ANGELTrue to his words, Alex returned an hour later. At this time, I'd already taken my bath and worn back my clothes.I got up the moment he walked into the house and furrowed my brows when I saw him with plastic bags, "You bought something for me?"He scoffed, "Is that why you seem so excited? Well, our deal states that you have to do whatever I ask and right now, I want you to cook for me."My eyes widened in surprise, "Cook?""Why do you seem so surprised?" He asked. "Were you hoping I'd ask you to do something else or you don't know how to cook?"I smiled and took the bags from him, "I learned a little, so I can cook. But the answer is yes. I was hoping you'd ask me to do something else.""And what might that be?" He asked.I took in a deep breath, walked closer to him and stole a quick kiss.His eyes showed surprise as he said, "If I didn't know better, I'd have said that you have a crush on me. Or do you?"I chuckled, "Of course not, I do not have such luxury. I just don't wan
ANGEL I raised my hand immediately to return the slap Miss Long's legs gave me but paused midair. I had no idea who she was or why she slapped me. I had too many cockroaches in my cupboard and suddenly found myself afraid of shooting myself in the foot. I had to find out what was going on before trying to do anything to her. Alex who had heard Miss Long leg's voice seemed to have recognized it and quickly met us at the door, while I put my hand down. "What the hell are you doing here?" He angrily asked her. "Are you stalking me?" "Baby, is this the reason why you've been avoiding me?" She asked, her tone had become calm. "What part of 'I don't want you in my life anymore' don't you understand?" Alex shot back and I scoffed. I could not believe she had slapped me for such a stupid reason. I raised my hand to quickly return the slap so I could give them their privacy afterward. It would have been the perfect slap if Alex had not held my hand. "What do you think you are
THREE YEARS LATER ANGEL Today marked my one-year anniversary with my husband. I got dressed in a sexy blue gown, ordered a nice cake, and decorated the house. Afterward, I waited patiently for him. Our marriage hadn't done so well the past few months, but I was determined to change that. I sat with the cake, waiting for him to come home, but he didn't. At first, it was meant to be a surprise, but since the clock was ticking, I decided to call him. I dialed his number repeatedly, but he did not pick up my call. "Is he okay?" I wondered. I sent him a text, "Please call me, Finn. It's very important." However, my text was not replied to. Nevertheless, I continued to wait for him until I finally fell asleep. When I opened my eyes, it was two in the morning and he wasn't back. I balled my fists as a surge of anger drove through me. "How dare he stand me up?" In the end, I chuckled bitterly, "It's all your fault, Angel. Sitting down here like a jobless person and wait
ANGEL After Finn left, I ignored him and began to prepare myself to go to work the next day. The following morning, I immediately got ready, got dressed as well, and waited for him to get back because I knew he was eventually going to leave for the company. As usual, he came home late and I didn't say a word about it. After he got dressed and wanted to leave, he noticed that I was dressed up to leave as well and asked, "Where are you heading to?" "Isn't it obvious? I'm going to my company," I replied. "What for?" He asked. I scoffed, "Come on, Finn, we've been over this. I own 60% shares in that company, if I don't work now, when would I?" "How about never?" he replied. "Listen, Angel, I've been in that company almost all my life, and I've worked my butt off to get it to the level it is today. There is no space for you in that company." I folded my arms, "And why is that?" "Well, because you have no experience," he replied. "What do you know about working in a compan
ANGEL If I ever had any doubt about divorcing Finn, if I needed anything else to make me convinced that a man like him did not deserve to be anywhere close to me, this was more than enough proof. Naturally, I ought to have been hurt since this man was the man I had married, but instead, I felt relieved. I knew that even if my mom were present and could see what was going on, she would be proud of me for getting rid of such a scumbag. After staring at me for a while, Tracy turned around, picked up her bag, and began to walk out. "Hold on," I said calling her back. "Stay! Aren't you two best friends? Or are you just his whore?" "You will speak to her with respect," Finn angrily yelled at me. "You do not have the right to say anything here or to complain about our relationship." "Yes!" Tracy concurred. "Do you know how long Finn and I have been in love with each other? We have been together from childhood; you are the third person here; you are the whore, the one who tried t
ANGEL As I walked away from the company and got into my car, I thought about how Finn wanted to get rid of me and it made me remember my Mom.She had been so sick but the doctors had been unable to find out what was wrong with her and when I first met her, she seemed a little healthy, although she admitted to me that she had been battling ill health. Her sickness worsened after I came and she ended up dying after I got married to Finn."Could it be that my mom was killed?"I trusted Finn because of how much he cried, but what if he was the one who killed my Mom? I recalled the short moment we spent together and how amazing it had been. I eventually shook the thought off my head, "No, do not dwell on that, Angel. Finn might be a scumbag, but what if he genuinely considered her his Mom?"I could not accuse him without evidence, so I decided to focus on the task at hand. I drove my car to the company I needed to sign a contract with. "Swift Industries."I stared at the skyscraper an
