/0/66628/coverbig.jpg?v=f0d7585de961e1d7c1748143e3b2954b)
For three years, Nathan and his family treated me like I was an empty can because I wasn't able to conceive a child. I watched Nathan get close to my cousin but I couldn't do anything. He wanted her first. When I finally received the news about my pregnancy, I wasn't happy about it but I hoped it would save my marriage. However, just when I was about to tell Nathan, my husband, I found out that my cousin was also carrying his child. Nathan divorced me and I chose to keep the baby a secret from him and started a new life after the divorce. Five years later, I am now a famous fashion designer in London. Seeing this and my daughter, Nathan wants me back desperately, apologizing for all he has done but I can't think of accepting him because I am now into a man who I eventually learn is his uncle. Mateo is my savior and sponsor, but when things become very intense, I see myself wanting him, but my ex-husband returns, and now I'm stuck between a hard place and a rock. I want to be with Mateo, but Nathan shows that he has really changed; who...who now?
Evelyn's POV
The clattering sound of the cutlery filled the dining room as everyone around the large table ate. My husband, his family, my aunt, and my cousin were the ones surrounding the table and eating peacefully.
However, I couldn't eat because I felt unsafe and their eyes on me made me uncomfortable. I could only stare at my food. Perhaps I couldn't eat because I wasn't happy.
"Why haven't you touched your meal, my child?" That was my mother-in-law. She sounded so nice but everyone at the table knew how much she hated me. I could say everyone around the table didn't like me. How did they expect me to eat peacefully when I was in the midst of people who hated my existence?
Before I could think of what to say, she uttered. "Who knows, perhaps the reason you cannot give my son a child is because you lack nutrition."
Those words hit me harshly at the right spot. I swallowed hard and when everyone around the table began to laugh at her statement, I felt embarrassed. I should be used to it by now. I mean it isn't the first time they all bullied me, including Nathan, my husband.
I stayed quiet and decided to pick my cutlery to start feeding myself but it only led to more. "My goodness, come on Evelyn, do you think you can get pregnant because you choose to eat now?" that was my mother-in-law again.
I glanced at Nathan who appeared pleased by what she was saying to me. "It took me a week to get pregnant at my husband's house after our marriage. But you, Evelyn, you've taken more than three years. Tell me, how unfortunate can you be?"
What could I give as an answer? I sat there enduring all the insults being thrown at me. I felt worthless, especially when my husband refused to defend me. He had never done that, but still, deep down inside me, I hoped and expected him to.
"Her grades are bad, her facial appearance is poor, she has no luck in getting a job and she's nothing but a burden to everyone around her. Is having a baby a big problem?" My aunt joined. She and her family raised me after I lost my whole family in a fire accident.
I lowered my gaze, crying bitterly inside but while I was looking down, I caught my cousin touching my husband. I raised my gaze a little and saw Nathan smiling at her. They were gazing at each other and it brought pain to my heart. The pain felt like disappointment and betrayal. I was trying hard to hold my tears and I believed I succeeded.
Lately, my husband and my cousin have grown close. First, it was his secretary, and now Rachel, my aunt's daughter.
Their voices slowly became a background voice in my head as I stared into space. I looked at the cutlery in front of me, seeing myself cutting my skin with the sharp one. My breath was unstable. I wanted to scream and tell them that it was enough. I was on the verge of crying out loud because it was too much to endure any longer, but pictures of what would happen if I expressed myself played in my head, so I forced myself to take in that heavy breath that felt like it would scatter my lungs.
I was shaking and biting the inside of my mouth but no one cared about me.
Eventually, it ended. Everyone left for their home, except Rachel. She spent time with my husband while I did the dishes and cleaned the house.
I had been doing that for years because they all felt like it was suitable work for me. My husband told me that he didn't need a maid because I could do the job.
I went to our room after finishing my work but my husband was in the guest room with my cousin.
Why didn't she marry him then when she knew she'd want him this much? I thought to myself as I tried to catch sleep.
Three years ago, my aunt's family instructed me to get married to the bachelor who wanted Rachel but because he wasn't Rachel's taste-a man with wild wealth, I replaced her and realized that Nathan married me because he needed a child.
When I couldn't offer that a few months after our marriage, Nathan and his parents changed their ways and began to mistreat me just like my aunt's family used to do to me. I was wrong about my freedom. I was just moved to an upgraded prison.
Evelyn is my name and I am just so unlucky with everything that involved me.
____
"You are eight weeks pregnant, Mrs O'Brien," I heard from the doctor after she explained some things to me about my condition. I wished it was a deadly disease after I came for a check-up but I was wrong. I had just received the news I had been waiting for but now it didn't make me happy anymore. "Congratulations," she smiled brightly at me.
"There's no complications?" I asked because I really wanted to die.
"No, Mrs O'Brien," she chuckled because she thought I was joking.
I collected the test result and began to stare at it as I left the hospital. Then it struck my mind that Nathan could love me now that I was carrying his baby. This news could actually save our marriage and also help me gain his parent's love and affection.
After three years, I can finally bring a child to the family. I filled my mind with hope and rushed home to wait for my husband to get back from work so I could tell him.
When I entered the house, I felt really happy about the news and went straight to my room to change my clothes. Upon reaching close to the entrance, I overheard the word 'pregnancy.'
"You are carrying my child?" I heard Nathan and knew instantly that he was with my cousin, Rachel.
"Congratulations, my baby!" He kissed Rachel's belly, causing me to look down at my own.
