Marco’s POV"She wasn’t behaving?" The words hit me like déjà vu—wasn’t that exactly how I used to describe Harper? Now, thinking back, it feels shallow and ridiculous."So, you took her to get hypnotized? Wiped all her memories so she could be your brainless Barbie doll?""I didn’t do anything you hadn’t already done."Joseph threw a punch. I dodged and elbowed him in the gut, sending him sprawling to the ground in a second.His pride refused to let him give up. He pulled a knife from behind and lunged at my face. I blocked it, but not without my arm getting slashed. Tearing off the bottom of my shirt, I wrapped it around my arm and got up, twisting his arm back and pinning him with my knee.Joseph lay there, panting, still struggling. I couldn’t help but punch him in the face.“D.amn it.”I rubbed my bruised jaw, unsure how to deal with the mess. Just the thought of Harper seeing me like this made me hate Joseph even more for the trouble he caused today.Whatever.I barged into the
Harper's POVThe car ride felt like it took forever, but we finally arrived at a place I knew. David and a familiar woman were waiting for me."Come inside," Elena said as she led me into a warehouse."What’s going on?""I’ll explain," Elena seemed eager to jump in, but David motioned for her to calm down before turning to me."Joseph came to us first. He told us about the group that kidnapped you last time, and then he made a deal with Marco. So, your return from France was part of their plan, but Marco didn’t know about Joseph’s engagement. Things got complicated later when Joseph’s mother found out. Marco and I initially thought Joseph had leaked the information. After Joseph met with Marco, they found out that the Moretti family had been secretly working with that same kidnapping group. Actually, most of the powerful families in the world are connected to them in some way. Breaking off the Van family engagement was a huge blow to their power in France. And all the drama between yo
Harper’s POV“Of course it hurts.” My hand had become inseparable from this box over the past few days.I had no privacy anymore, not even when sleeping or using the bathroom. The inconvenience was one thing, but the constant threat hanging over my head made everything unbearable.“Any news from Marco?”There were lots of people here I didn’t know, except for David and Elena, who I could at least trust. But lately, every time I mentioned Marco, they always avoided the topic.“He’s working on a solution.”That same line again. It made me want to scream. “You might as well just let me die at this point.”“Can you stop being so dramatic?” Elena snapped back, her frustration bringing me back to my senses.“Sorry.”She moved her lips, like she wanted to say more, but she just sat next to me and gently stroked my hair.“I shouldn’t have yelled at you. You’ve been through enough. Just hang in there, okay?”Hang in there.A cool breeze hit me in my sleep. Lately, I hadn’t been sleeping well,
Harper’s POV“What’s your condition?” Marco asked, and I could tell right away it wasn’t going to be something we could agree with.Sure enough, my stepfather gave a small smile and wrapped his arm around my mother’s waist. “My condition is that you return to the Moretti family, give up your plan. You reunite interest groups around the world, turn our business into a part of their interests and marry the person I’ve chosen for you.”He wasn’t in a rush. In fact, he even found a comfortable spot to sit, making it clear that he was giving us time to think it over."I know what you're doing. You think you can break the web of interests that politicians, big money and the Mafia have interwoven for so many years? If you let go now, you're still vested, or you'll lose everything, including Harper."What worried me most, though, was that Marco actually hesitated.“Marco!” I called out to him, trying to pull him back to his senses.He snapped out of it, but I still felt uneasy. I knew what th
David’s POVHarper's mother clutched her husband’s collar, her eyes locking onto mine, but I felt a strange sense of detachment.“You saw it yourself, didn’t you? She was killed by the bomb.”Harper’s mother let out a heart-wrenching cry. “Look! I should never have listened to you! Your business and your ambition killed my daughter!”Her eyes rolled back, and she fainted again.What a mess.Shaking my head, I waved my hand, and a group of people came over to attend to them. Most of the crime families had already been weakened by our actions, and the Moretti family was now isolated and defenseless. The battle was almost over.But there was one more thing left. I glanced into the distance, wondering if Harper was still breathing.If Harper died, Marco’s life would lose its meaning. And even if we won, it would be overshadowed by tragedy.……Three years later.At an Italian hospital.“Has that man come to visit yet?”“Who knows? That woman’s been here for three years. Who knows if he eve
