I never thought my neatly ordered existence to fall in one night. That night, the guy I only knew as Damon made me forget everything-my profession, my regulations, my values. He was intoxicating, dangerous, and completely immoral. We lost ourselves in the darkness, and before daybreak, he was gone, leaving me with nothing save a memory I pledged to forget. Months later, my business is on the point of failure, and the devil himself walks into my life again. This time, he's Damon St. Clair-tech tycoon, rich playboy, and now, the person offering a contract marriage to salvage my business. I have no alternative but to agree. But the limits between hatred and want blur rapidly. Damon isn't only the arrogant, vicious guy he pretends to be-he's the man I once loved and lost. He claims he wants to protect me. He says he wants to fix what he ruined. But when secrets unravel and betrayal resurfaces, I'm forced to reevaluate everything. He broke my heart once. Can I risk letting him do it again?
Seraphina's POV
I said, "You shouldn't be here," my voice quivering as much as the wine glass in my hand.
The individual living in the dismal corner of the private chamber did not answer right away. His sharp blue gaze caught on me, fastening me. Though the room was dark, I could still see his arrogant lip tilt and sharp angles on his face.
At last, his voice low, dark, and stunningly menacing, he said, "I couldn't stay away."
My pulse accelerated. Trying to look cool, I placed my drink on the fine bar counter. "This is a mistake," I whispered, but I didn't even think it was genuine. Too fast my heart was thumping for me to think properly. " Whatever you think is going to happen tonight-it won't."
He drew closer, his presence absorbing the space between us. "Is that so?"
I nodded, but my resolve slipped as he leaned out and traced his fingertips softly over my wrist. His touch scorched, a burning that kindled something primitive inside me. I loathed how easy he could unravel me with just a look, just a touch.
"Tell me to leave, Seraphina," he said, his voice like silk and steel. "Tell me, and I will. But if you don't..." His fingers lingered, his thumb making little, torturous circles on my flesh.
I swallowed hard, torn between running and yielding. This man, this stranger, had come into my life like a cyclone out of nowhere. One chance encounter at a bar had affected everything, and now he was here, crashing into my carefully guarded existence.
"You don't even know me," I whispered, more to persuade myself than him.
"Maybe not," he agreed, his lips twisting into a mischievous sneer. "But I know enough. Enough to know that you're not as put-together as you claim to be. Enough to comprehend you're bored of being the ideal Seraphina Blake everyone expects. And enough to know that you want this as much as I do."
I took my hand away, seeking to reclaim some sense of control. "You don't know what I want," I cried, my voice harsher than I wished.
He didn't flinch. If anything, his smile deepened. "Then tell me I'm wrong," he challenged. "Say the words, and I'll leave you alone."
I opened my lips to answer, but no words came out. Because the thing was, I didn't want him to leave. I wanted him here, even if it worried me. Even if it was foolish and risky and utterly out of character.
The first time I saw him, I assumed he was simply another affluent man with a stunning face and an overinflated ego. He had been sitting at the VIP area of the club, watching me with a sneer that made my skin shake and my heart swell. I'd gone there to blow off steam, to forget about the ongoing stress of running a failed business. I hadn't been seeking anything-or anyone.
But then our eyes met, and everything changed.
"You're silent, Seraphina," he noted, his voice drawing me back to the present. "Should I take that as a yes?"
"No," I answered swiftly, but the word lacked conviction. I took a step back, seeking to put some distance between us. "I don't do this. I don't... I'm not this person."
"What person?" he answered, coming closer. "The person who takes what she wants? The person who quits attempting to be flawless for everyone else and just... lives?"
I felt the wall on my back and recognized too late that I'd locked myself. He was so close now, his scent-something rich and intoxicating-filling the air between us. My breath hitched as he leaned in, his lips just inches from mine.
"This is a bad idea," I whispered, yet my body misled me, leaning toward him despite my words.
"Sometimes the worst ideas are the ones worth pursuing," he continued, his voice a deep, seductive growl. "Tell me to stop, Seraphina."
