An enormous debt. A coveted inn. A marriage contract. An endless rivalry. All this with Bethany stuck in the mix. The only thing she cares about is saving her father's inn. But Andrew makes her want more, all to win a power tussle. Forgotten history would come up, uncovering old bonds. Will love stand till the end? Or will it bend to power and authority?
Bethany's POV
I had just come down the stairs to see my inn crowded with customers. Max, Cheryl and Phillipe ran across the floors as they tried to handle all the orders simultaneously.
"I'd gladly take my bacon and eggs any minute now, cos it's been thirty damn minutes since I ordered."
A customer seated alone had shouted over the noise in the building. I never liked hearing loud voices in my inn, but I couldn't just refuse customers because they shouted a lot. And honestly, they have the right. I watched Cheryl race back to the counter with a tray full of dirty dishes.
She should have gotten him his order in five minutes, but she was much slower today. With a long sigh, I entered the kitchen to prepare his breakfast myself. My chef called in sick late last night and his assistant was hardly any better. Maybe it was time to employ new staff.
It's almost that time of the year again when people flock to Sedona for the starry nights and the white snow dusting the red rocks. There's no way I could handle business if my chefs are always unavailable.
I tossed the bacon and eggs onto a plate and walked out of the kitchen. My spot is normally in my office upstairs or sometimes, behind the counter. But today, I decided to be more hands-on and handle things directly.
I dropped the plate gently on the table, smiling at the customer as he glared at me, then took his first bite while I hoped he had no more complaints. I heard footsteps behind me - Cheryl's - and turned to see her holding a pitcher of our complimentary orange juice.
I walked off, leaving her to handle any other grievances he might have with the food. As owner and manager of the inn, my place is in my office, and I was heading there when I saw the mailman walk in.
"Good morning, Mr. Garnett. It's been ages. Hope your kids are doing well?"
He smiled at me, that soft and compassionate smile that looked better each time I saw it, before telling me how great things were. He pulled out a large brown envelope and passed it over to me.
On the front, I could see my name and address boldly written so I had no doubt this was meant for me.
At a corner, though, I could see the logo of Orange Trust Bank and I was sceptical. They might be the only bank in town, but I have no business with them.
Mr. Garnett headed out, and I climbed the stairs to my office, ripping the envelope open. I was apprehensive about what I might find, but I had to open it. Slowly, I pulled out its contents.
Two large sheets of paper and a yellow piece that had been folded down to roughly three inches wide fell onto my table.
I opened it and the letter's subject shocked me. My heart rate sped up as my eyes widened in shock. For a minute, my lungs stopped working and I gasped for air.
Part of me hoped that this was a prank or some kind of mistake, but there was no way a bank would pull a prank. Would they?
According to the letter, my father had signed a loan agreement with Orange Trust Bank that dated back to when I was eleven years old. I read through all the documents, seeing the signed agreement between my father and the bank.
He had used the inn and the land as collateral, with an agreement to pay back in ten years. Fifteen years had passed since then and my father said nothing till he died two years ago.
My heart burned in my chest, and I began to feel an unusual pain. My body sank lower into my chair as I raised my head to the ceiling.
Did we owe money on the inn? Why hadn't my father told me? Where do I go from here?
Dollar figures swam on the page. The amount I had to pay back was too steep. I kept searching my thoughts for the reason my father would take a loan, but I came up empty.
Would I have to pay without having any say on the matter? Wasn't there something I could do?
I jumped to my feet, pushing the letter and documents into the envelope as I grabbed my bag. I checked my watch: a few minutes past eight in the morning. There was a bus to Phoenix in a few minutes, so I hurried out of my inn.
Using the address on the letterhead, I hoped I could find their head office. I couldn't sit in my office, trying to sort things out over the phone and some emails. There was an obvious solution: meeting the person who sent me that letter and talking things over.
There had to be a way to compromise or reach an agreement of mutual benefit.
I ran past my assistant Phillipe, telling him to handle things until I returned.
"But where are you headed?"
The only response I could give him was a pat on his shoulder and a soft smile. I couldn't let him know what was going on; it was my burden to bear.
My inn is just a few minutes away from the bus station, and since I had no time to get a ride, I started running.
I hurried down the road like I was being chased, with people staring at me in wonder. Some of them, clearly tourists, wore terrified faces but I paid them no mind, wiping the sweat off my face as I pushed forward.
By the time I got to the station, there were only a few seats left.
With sore feet and panting lungs, I forced myself onto the bus and found my seat at the back. The bus left the station and all I could think about was my father, and if I should hate him for this or try to understand him.
What other secrets could he have kept from me? And what were his reasons for keeping them?
I couldn't get an answer before I got to my stop, no matter how much I pondered on it. If only I could go to his grave and ask him directly.
I heard the driver call my stop, bringing my mind out of my thoughts. As I walked down the aisle, I looked around to see that the bus was almost empty.
As the bus drove off, I crossed the road and walked into the bank.
Darren King is as crude as they come. A tribrid - mainly vampire, partly werewolf, part witch, and bathed in angel blood. War hero. Killer of demons and Protector of the Triform. First and last of his kind. And only through conception can there be hybrids. But he has a problem. Although respected in the vampire and werewolf clans, he won't be given worthy "vessels" (women to birth his offspring). Running out of time, even immortality wouldn't save him. Tied to the blood moon and with demons rearing their head in hidden corners, how long does he still have? and just how much suppression can a king take?