Harper’s POV“Ah!”A maid burst into the room, muttering something I couldn’t understand, and when she saw me, her expression was like she had seen a ghost.“Hey, wait...” I tried to stop her to ask what was going on, but she ran out of the room so fast I didn’t have a chance.“Madam is awake!”In the hallway downstairs, the woman who had just seen me was running frantically, her dress swishing as she made her way to the butler.“What did you say?”Everyone she passed stopped and turned to look at her in shock.“Elisa must have gone mad, right?”“Did she really say the madam is awake?”“No way, right?”“Is no one going to check?”“Why don’t you go up?”“Not me, I don’t dare.”A buzz of chatter filled the hallway as the servants speculated. The butler, hearing the commotion, peeked out, frowning. “What are you all doing?”Elisa, still catching her breath, grabbed the butler’s arm. “Sir, the madam is awake!”The butler froze for a second before letting out a confused chuckle. “Don’t jok
Harper's POV“Please wait in the room for a moment. I’ve cleared the second floor, so only Marco will be coming up. You’ll hear his footsteps as he approaches,” the butler said as he closed the door behind him.Marco's POVIt felt like a premonition from the heavens, and I was practically running, taking two steps at a time. But as soon as I reached the door, I hesitated, suddenly afraid to open it.“Are you in there?” I spoke softly, hoping for a sign, anything to confirm that what I’d been told wasn’t a dream. That this was real. But the room was silent. I stood stubbornly, hoping—no, believing—that if she was truly awake, she would open the door for me. I swear, in my entire life, I’d never felt like this. My heart felt like it was being suspended on a fragile thread, barely holding on. I prayed for a miracle.“Are you just going to stand there all day?”The sound of the doorknob turning came from the other side. Slowly, the door creaked open, and there she was, standing right in f
Harper's POVI couldn’t hold back a moan. The teasing, the way he was toying with me, it was unbearable, leaving me in a state of wanting more. My eyes darted down to his cr.otch—his di.ck was already a massive bulge under his pants.But he seemed unfazed, continuing to torment me.I decided to take matters into my own hands—literally. My foot found its way to his cr.otch, pressing against him. He hadn’t expected that and sucked in a sharp breath.“Harper, stop,” he warned.“I won’t.”Finally, I had found a way to mess with him, and I wasn’t going to stop. I flexed my toes lightly, feeling his c.ock twitch beneath my foot. The heat from him was almost too much, even through the fabric of his pants.I didn’t notice the dangerous glint in his eyes as I kept pushing, determined to keep teasing him.Suddenly, he leaned down and took one of my already sensitive n.ipples into his mouth, swirling his tongue over it. I glanced down, seeing the top of his head as he worked, and a wave of heat
Lydia did not sleep comfortably. In her dream, she felt that she was being watched by eyes all the time.Whether she was walking, eating or bathing, there was a pair of eyes watching her all the time, making her feel a hint of shame. Especially when she was taking a shower, those eyes were like big hands, their gaze caressing her body to the last detail, not sparing a single skin.Lydia couldn't keep her eyes open. In her dreams, she was naked, lying on the bed, feeling the gaze of those eyes. Slowly, a man came to the bed, hugged her from behind, and then caressed her while kissing her.This feeling ......Lydia squirmed restlessly, unable to tell if she was enjoying it or resisting it, as the man's body behind her grew hotter and hotter, and she knew what would happen next ......The clips of her lovemaking with Vince kept flashing into her mind: Vince's hot breath, the p.ennis stained with her bodily fluids, the shameful lovemaking positions, the shivering p.ussy, the ambiguous moa
The smell of alcohol from the hospital, the faint scent of jasmine in the room, mixed with Vince's hot breath and Lydia's scent, everything became misty.Vince's throat twitched, and he licked his lips, which were dry from the heat, and then kissed the lips of Lydia, whom he had been longing for.Lydia squirmed at first out of unease, and slowly, as Vince kissed her deeper and deeper, her breathing became unsteady, even whimpering like a cat.The two of them kissed passionately, and Lydia put both hands on Vince's shoulders, lying softly on the bed, close to him.Vince pushed her away slightly, leaving a palm's length, and quickly stripped her of her clothes.Vince reached out and pressed the curtain button. The curtains blocked out the light, and the room was dark, with only a few small lights emitting a dim, ambiguous glow. The "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door was lit up. No one would break in, and it was their time.Vince came out of the indulgent kiss in a ragged breath, looking