I should have told him to stop. I should have gone away. But instead, I closed the space between us, my lips slamming into his in a kiss that was all fire and intensity.
The kiss was unlike what I expected. It wasn't delicate or tentative. It was primeval and engulfing, a battle of want and defiance. His hands seized my waist, forcing me closer as if he couldn't take the gap between us. My fingers knotted in his hair, and for a time, I allowed myself to become lost in the tornado of him.
But then reality came back in, hard and cruel. I pulled him away, my chest heaving as I tried to regain my breath.
"This can't happen," I responded, my voice cracking.
"Why not?" he questioned, his eyes intense and unyielding.
"Because I don't know you," I muttered, though it sounded weak even to my ears.
"Then get to know me," he observed casually, as if it were the easiest thing in the world.
"It's not that simple," I said, frustration rising to the surface. "You don't understand-"
"Then make me understand," he continued, his tone suddenly serious. "Tell me what's holding you back, Seraphina. Is it fear? Doubt? Or is it just simpler to keep everyone at arm's length?"
His remarks hit too near to heart, penetrating through my walls with precision. I disliked how easy he looked through me, how he seemed to know aspects of me I didn't even completely understand myself.
"I can't do this," I said again, shaking my head. "I just... can't."
I turned to exit, my heart hammering in my chest. But before I could take more than a stride, his voice halted me.
"If you walk away now, you'll regret it," he said, his words laden with significance. "Maybe not tonight, maybe not tomorrow. But one day, you'll look back and wonder what could have been. And by then, it'll be too late."
I froze, his words settling in. He was correct, and that concerned me more than anything. But I couldn't let myself sink into this maelstrom, not without realizing the cost.
"I'm sorry," I whispered, and then I walked away, my heart bleeding with every step.
The next morning, I woke up feeling restless and uneasy. I tried to immerse myself in work, but my thoughts kept returning back to him. His words, his touch, his kiss-they plagued me, screaming to be ignored.
And then, just as I was trying to tell myself it was all in my mind, my phone buzzed with a notification. I snatched it up, my heart halting as I noticed the message.
Unknown Number: We're not finished, Seraphina. Not yet. – Damon
My breath seized, and for a time, I couldn't move. How had he acquired my number? And what did he mean by "not finished"?
Before I could digest any of it, another message came in, this time with an address and a time.
Unknown Number: Tonight. 8 PM. Don't be late.
I glanced at the television, my heart beating. This was irresponsible. It was wild. But against my better judgment, I knew I would go.
Seraphina waits in her car outside the place Damon gave her, her hands grasping the steering wheel while she contemplates whether to go in. Her phone buzzes again, and she checks at the screen.
Unknown Number: Are you coming, Seraphina? Or are you too terrified to take a chance?
Her jaw tightens, and with a deep breath, she climbs out of the car, prepared to confront whatever awaits her inside.
The door opens to discover Damon standing in a poorly lighted flat, his countenance inscrutable. "You came," he adds, his voice a combination of enthusiasm and something more.
Seraphina takes a step forward, her heart beating. "What do you want from me, Damon?"
He smirks, but there's a spark of vulnerability in his eyes as he adds, "Everything."
Jade never would have imagined herself caught in the merciless billionaire Alex Callahan. Their one-night meeting was supposed to be a daring getaway from her previous heartache, a brief relationship that would fade come morning. But her world spins on its axis when a turn of events leaves Jade with Alex's kid. Until he finds out she is pregnant, Alex was meant to be just another night. Trust is difficult after experiencing his own prior betrayals, particularly when he learns Jade has a connection to a former family scandal. Though she objects, hurt and mistrust drive him to withdraw himself and seek a quick divorce. Years later, sorrow biting at his conscience, Alex comes to see his faults. Resolved to win her back, he resurfaced in Jade's life, ready to mend their broken relationship and bring their kid forward together. But Jade has created a guarded, strong life of her own and she is no more ready to forgive as he attempts to undo the harm. Can they create something stronger from the ashes of treachery and retribution, or will their terrible past separate them?
