Our marriage is nothing but something based on a sheet of paper, no more than a deal to help me grow my company." He said cold heartedly as he stared into her eyes. Denise had been forced into marriage with an arrogant billionaire CEO and he makes it clear to her that to him, the marriage was only a deal to fetch him money. Since it would help her family too, she married him but little did they expect that love would intervene and make a change to their story.
DENISE
A single droplet of tears rolled down my face as I stood in front of a floor length mirror.
Some people believe one's wedding day to be the happiest day of their life but I never imagined mine to ever be like this.
There was nothing I could do as I watched in silence while my mother prepared me for the man they believed was the perfect husband for me.
They all acted like it was nothing strange and the calm expression on my parents' face whenever we talked about it sickened me. How could they just give me away like that?
It didn't matter how I felt about such marriage as long as it was what they wanted and they tried to convince me that he was the perfect man for me.
"Is that a tear I see?" Her brows arched as she questioned and I looked away. I heard her sigh in disappointment. "Denise, how many times do I have to tell you that he is the perfect man for you? And not only for you but any woman out there! Do you know the gravity of what he has done? He has chosen to help our family without us paying him back a penny!"
I scoffed a laugh, unable to hold it back even if I wanted to. Her words were the funniest thing I had heard all day.
He wasn't asking for a penny? It would have been better off if he requested for his money back but what he was taking was more than money. He was taking me!
"Mother, does he even have to ask for a penny? He is going to marry me, your only daughter, aren't you feeling concerned at all?" My voice almost wavered as I spoke but I managed to keep myself from bursting into tears.
She shook her head as if disappointed in my words. "Do you see it as paying the price of what he did by marrying him? No, you are not paying any price here but instead, you are even taking more from him!
"You should be the happiest one here today because if anything, you are going from a bankrupt family like us into a prestigious family like the Benjamin's." She said with a proud smile in her eyes.
Silence took over me once again and I just watched her tighten my silver white wedding dress around my back.
Why argue? I said to myself, when it is all you have been doing since the day you found out about this forced marriage but still no luck in breaking it apart?
I had been profusely against it but neither she nor my dad cared, nobody gave a damn about my own feelings and I eventually stopped trying when I realized I had no say in the matter. In my own marriage.
The man I was meant to marry didn't know but my family had lied to him about our wealth status. He knew of course since he wasn't stupid that we were not rich but he didn't know that we were bankrupt.
Just so they could get what they wanted, they lied to him to win a partnership and gave me away as well.
I felt a hand cup my face and I snapped out of my thoughts. Turning to the side, my eyes met with my mother's set of deep blue and she bore into me. "I don't know the kind of thoughts that are running around in that little head of yours but you are going to get through with this marriage and be a wonderful wife to him.
"You may try to make us believe that we are wrongfully giving you away but I know that you also know the lot of benefits that come to you directly by just being his wife so you might as well drop the act and put an end to this pity party. I nor your father will never let you destroy what we worked so hard to get."
Her eyes darkened as she spat out the rest of her mind. "A woman's duty to her husband is to please him properly in bed and I want you to have it at the back of your mind that whenever he calls for you, you must run to him and climb into his bed on his order."
Her words made my stomach churn and I felt as if I was about to hurl. The thoughts alone had haunted me and now she had coldly thrown the words directly at my face.
There was a deep message in the way she gripped my face, the way her eyes bore into mine, the sternness in her gaze and voice and the confidence in her stance.
A message that read out loudly that she didn't care about what I had to say about the topic and there was nothing I could do to stop the marriage.
She would only do what she saw fit for herself and my father, irrelevant of what I thought about it.
But I would still speak my mind even though her gaze held a knife to my throat. "I will not be a bed warmer to him, mother. I am a woman and he should show me respect as fit. What? A woman's duty to her husband is to please him properly in bed? No, that's a sex slave's job. And I will only treat him as a husband if he treats me as a wife."
Tears pricked at my eyes as I spoke but I managed to keep them from pouring down my face.
I controlled my voice from shaking and also kept it at a neutral tune to avoid stirring up trouble with my mother because the last thing I needed on such a devastating day was her getting angry at me and becoming aggressive as she always did.
She sneered. "You can run your mouth all day about this topic but I care less about that. No, I don't care at all. You must do whatever it takes to keep this marriage from falling apart, you must please him in every way.
"I don't care about what you think of it, call it whatever you want, sex slave, bed warmer, anything at all, but you must do every and anything he asks for. If he comes to us with the slightest complaint about you or your attitude towards him, you should already know what will come next and you are not going to like it."
I felt her gaze burn me as I looked into her eyes, bound by the fire, unable to break away.
She released her grip from my face. "Fix your make up and cover every single trace of tears." She said as she started towards the door.
As much as I tried, my tears still broke free and trailed down my face. I fought back the urge to reply, every time she became like this, I always found it hard to believe that she was my own mother.
Her words stabbed my chest so painfully that I thought I would bleed out.
"I don't want my own daughter walking down the aisle looking like a depressed woman." She said sharply before slamming the door behind her.
I closed my eyes to regain my thoughts before adjusting my make up. The thought of absconding came to me but running away was no issue, when they would find me, I would be in big trouble.
