"A million dollars," he said, his voice flat, like he was negotiating over a car, not a person. Astrid shook her head, opening her mouth to protest, but he cut her off. "Let's make it two then," he offered. She stared at him, stunned, wondering if he'd lost his mind. "Mr. Voss..." "Final offer. Five million," he said, his gaze steady, unyielding. Astrid took a deep breath, her heart pounding. "Fine. I'll be your wife." *** When Astrid Blythe, a rising event planner, runs into her ex, Adrian Voss, at his engagement party, she's shocked to discover that his fiancée is missing. What starts as a strange encounter quickly spirals into something even more surreal when Adrian offers Astrid a proposal of his own: marry him in a cold, calculated, no-strings-attached arrangement. Despite her better judgment, Astrid agrees to the deal. But as the line between business and desire blurs, she finds herself drawn back into Adrian's dangerous orbit-and realizes, to her horror, that she's falling again for the man she once loved...the man who had a hand in the death of their child.
~Astrid~
I moved around the room as the guests chatted and the engagement party went on. Organizing this engagement party for one of the biggest names in the tech industry was my proudest achievement this year.
The lights were dimmed just right, casting a warm glow over the elegant centerpieces and spotless glassware. Each table had delicate arrangements of ivory roses, just as the bride had requested in her very specific notes. It was flawless.
After working as an event planner for the last two years, I knew this party could finally put my name on the map. I'd been on the grind, taking small gigs, dealing with difficult clients, and working late nights just to prove myself.
And now, here I was, overseeing an engagement party that every guest seemed to be talking about. The compliments from the guests filled me with pride-this was exactly the kind of buzz I needed. I glanced around, making sure everything was in place. Everything looked perfect.
"Ash," a voice snapped me out of my thoughts. My assistant, Nora, was approaching me in quick strides. Her usually calm expression was twisted with worry, her brows furrowed as she wrung her hands. I had hired Nora because she was unshakable under pressure, so seeing her like this instantly set off alarm bells in my mind.
"What's it?" I asked, surprised at how steady my voice sounded, even as dread began to stir in my chest. I'd worked tirelessly over the past three months to make sure this party was perfect.
"The bride is missing," she whispered, glancing over her shoulder to make sure no one could hear. I stared at her, feeling a cold wave of shock rippled through me. My heart skipped a beat, and my stomach twisted.
"What do you mean, the bride is missing? This is her engagement party," I hissed, keeping my voice low but sharp. Nora shook her head, her face pale as she looked back at me, clearly at a loss.
"We've been trying to reach her for the last two hours, but her phone isn't connecting. The groom is getting worried," she said, biting her lip. The thought of a panicked groom sent another shiver of anxiety through me. This was supposed to be the night they celebrated their future together-how could the bride not be here?
I forced a smile at a few guests who passed by, offering polite nods and murmuring greetings as if everything was under control.
"Where's the groom?" I asked Nora, gripping the skirt of my dress so I could walk faster, my mind racing through possible explanations. Maybe she'd had some kind of emergency. Maybe she was just running late.
"He's in the second hall," Nora said, her voice tinged with uncertainty. She sped up to keep pace with me as we made our way through the main ballroom and toward the secondary, smaller hall we hadn't used tonight.
I hadn't even met the groom. The whole arrangement had been unusual from the start.
A blonde woman named Martha had contacted me, introducing herself as the groom's secretary. She wanted a lavish engagement party for her boss and his fiancée, but she'd been oddly tight-lipped about the details.
I didn't know anything about the bride or groom except that the groom was a high-profile executive for Zenith Crypt, one of the biggest tech and security companies in the country.
The secrecy around it had made planning even harder, but the paycheck was good, and the opportunity was even better.
We reached the door to the smaller, unused hall, and Nora hesitated, fidgeting with the edge of her sleeve.
"Mr. Voss asked to be alone," she said, a note of reluctance in her voice. I could see the conflict in her eyes.
"Nora, I need to talk to him. He might know where his fiancée is," I replied. I wasn't about to walk away without getting some answers. She bit her lip again, her usual calm facade cracking under the pressure, and I felt my own nerves brimming.
I took a deep breath, nodded, and turned the knob. The door creaked as it opened, and I stepped inside. The room was dim, hazy, and smelled faintly of dust and fresh paint-a far cry from the polished elegance of the main hall.
"Mr. Voss?" I called softly, my voice barely more than a whisper. Every instinct told me that I shouldn't be here, that I was trespassing into something private, something dangerous.
But I had to see him; I had to understand what was going on. I took another cautious step forward, my heels sinking slightly into the thin layer of dust coating the floor.
A low, angry voice came from my left, stopping me in my tracks.
"What do you mean, you don't know where she is?" The voice was oddly familiar, sending a chill down my spine. I felt my pulse quicken, prickling the hair at the back of my neck.
I stayed still, listening. He continued, his tone cold and deadly calm.
"If your daughter isn't here in twenty minutes, you know exactly what will happen to your company." There was a dark edge to his words, an unspoken threat that made my skin crawl.