Life was perfect until she met her boyfriend's big brother. There was a forbidden law in the Night Shade Pack that if the head Alpha rejected his mate, he would be stripped of his position. Sophia's life would get connected with the law. She was an Omega who was dating the head Alpha's younger brother. Bryan Morrison, the head Alpha, was not only a cold-blooded man but also a charming business tycoon. His name was enough to cause other packs to tremble. He was known as a ruthless man. What if, by some twist of destiny, Sophia's path were to intertwine with his?
"I'm going to tell you what I have in mind," he murmured. "First you're going to strip down until you're completely naked," he whispered against her ear. "Then I'm going to tie you up so you're completely powerless and subject to my every whim." "Mmm, sounds good so far," she murmured. "Then I'm going to insert a plug to prepare you for me. After that I'm going to spank that sweet ass of yours until it's rosy with my marks." She shivered uncontrollably, her mind exploding with the images he evoked. She let out a small whimper as he sucked the lobe of her ear into his mouth. God, she could cum with just his words. She was already aching with need. Her nipples tingled and hardened to painful points. Her clit pulsed and twitched between her legs until she clamped her thighs together to alleviate the burn. "And then I'm going to f**k your mouth. But I won't cum. Not yet. When I'm close, I'll flog you again until your ass is burning and you're on fire with the need for relief. And then I'm going to f**k that ass. I'm going to take you hard and rough, to the very limits of what you can withstand. I won't be gentle. Not tonight. I'm going to take you as roughly as you can stand. And then I'm going to cum all over your ass. Are you ready to be completely and utterly dominated?"
"Miss Brown, I am the butler here at your service," the butler replied. "My master wants to buy the baby in your belly." "What?!" Does that mean the abortion didn't take place? Did they kidnap her from the operating table just to buy the baby? But why her? "You..." Alice was about to ask a question, but the man in front of her calmly continued, as if he had expected her question, "You're pregnant with his child, and he needs a child. That's all I can tell you." Alice was forced to sign a surrogacy contract and eight months later gave birth to two healthy babies. Fortunately, the man was unaware of her daughter's existence. It wasn't until five years later that fate brought them together again...
"I stood at the edge of my heart and watched him choose her. In the end, I was not the one he needed. I was simply the one he settled for." - Noelle ~~~~~~~ I thought I was the one he loved. But a few days before our wedding, I saw him in a way I never had before. His eyes softened as he spoke to her. His first love, and the very woman who had left him in pieces. Heartbreak was something I knew too well. And as I watched the love he still held for her in his eyes, I realized what I had to do. I couldn't marry a man who wasn't truly mine. With no means to cancel the wedding and lacking the courage to confront him, I made a desperate choice to leave. I painfully gave his first love my treasured engagement ring thinking it was for the best and the only way to free myself. But when he saw that ring on her finger, the fragile world I had tried to escape began to shatter. His obsession to find me and bring me back ignited a dangerous game of cat and mouse.
For three years, Shane and Yvonne were wed, sharing heated nights, while his devotion clung to his ex. Yvonne strove to be a dutiful wife, yet their marriage felt hollow, built on desire rather than real warmth. All changed when she became pregnant, only for Shane to thrust her onto the operating table, warning, “Either you or the baby survives!” Broken by his cruelty, she vanished in grief and later returned, radiantly accomplished, leaving everyone awestruck. Haunted by remorse, Shane begged for another chance, but Yvonne only smiled and replied, “I’m sorry, men no longer interest me.”
"Sign the divorce papers and get out!" Leanna got married to pay a debt, but she was betrayed by her husband and shunned by her in-laws. Seeing that her efforts were in vain, she agreed to divorce and claimed her half of the properties. With her purse plump from the settlement, Leanna enjoyed her newfound freedom. The constant harassment from her ex's mistress never fazed her. She took back her identities as top hacker, champion racer, medical professor, and renowned jewelry designer. Then someone discovered her secret. Matthew smiled. "Will you have me as your next husband?"