But could I really survive with such marriage? Why should I have my own fate decided for me?
A gentle knock called me out of my thoughts as I redid my makeup and I already knew who it was.
I applied the last layer of powder on my face and dropped the brush back on the table. So this was it, no going back now.
Walking towards the door, I took the handle in my hand and opened the door. My own father stared at me with emptiness in his gaze but I knew my mother must have filled him in on our not so friendly discussion.
He fixed my veil on my head without saying a word then stretched his hand for me to take. "It's time to walk you down the aisle." He uttered sternly.
I fidgeted next to him as I took his hand and he tightened his grip making me bite down on my lower lip.
"I heard about your shenanigan from your mother, do you want me to handle the situation?" His voice was cold and caused chills to run down my spine.
I immediately shook my head, my hand subconsciously wrapped around myself, the images of the scars on me depicting in my head.
"Good, you better be on your best or you will weep your way into his home. Put on a big smile, bigger than the entire hall, brighter than the sun itself or else."
The only important thing to him here was the benefit he would gain from selling me off to another man and he didn't care about what fate lay ahead for me in the hands of this man.
I swallowed hard trying to hide my fear. "Yes father..."
"It is time."
"Have you ever found yourself in a complicated situation, have you ever been sold by your family, rejected by your mates for another woman, or worse, discovered you are an abomination to the world that needs to be eradicated?" I doubt that. ........ The royal family issued a notice seeking a breeder for their twin sons, rumored to be Lycan terrorists known for their cruelty and abuse towards women. Due to these terrifying rumors, many women refused to apply for the position or volunteer themselves, but unfortunately, Vespera got unlucky. She was sold to the royal family as the breeder for the twins, couldn't endure their level of mistreatment and ran away with her unborn child. But now, they were already obsessed with her and were willing to do everything, whatever it would take to have her back, but aren't they too late? On the run, she bumps into a second-chance mate, who becomes addicted to her, and discovers a hidden truth about her name and identity, leading her down to a path she never thought existed.
"Our marriage is nothing but something based on a sheet of paper, no more than a deal to help me grow my company." He said cold heartedly as he stared into her eyes. Denise had been forced into marriage with an arrogant billionaire CEO and he makes it clear to her that to him, the marriage was only a deal to fetch him money. Since it would help her family too, she married him but little did they expect that love would intervene and make a change to their story.
Two years ago, Ricky found himself coerced into marrying Emma to protect the woman he cherished. From Ricky's perspective, Emma was despicable, resorting to underhanded schemes to ensure their marriage. He maintained a distant and cold attitude toward her, reserving his warmth for another. Yet, Emma remained wholeheartedly dedicated to Ricky for more than ten years. As she grew weary and considered relinquishing her efforts, Ricky was seized by a sudden fear. Only when Emma's life teetered on the edge, pregnant with Ricky's child, did he recognize-the love of his life had always been Emma.
The day Raina gave birth should have been the happiest of her life. Instead, it became her worst nightmare. Moments after delivering their twins, Alexander shattered her heart-divorcing her and forcing her to sign away custody of their son, Liam. With nothing but betrayal and heartbreak to her name, Raina disappeared, raising their daughter, Ava, on her own.Years later, fate comes knocking when Liam falls gravely ill. Desperate to save his son, Alexander is forced to seek out the one person he once cast aside. Alexander finds himself face to face with the woman he underestimated, pleading for a second chance-not just for himself, but for their son. But Raina is no longer the same broken woman who once loved him.No longer the woman he left behind. She has carved out a new life-one built on strength, wealth, and a long-buried legacy she expected to uncover.Raina has spent years learning to live without him.The question is... Will she risk reopening old wounds to save the son she never got to love? or has Alexander lost her forever?
Betrayed by her mate and sister on the eve of her wedding, Makenna was handed to the ruthless Lycan Princes as a lover, her indifferent father ignoring her plight. Determined to escape and seek revenge, she captured the interest of the three Lycan princes, who desired her exclusively amid many admirers. This complicated her plans, trapping her and making her a rival to the future Lycan queen. Entwined in jealousy and vindictiveness, could Makenna achieve her vengeance in the intricate dance with the three princes?
Janice, the long-forgotten legitimate heiress, made her way back to her family, pouring her heart into winning their hearts. Yet, she had to relinquish her very identity, her academic credentials, and her creative works to her foster sister. In return for her sacrifices, she found no warmth, only deeper neglect. Resolute, Janice vowed to cut off all emotional bonds. Transformed, she now stood as a master of martial arts, adept in eight languages, an esteemed medical expert, and a celebrated designer. With newfound resolve, she declared, "From this day forward, no one in this family shall cross me."
For ten years, Daniela showered her ex-husband with unwavering devotion, only to discover she was just his biggest joke. Feeling humiliated yet determined, she finally divorced him. Three months later, Daniela returned in grand style. She was now the hidden CEO of a leading brand, a sought-after designer, and a wealthy mining mogul—her success unveiled at her triumphant comeback. Her ex-husband’s entire family rushed over, desperate to beg for forgiveness and plead for another chance. Yet Daniela, now cherished by the famed Mr. Phillips, regarded them with icy disdain. "I’m out of your league."
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.”