"You still smell the same… You must like this cologne that much." Alex whispered behind her ear, his warm breath sending an involuntary shiver down her spine. "You don’t remember me," he murmurs, his fingers tilting her chin until their eyes locked. "But I never forgot you." Ariel’s breath hitches. His touch is hauntingly familiar. Then he leans in again, his voice a dark whisper. "I assumed only I could make you feel this way." Ariel Richmond’s life was shattered the night she was betrayed. Drugged by her fiancé and sister, she woke up to a reality she had never chosen—humiliated, abandoned, and unknowingly carrying the child of a stranger. Fleeing to Spain, she built a new life, determined to leave the past behind. Alexander Lucas never forgot her. The ruthless billionaire, known for his cold detachment, spent years searching for the woman who vanished after their one fateful night. Fate brings them back together in the cruelest way possible—Ariel, desperate to save her son, enters a contract marriage with Johny Lucas… only to discover that his stepbrother is Alexander. Now, trapped between the man who unknowingly changed her life and the husband she never wanted, Ariel must navigate a tangled web of secrets, power, and a past that refuses to stay buried.
View More“How dare you speak to me like that?' The woman lashed out at Ariel.
“Madam, don't get the wrong impression, I was only following the rules given to us.” Ariel smile, trying her possible best to hide her fear. “I'm going to test these heels, and there's nothing you will do about it!” The woman tried to poke Ariel with the heels of the stiletto. "Ma'am." Ariel held onto the shoes. "You can't put them on." “What's happening here?” A voice came from behind the scene. A slender model-like figure appeared. Her pink blazers spoke well of her position. “Are you the manager here?” The woman asked in a furious tone. "Where is the manager?" “Yes ma'am, Good day, what's the problem?” The boss asked with a bright and delightful smile. “i want to make a purchase but your rude worker won't let me test them out! “Madam, I was only trying to follow-” “You have no right to speak when a customer is in the middle of her complaint!” The boss cut her off, giving Ariel a deadly glare, her tone sharp and cautious. She turned her attention to the customer. “Madam, I am so sorry for any inconvenience.” Ariel's boss lamented as she bowed her head for the woman. The woman glared at Ariel and she dropped the shoes noisily. "I'm not buying, good day." She stormed out of the store. Amongst the crowd was a young man standing at approximately 6’2 tall, his ocean blue eyes, and his lustrous black trimmed hair, spoke well of him. His two huge bodyguards beside him. All these while, He had his eyes on Ariel who was been humiliated publicly for something she had no fault in. “Meet me in my office now, you this useless stinky thing!” Ariel's boss spatted as she strode out of the scene. Her tone was huffy and commanding. The man was still there; he didn't move an inch. He scanned Ariel with his emotionless eyes as he was mesmerized by Ariel's beauty “Hmmm…….this beauty should not be treated like trash.” He murmured to himself. He then signaled one of his bodyguards and whispered in his ear. “Give her my card.” He commanded. As the guard approached her, She wheeled her head up to see the huge masculinity in front of her. “Reach out if you want a life-changing opportunity, you have four days to think it through.” The bodyguard said and left a confused Ariel who couldn't stop staring at him. Ariel tucked the card away and went up to her boss' office. Would she ever have peace in the store? Her boss disliked her, any little chance to punish her, she won't let it slide. Each step she took reminded her of how loathsome her boss was. "Knock knock." Ariel summoned up courage. “Come in,” Ariel's boss voiced from the inside. Ariel entered and stood at her boss's table. Her hands at her back as she folded them tightly as if she was about to receive a death sentence. Her boss stared at her silently without uttering a word. “My sincere apolo—” “Do not speak!” Her boss was pissed. "We lost a valuable customer." "Ma—" Ariel's statement was cut short in her throat as her boss shushed her up. Leaving her no room for continuation. “Ariel…..I have warned you several times not to get on my nerves. Do you not want this job anymore?” Her boss asked. Her tone was calm yet cautious. “Ma'am please forgive me, it won't happen again.” Ariel pleaded. Desperately praying silently for her boss's mercy. “Don't beg me Ariel, you chased one of our best customers, how do you want to make it up to the loss you've caused my store!?” “I am—” “No paycheck this month, now get out of my office.” Ariel's intended statement was cut short in her throat as she heard her boss's decision. She stood there, not moving an inch, hoping to find any lingering favor in her boss's eyes. “Do you have gums in your ears? Leave my office, I want fresh air!?” Her boss said, glaring at her like her presence was a contagious virus. Ariel wheeled around without uttering a word. Outside was Anya who had been eavesdropping the whole time. As Ariel came out with teary eyes, Anya hugged her tightly. “It's okay…it's fine…” “How am I supposed to take care of my child if things continue like this? I have been saving up to pay for his tuition fees, but everything seems to be going wrong.” Ariel lamented as she sobbed on her friend's shoulder. “It's okay girl…I'm here for you, you're not alone in this.” Anya comforted her as she rubbed her back for ease. “Let's go, it's closing hour.” Anya said as she picked their bags from the locker. They changed into their casual outfit and left the store. Ariel got home with her last strength, hoping to dive and sink in her bed. However, her legs crumbled as she was welcomed with a more disheartening scene. Two men in the company of the caretaker had made their way into her room. "What are you doing?" She rushed to them, trying to stop them from throwing her belongings away. "Leave that! "Your rent has been overdue for two fucking years! The caretaker flung her hand away. She reeked of poverty. "You're