ASHTON I just got back in the city and the wedding I had attended two weeks ago was still fresh in my mind. I could still remember Jade, and how she looked in a white dress. She was the most beautiful bride I had ever seen and her smile...I had never seen her smile so happily. Her three kids looked so happy too and even her husband, Max Anderson, was undoubtedly happy. As I watched them say their vows to each other, they looked perfect, perfect for each other. There was a nagging feeling in my heart, a strong pain, but I knew it was necessary. It was the only way I could move on. Max was a lucky man, I just hope he knew. After their wedding, Jade had been so happy to see me. Max shook hands with me and thanked me for all the good things I had done for Jade. At that point I realized that he wasn't as bad as I had thought, he was a little bit responsible. On her part, Jade thanked me profusely. As I bid goodbye to them, she hugged me and I could see that her eyes we
Just as Alex's lips touched Angel's, a female voice yelled, "Alex!" He immediately moved away, while Angel lowered her face, feeling embarrassed. The girl who was short, and dressed in expensive designer outfits, walked sexily into the office and glared at Angel before turning to Alex, "Who is this bitch? Are you cheating on me?" "Talk about deja vu," Angel thought as she recalled the last time she had been in a house with Alex, three years ago and a girl had showed up and talked down on her. "The only difference is the absence of a hard slap," she told herself. Alex asked the short girl, "How dare you yell in my office? Who the hell do you think you are?" The girl gasped, "Alex!" However, he held her hand, dragged her out of the office and pushed her out, shutting the door. Afterward, he walked back to Angel and said, "I'm sorry.... I...." "No need, there is no need to explain," Angel cut him off. "Alex... well...the thing is, I came to this company to see the CEO b
TROY After two years, I was back in the Scandinavia, the place that took everything from me. I had rented the whole beach for the evening because I wanted to be alone. I stood by my once favorite beach in Oslo and closed my eyes as memories from the past flooded my mind; Her beautiful smile, and the warmth of her body, pressed against mine as we stared at the stars together. Aislinn was everything to me until she was snatched away so cruelly. I opened my eyes and stared at the water, hoping its calmness would soothe my turbulent heart. All of a sudden, something caught my attention. Floating and approaching from a distance, I tried to make out what it was. I took a few steps closer, dipping my legs into the water. I gasped when I realized it was a person; a woman, and judging by the way she looked, I knew she was dead. I turned and wanted to leave but a question struck my mind; what if she wasn't dead? What if Aislinn was in a similar situation and needed help? Would I have
MARIANNE If it weren't for the date and time stamp on the video, I would have thought Paula was lying to me. As I watched the video, everything began to piece together in my head. I recalled when Tony had first approached me for a relationship. I had refused his advances, especially since I had just clocked eighteen, but Britney kept encouraging me to give him a chance, claiming we were perfect for each other and would be together forever. Back then, I was amazed at how Tony and I had the same tastes, interests, and even fashion sense. I believed he was truly destined for me. Only after Paula's revelation did I realize that Britney had planted him in my life and told him about my likes and dislikes. No wonder he seemed so perfect in my eyes and I ended up falling in love with him. They deceived me for so long and plotted my downfall. The false testimonies from my secretary and Tony's sister finally made more sense to me. I felt so much anger surge within me and a deep yearn
MARIANNE Everything felt like a dream. Just like that, I had been condemned for something I never did. My only crime was being too kind and trusting the wrong people. As I was being transported by ship along with a few other prisoners, the judge's words echoed in my ears, "This court finds the accused; Mrs. Tony, guilty of first-degree murder and sentences her to life imprisonment with hard labor in the Norwegian Island Prison. I recalled the triumphant look on Britney's face as I was being taken away and could not understand what I ever did wrong to her. When I met her so many years ago, I had just finished high school. Being the daughter of the richest man in the city, I lived in affluence as opposed to her who was struggling to get by. I saw her working as a waiter at a party and took her side when a guest treated her disrespectfully. We got close from that night and I got to find out that she had no family. She was an orphan who had to work from a very young age just to
