriage filled with betrayal, eager to reclaim her freedom. At a masquerade ball, she meets Dominic, a mysterious older man always wearing a mask and has a complex past. Their intense attraction ignites a passionate and dangerous affair. Dominic, who was tasked by Ruby's unknown brother to find her, is captivated by her defiant spirit. As Ruby gets entangled in Dominic's dark world and faces threats from her vengeful former husband and an enemy within, she struggles with her fear of love. Will Ruby and Dominic overcome their pasts and the secrets that threaten to tear them apart? Can Ruby submit to love even after the truth is revealed?
After three loveless years, Neil's betrayal deeply wounded Katelyn. She wasted no time in getting rid of that scoundrel! After the divorce, she devoted herself to career pursuits. Rising to prominence as a top designer, skilled doctor, and brilliant hacker, she became a revered icon. Neil, realizing his grave mistake, tried in vain to win her back, only to witness her magnificent wedding to another. As their vows were broadcast on the world's largest billboard, Vincent slid a ring onto Katelyn's finger and declared, "Katelyn is now my wife, a priceless treasure. Let all who covet her beware!"