leaving this house today." All her pleas fell on deaf ears, they kept taking out her belongings until the room was empty. The caretaker out a big lock on the door. "When you have your money, let me know.”Ariel thrashed between the two men, her heels scraping the cracked tile outside the motel as they dragged her toward the black car waiting by the curb. Her voice was hoarse now, raw from screaming, pleading and cursing.No one at the motel stopped to help, no one even looked twice at her.It was that kind of place that no one really cares about anyone.The back door was already open. They shoved her inside, her body hitting the leather seat with a thud. She lunged for the other side, but before she could even touch the handle, one of the men slid in beside her, blocking her path. The other slammed the door shut from outside and moved to the front seat ready to drive.Alexander got in last, moving calm and still composed despite all that was happening.The driver ignited the engine and then the car rolled forward.Ariel sat stiffly between Alexander and one of his men. Her hands were clenched in her lap, her chest heaving as she glared at him, her brow furrowed. “You’re kidnapping m
The tires screeched slightly as Alexander pulled out into traffic, weaving through the late-afternoon rush like a man possessed. He kept his jaw tight, and his eyes locked forward with the kind of focus that made his hands grip the wheel tighter than necessary.The streets of Vegas blurred past him— the glittering signs, some tourists, neon haze—and none of them caught his eyes. All he could care about right now, was that motel room. Room 17. Silver Pine Inn.He knew the type of place. It had no cameras, and that meant no safety.Damn her. He curses inside. She’d put herself in the worst position possible, thinking she could outrun what they were all tangled in. And yet… part of him understood. The world she ran from had nearly destroyed her. He, Johnny, had nearly destroyed her. He handled everything so bad, else she won't be running away. He slammed his palm once against the steering wheel as if trying to release the fury trapped in his chest.The car’s navigation spoke up—“In
He sat back down slowly, but his body never relaxed since the news. His mind ran at full tilt, every detail of the last seventy-two hours flashing behind his eyes like war footage.Ariel is missing, but still wouldn't just vanish like that, not now at least.Not without a reason, and Alexander knew exactly the reason. Max, she heard he's missing.He gritted his teeth.“If you’re running out of the country,” he muttered to himself, “you don’t wait around.”But Ariel hadn’t made it far. If she was planning to get to Spain, she would’ve needed her passport. She ran away from Johnny's penthouse in a rush, that… that means the passport was with him. Maybe it was locked away by Johnny. He's smart enough to predict she might do something exactly like this, down the line.So unless she has another passport—and she doesn’t—she’s grounded.She's still here in Vegas .That realization snapped everything into place.She couldn’t leave the country, not through any legal means. Which meant she wa
The day rolled on like any other would have, at least on the surface.Luis manned his usual post in the front corridor of the East Wing nodding at suits as they came in and out, his eyes scanning the screens behind the reception desk.He kept his face stern and unreadable, but inside, his nerves were coiled and his mind ticking off every passing hour like a timing-bomb.He needed time.Having checked the routines already, he knew Miguel wouldn’t be on shift in the surveillance control room until after lunch, so that meant after lunch was his window. Luis knew better than to act early, patience was the key that had kept him alive all these years, and today wouldn’t be any different.So, till then, he had to play his part, and play it well. Soon, the lunch bell hit, and staff flooded the cafeteria at once. Luis didn’t eat, he couldn't really, not with what was on the line. Instead, he wandered past the breakroom, pretending to scroll on his phone.Through the window, he spotted Migue
Kelvin adjusted the collar of his jacket as he stepped out of the elevator and moved with a swift and steady composure.The weight of what he was about to say clung to his shoulders like lead. This wouldn’t be a casual meeting with Elena, it could go either very good or very bad, depending on what says. He stepped out of the hotel doors and waved down a taxi without much effort. “Crimson Bar.”He said leaning towards the window of the cab. The driver nodded once and Kelvin stepped in. They drove through streets he was growing too familiar with over his stay here in Spain. He took a moment to admire some wonderful buildings and monuments, maybe to cool off his jumbled mind for a while. They cab came to stop outside Crimson Bar just as the sun dipped behind the buildings. A part of him hoped Elena might not show—but she did.She always did.She was already inside, seated in the same booth as before, her fingers dancing nervously around the rim of her glass. When she saw him, she sat
Kevin's cab came to a stop just outside Anya’s apartment. He passed the driver some cash and slipped out of the car. He didn’t want to come.Every instinct told him to disappear quietly, to board the next flight back to Vegas and deal with everything from the safety of distance. But the guilt clung like smoke, and some part of him at least owed her this. The knock on her apartment door was tentative, almost reluctant.When it swung open and Anya stood there, her hair was unkept and a mess to be fair, she had dark circles under her eyes, Kelvin immediately knew this wouldn’t go well.“Hello Anya.” Kelvin started, his voice shaky. Her brows pinched. “What do you want?”“I just—can I come in for a second?”“Why?” Her voice cracked. “You have five seconds to tell me what you want before I slam this door in your face.”He swallowed. “I’m leaving the country.”The door didn’t slam, but her expression shattered.“You’re what?” she asked, her tone laced with disbelief. “I need to go to Ve
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