"This is what Evelyn cannot achieve," he mocked me.
"Shouldn't you have divorced her by now?" My cousin asked. I wasn't surprised that Rachel could do that to me.
"Now that you are pregnant, it's high time she left my life. She has done nothing but cause trouble in my life. She always needed money. How could I have married a woman like Evelyn? She isn't even pretty or sexy," I couldn't believe that my husband could say that about me, but there was one thing he achieved: he made me insecure about myself and my appearance just by mentioning those words.
After finding out that her sister and fiance were having an affair, Tabitha fled and attended the party her best friend invited her to. In pain, she got heavily drunk and blacked out only to wake up in bed with a man. At first glance, Tabitha recognized the man as the second son of one of the most prominent companies in State Z. However, that night was a mistake, and Tabitha left with the intention of putting it behind her. Tabitha arrived home, only to find herself locked in her room by her family, forced to marry her fiance. But what happens when the second son of BlueDiamonds Enterprise comes to claim Tabitha as his own? Even more, this man, Silas, isn't just a billionaire, but a powerful person who is the future Alpha of Cerulean Moon Park.
I've loved Alfred from the first day I saw him in university. Alfred did not notice my existence for years. Alfred was also into a lady which made me so jealous. Just when we were about to graduate, I heard Alfred had broken up with his girlfriend. Could I say that that was a chance for me? Well…maybe. Turned out Alfred had actually noticed me. His vulnerability led us into a one-night stand. And this incident results in marriage. I know that Alfred isn't in love with me. He got married to me because of his family. Four years after our loveless marriage when our daughter was three. Alfred suddenly brought a divorce document and urged me to sign it. I disagreed but when I realized why he wanted a divorce, I agreed and fled, leaving my daughter with him. Alfred will never love me because he loves that woman. Two years later, I returned with a better status, only because of my daughter. But I don't know what's happening because Alfred is acting strange and lovingly to me. Is he perhaps in love with me? If so, then it's unfortunately late because I already have a fiancee.
As a simple assistant, messaging the CEO in the dead of night to request shares of adult films was a bold move. Bethany, unsurprisingly, didn't receive any films. However, the CEO responded that, while he had no films to share, he could offer a live demonstration. After a night filled with passion, Bethany was certain she'd lose her job. But instead, her boss proposed, "Marry me. Please consider it." "Mr. Bates, you're kidding me, right?"
On her wedding day, Khloe’s sister connived with her groom, framing her for a crime she didn’t commit. She was sentenced to three years in prison, where she endured much suffering. When Khloe was finally released, her evil sister used their mother to coerce Khloe into an indecent liaison with an elderly man. As fate would have it, Khloe crossed paths with Henrik, the dashing yet ruthless mobster who sought to alter the course of her life. Despite Henrik’s cold exterior, he cherished Khloe like no other. He helped her take retribution from her tormentors and kept her from being bullied again.
They don't know I'm a girl. They all look at me and see a boy. A prince. Their kind purchase humans like me for their lustful desires. And, when they stormed into our kingdom to buy my sister, I intervened to protect her. I made them take me too. The plan was to escape with my sister whenever we found a chance. How was I to know our prison would be the most fortified place in their kingdom? I was supposed to be on the sidelines. The one they had no real use for. The one they never meant to buy. But then, the most important person in their savage land-their ruthless beast king-took an interest in the "pretty little prince." How do we survive in this brutal kingdom, where everyone hates our kind and shows us no mercy? And how does someone, with a secret like mine, become a lust slave? . AUTHOR'S NOTE. This is a dark romance-dark, mature content. Highly rated 18+ Expect triggers, expect hardcore. If you're a seasoned reader of this genre, looking for something different, prepared to go in blindly not knowing what to expect at every turn, but eager to know more anyway, then dive in! . From the author of the international bestselling book: "The Alpha King's Hated Slave."
Rena got into an entanglement with a big shot when she was drunk one night. She needed Waylen's help while he was drawn to her youthful beauty. As such, what was supposed to be a one-night stand progressed into something serious. All was well until Rena discovered that Waylen's heart belonged to another woman. When his first love returned, he stopped coming home, leaving Rena all alone for many nights. She put up with it until she received a check and farewell note one day. Contrary to how Waylen expected her to react, Rena had a smile on her face as she bid him farewell. "It was fun while it lasted, Waylen. May our paths never cross. Have a nice life." But as fate would have it, their paths crossed again. This time, Rena had another man by her side. Waylen's eyes burned with jealousy. He spat, "How the hell did you move on? I thought you loved only me!" "Keyword, loved!" Rena flipped her hair back and retorted, "There are plenty of fish in the sea, Waylen. Besides, you were the one who asked for a breakup. Now, if you want to date me, you have to wait in line." The next day, Rena received a credit alert of billions and a diamond ring. Waylen appeared again, got down on one knee, and uttered, "May I cut in line, Rena? I still want you."
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!"
After hiding her true identity throughout her three-year marriage to Colton, Allison had committed wholeheartedly, only to find herself neglected and pushed toward divorce. Disheartened, she set out to rediscover her true self-a talented perfumer, the mastermind of a famous intelligence agency, and the heir to a secret hacker network. Realizing his mistakes, Colton expressed his regret. "I know I messed up. Please, give me another chance." Yet, Kellan, a once-disabled tycoon, stood up from his wheelchair, took Allison's hand, and scoffed dismissively, "You think she'll take you back? Dream on."