What kind of man was he to speak like that, especially on a night that was supposed to be a celebration?
There was silence, then he spoke again, his voice even softer, but somehow sharper. "What we had, Xavier, was a deal. Deals aren't supposed to be canceled at the last minute." His words were laced with malice, the kind of malice that leaves a bitter taste in the air.
A deal? Was this engagement nothing more than a business arrangement?
A sickening realization began to dawn on me. The guests, the decorations, the band-all of it was just a facade.
This wasn't a celebration of love; it was a transaction, a merger, a deal made under false pretenses. My stomach twisted at the thought, and I took a shaky step back, trying to process what I'd just overheard.
I was a romantic by heart and derived joy in organizing events like this and seeing the couples so in love. But this?
As I moved, my foot hit something hard-a plastic container left on the floor. It toppled over with a loud clatter, and I froze, my eyes widening in horror.
"Who's there?" he demanded, his voice sharp. Panic flooded through me as I considered my options.
I could run, but that would only draw attention. Or I could stay here, hoping he'd believe I hadn't heard anything important. My mind raced, but before I could decide, the door in front of me creaked open.
I forced a polite smile, every muscle in my body tense, as I looked up. And then, my breath caught in my throat.
It was Adrian.
My heart dropped, and for a moment, I couldn't believe what I was seeing.
His jaw was set, his brown eyes narrowed as he took me in, recognizing me just as quickly as I recognized him.
Memories flashed through my mind-the late-night arguments, the whispered promises, the painful end that had left us both broken.
"Adrian?" I whispered, barely able to believe what I was seeing.
There was no mistaking it. The groom, the man I'd been planning this entire engagement party for, was my ex.
"Crawl to me, Jo," his voice was a low, dangerous command. I crossed my arms, glaring at him, trying to ignore the pulse of my blood and the heat pooling between my legs. "Make me," I shot back. His smirk was the only warning I got. I knew I was in deep trouble. --- Joan Madison has always despised Aaron Thompson, her best friend's arrogant, insufferable brother. The feeling was mutual-until it wasn't. A vacation meant to be a getaway with her friend Rhoda takes a sharp turn when Joan finds herself tangled in a steamy, reckless encounter with the one man she swore she'd never want. What should've been a fleeting mistake becomes something far more dangerous as Aaron refuses to let her go-and his hunger for her only deepens. Jo's trapped between desire and defiance, but one thing is clear: this game they've started could burn them both.
"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.
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. .
Charlee was left at the altar and became a laughingstock. She tried to keep her head high, but ultimately lost it when she received a sex tape of her fiance and her half-sister. Devastated, she ended up spending a wild night with a hot stranger. It was supposed to be one-time thing, but he kept popping up, helping her with projects and revenge, all while flirting with her constantly. Charlee soon realized that it was nice having him around, until her ex suddenly appeared at her door, begging for another chance. Her tycoon lover asked, “Who will you choose? Think carefully before you answer.”
For two years, Ashton had poured his heart into his marriage, yet Emalee's heart remained cold. Despite his dedication, Emalee presented him with divorce papers. She bluntly stated she could not remain married to a man whose net worth was less than a million dollars. Ashton signed the papers, closing one chapter of his life and stepping into a new beginning. Then, Ashton revealed his secret identities: a music mogul, a medical expert, and a martial arts master—each persona impressive enough to stun the world. As Ashton’s true capabilities came to light, Emalee was overwhelmed with deep regret.
Marrying her best friend was a dream come true for Kelly, but everything truly has a limitation. Pierce is Kelly’s first love, but as his best friend, she knew well there was always another woman deep in his heart. Lexi Gilbert. The woman Pierce could never forget even if he had already been arranged to marry Kelly. *** Kelly finally realized their happy marriage of the last three years was just a beautiful dream when Pierce asked for a divorce just because Lexi returned. She could only be his best friend even if she was carrying his baby. *** Since their friendship had become a cage, Kelly chose to set him free, as well as the miserable herself. But why then, it was Pierce who became the one who refused to move on? To make matters worse, her devil stepbrother also domineeringly stepped in at the same time, asking her to be his. *** Her Prince Charming vs. Her Devil Stepbrother? How could Kelly save her heart in this battle of love and hate?
Bailey seems to be never destined to fit in, a little geeky, but under it all, a hidden beauty that so many seem to miss, but still not what her pack Alpha is looking for in a fated mate... so he is determined to reject her and make her life hell. Bailey, knowing her life will likely never be the same focuses on what she can control, her future, and heads off to study; becoming a teacher. Asher is the Beta of Autumn Valley Pack, a neighbouring pack. A broken man having suffered the loss of his mate after a rogue attack, Asher is slowly crumbling. Falling to pieces. A shadow of his former self, and not a man that anyone wants to be around anymore... Until, Autumn Valley Pack require a new teacher, and Bailey finds herself there and pushed together with the Beta. Is there a connection building or is that in their imaginations? And what will happen when Bailey's mate comes back to claim what is his?