Once upon a time, there were two kingdoms once at peace. The kingdom of Salem and the kingdom of Mombana... Until the day, the king of Mombana passed away and a new monarch took over, Prince Cone. Prince Cone, has always been hungry for more power and more and more. After his coronation, he attacked Salem. The attack was so unexpected, Salem never prepared for it. They were caught off guard. The king and Queen was killed, the prince was taken into slavery. The people of Salem that survived the war was enslaved, their land taken from them. Their women were made sex slaves. They lost everything, including their land. Evil befall the land of Salem in form of Prince Cone, and the prince of Salem in his slavery was filled with so much rage. The prince of Salem, Prince Lucien swore revenge. 🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳🌳 Ten years later, thirty-years old Lucien and his people raided a coup and escaped slavery. They went into hiding and recuperated. They trained day and night under the leadership of the fearless and cold Lucien who was driven with everything in him to get back their land, and take Mombana land too. It took them five years before they ambushed and attacked Mombana. They killed Prince Cone and reclaimed everything. As they screamed out their victory, Lucien's eyes found and pinned the proud princess of Mombana. Princess Danika. The daughter of Prince Cone. As Lucien stared at her with the coldest eyes anyone can ever possess, he felt victory for the first time. He walked to the princess with the slave collar he'd won for ten years rattling in his hand as he walked. He reached close to her and with a swift movement, he collared her neck. Then, he tilted her chin up, staring into the bluest eyes and the most beautiful face ever created, he gave her a cold smile. "You are my acquisition. My slave. My sex slave. My property. I will pay you in spades, everything you and your father ever did to me and my people." He stated curtly. Pure hatred, coldness and victory was the only emotion on his face. .
"You're mine, little puppy," Kylan growled against my neck. A soft gasp escaped my lips as his lips brushed my skin. My mind screamed at me to push him away-the Lycan Prince who had humiliated me again and again, but my body betrayed me, leaning into him before I could stop myself. He pressed his lips against mine, and his kiss grew more aggressive, more possessive as I felt my legs weaken. What was I doing? In a split-second, I pulled away and slapped him hard across the face. Kylan's eyes darkened, but the smirk on his lips exposed his amusement. "You and I both know we can't fight this, Violet," he said, gripping my wrist. "You're my mate." "And yet you don't want me," I replied. "You told me you were ashamed of me, that l'd never be your queen, that you'd never love me. So please, accept my rejection and let me go." "Never," he whispered, his grip tightening as he pulled me closer. "Soon enough, you'll be begging for me. and when you do-I'll use you as I see fit and then I'll reject you."
Chloe Miler, a naïve young woman, waits shyly to spend Valentine's Day with her boyfriend, but is betrayed on that day when she witnesses him entangled in bed with her own sister. Chloe's heart is broken when her heartfelt love for him is trampled on in an instant. *** Lionel Williams, the mysterious billionaire, the top of the pyramid, is handsome as hell. His eyes are set high, but he is drugged, has a one-night stand with a strange woman, and is humiliated by that unknowing woman with her money! His instincts tell him it's not that simple, and he's going to find her out!
"Mr. Evans, please maintain some dignity. Don't forget I'm your brother's wife!" Having caught her husband and best friend together in the bed, Elena wanted nothing more than to exact revenge on the people she once called family. She refused to be a pitiful divorcee and vowed to make everyone who had once looked down on her beg for forgiveness. And to start with her newfound freedom, Elena indulges in a one-night stand with a stranger. However, what was meant to be a fleeting escape turns into a nightmare when she learns that the stranger is none other than her husband's older brother! Would Elena be free from the shackles of her marriage? Or would the mysterious stranger make her life a living hell since he seemed to have a personal vendetta against his family? [The story is 18+ and involves mature content.]
Linsey was stood up by her groom to run off with another woman. Furious, she grabbed a random stranger and declared, "Let's get married!" She had acted on impulse, realizing too late that her new husband was the notorious rascal, Collin. The public laughed at her, and even her runaway ex offered to reconcile. But Linsey scoffed at him. "My husband and I are very much in love!" Everyone thought she was delusional. Then Collin was revealed to be the richest man in the world. In front of everyone, he got down on one knee and held up a stunning diamond ring. "I look forward to our forever, honey."
After a painful breakup with her boyfriend of two years who coldly told her to her face that he couldn't keep dating her because she was too uptight--In a moment of anger and defiance, Anna decided to throw caution to the wind for one reckless night. She headed to the wildest club in Texas, determined to lose herself in the chaos. But fate had other plans. To her shock, she ran into her ex-boyfriend at the club. Desperate to save face, she made a split-second decision and approached a stranger, pretending he was her new boyfriend. What she never anticipated was the magnetic pull she would feel towards him or the fact that she'd end up going home with this mystery man. Soon enough, the real surprise hit her--this stranger wasn't just anyone; he was her new boss. What begins as a night of rebellion spirals into a whirlwind of forbidden attraction, societal pressure and hidden affairs. And now there are so many things at stake. Find out how this story unfolds.