MARIANNE I sighed in relief as I thanked Britney repeatedly. "There's no need to thank me," she expressed. "You are my best friend and I will do anything for you." The next morning, just as my lawyer had promised, I was arraigned before a judge. I had been restless throughout the night as it was my first time being in a cell. I tried not to cry because I knew it wouldn't help my situation. I convinced myself that I was just unfortunate. I never should have married Tony. After the judge questioned me, I took a plea of not guilty. My attorney didn't seem pleased by that but I didn't care. No one was going to make me admit to something I never did. Since it was my first appearance, I expected that I would be granted bail and allowed to show up in court from the comfort of my home during the preliminary hearings. I planned to get the best lawyer for myself once I was released on bail and got access to my phone. However, nothing like that happened. The judge allowed a ten minut
MARIANNE At the police station, I was cuffed and kept in a dimly lit room with four chairs, one table, and a window. I was exhausted and my eyes were puffy from crying. Even though Tony cheated on me, he was the love of my life and I could not believe he was no more. In a flash, I had become a widow; the youngest I knew because I had just turned twenty, a month ago. The three policemen sat in front of me, questioning me as though I were a common criminal. "Don't you know who I am?" I asked. "I own foundations, charity organizations, and free hospitals. I help people, not hurt them. No matter what, I could never murder a man I loved with my life." "Stop beating around the bush and answer the damn question!" One of the policemen yelled at me, slapping his palms on the table. I didn't have to be a police officer or a lawyer to know that what the men were doing was not standard procedure. They were biased toward me and I had no idea why. "I won't speak any more until my lawye
MARIANNE I stepped on my brake pedal and gave myself a minute to catch my breath. My hands were shivering and I felt chilled to the bone. I still could not believe what I had just seen. I opened my phone and watched for the umpteenth time, the pornographic video that had been sent to me anonymously. My husband of almost two years was in bed, having sex with a woman that wasn't me. His face was revealed in the video, while hers was concealed. The only thing I could make of the woman was her slender wrist and the gold bracelet around it. It seemed oddly familiar but I could not remember where I had seen it. For two years, I believed my marriage was the best in the world because my husband, Tony adored me and worshipped the ground I walked on. I was the richest woman in the city and my company, RAY INDUSTRIES was the number one in the country, yet, my happiest moments were the ones spent with my husband. That was how much I loved him. How could he betray my trust? Hands still
SYNOPSIS "My husband walks about freely, lavishing my fortune, with his mistress by his side, while I am condemned to spend the rest of my life in an island prison for his death. If this is my fate, I will fight it until my last breath."~~~ MARIANNE Betrayed by the ones she trusted most, Marianne finds herself convicted for a crime she did not commit. In a desperate attempt to change her new reality, she ends up at the brink of death but gets a second chance in Troy; An unusually sexy billionaire willing to place the world at her feet. Marianne swears she is done with men and love, and her life's goal is revenge against those who wronged her. But why does her heart race uncontrollably at the sound of his voice? ***His hands reached out, framing my face as his fingers caressed my lips. I closed my eyes when he cupped my breasts and his lips settled on the crook of my neck, lavishing it with kisses until I was breathless and wet beyond control. "Troy," I panted and my eyes flung
In the morning, Ethan woke Cila up from his bed and calmly asked her to leave his bedroom and stay away from it. As she walked out of the room, she stood by the door, staring at Ethan who was watching her leave. She wished she could turn back the hands of time. If she hadn’t tried to take Laura’s place and planned for Laura to catch them in the act, Ethan would still be meeting her behind Laura’s back. She wouldn’t feel so alone. She would still have him—if only she hadn’t been so greedy for more. She had no clue Ethan was secretly seeing Laura again. He came home early, spent most of his free time with her. Little did she know, Ethan had been stealing moments with Laura during their lunch breaks, meeting at the small apartment he had rented temporarily for her. The joy of those stolen hours made time fly for them, but each day weighed heavier on Ethan’s heart. He kept counting down the days, marking them on his calendar, waiting for the moment he could bring Laura back home
"Shh......," Byron shushed Laura as he moved closer to her, cupping her face and attempting to kiss her once more. This time, however, he was met with a sharp slap across his face. The sting of it made him pause, his hand instinctively reaching for his cheek as he glared at her. "So, you’d rather sit here, pining away for a man who’s off fucking your best friend, instead of giving me a chance to make you happy?" he spat, his voice dripping with bitterness. "You know what, Laura? You deserve everything that’s happening to you. You’re foolish, indecisive, and weak. You deserve to be ditched by your husband and betrayed by your so-called best friend." The words cut through Laura like a blade, each one more painful than the last. Byron stormed out, slamming the door behind him. Laura remained standing, her legs suddenly too weak to hold her up. She sank to the floor, the weight of his words pressing down on her. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she sobbed uncontrollably. "Do I reall