Lydia's eyes moistened as she recalled the events of the past on campus.God still favored her by allowing her to meet Vince again instead of letting her marry those hypocritical and lustful rich men.Although Vince is now a bit changed, tainted with some billionaire habits, such as arrogance and dominance, but his feelings for Lydia have not changed, nor has he become the kind of womanizer who indulges in one-night stands.More importantly, Lydia has always had feelings for him as well.Never mind, as long as they can live happily together, even if their second encounter is somewhat unhappy, so what?Lydia doesn't even care about that right now, she just prays that Vince will wake up.She took Vince's hand and put his hand on her face."Vince, you're a bad man. You said you'd be safe, and you broke your word.""Vince, you need to stop sleeping. I'll forgive you for what you did before if you wake up now.""If you wake up, I promise you. I will be your girlfriend, get married to you,
With Vince's handsome appearance and intelligence, even though he hid his family background, he was a hit on campus and was often courted by girls.He never wanted to fall in love because he thought women were a pain in the ass. And his mother was too strong a person, and he had a long way to go to pass the test to inherit the family fortune. During his college years, Vince was so full of how to become a stronger man that he didn't think about falling in love.Falling in love is a very troublesome thing, like a chewing gum which is being stuck on clothes. You remember what it tastes like, but it becomes a piece of junk that sticks to you.Vince is a cool guy. How can he be trapped by such a ridiculous thing?He didn't think that he would fall for this damn couple's activity. What pisses him off even more is that he was rejected!Vince, the heir of a famous American luxury hotel, a handsome man who was in the top 10 of the nation's golden bachelors at the age of 18, was rejected by a w
Lydia stayed in the room and did nothing but clean Vince's body and speak to him.Lydia wasn't sure if Vince could hear her. She was the only one in the room except Vince, and she either read Vince some interesting news or drew some strange patterns on his face to tease him. After all, Vince is at his best now. She won't have that opportunity when he wakes up."What are we talking about today?" Lydia sat next to Vince and held his hand to reminisce, "Do you remember when we were in college and you always liked to scare me when we were walking at night. You were such a badass sometimes, hiding behind big trees on purpose, waiting until I was so scared and about to cry before you showed up, or waiting for me to scream and jump into your arms."Lydia's voice is soft. The warm spring breeze blows the clean white curtains, and her thoughts are lost in the old days.Lydia and Vince's encounter was quite dramatic. When they first started college, they were at their most rebellious. In order
Lydia boarded a private plane arranged by Cecil in the early hours of the morning and finally arrived at Vince's hospital room just as the sun was rising.At the first sight of Vince, Lydia's heart skipped a beat from worry.Vince was lying in bed. His sleeping face was like an ancient Greek sculpture through time, calm and heavy. He was wearing these light gray pajamas, his lips were white and bloodless, adding a sense of brokenness to his cold face.He had various metal sensors strapped to his hands and arms, connected to different instruments through colorful tubes.In Lydia's memory, only those who were dying in the movie were connected to so many instruments."Why is this happening?" How is Vince doing?" Lydia tried desperately to control her trembling voice and turned to ask Cecil and Ulric.Cecil's attention was still on probing Lydia. He was very curious as to what kind of woman could make Vince go against the grain and turn from a love insulator to an infatuated man.Ulric ga
On the way to the hospital, Vince went about his business as usual, and even had a phone call with Vivian to handle some US work remotely. But when arriving at the hospital, Vince's body started to heat up and his will was a little unclear."How did this happen?" Ulric stood outside the emergency room with a frown and a serious expression.Cecil, meanwhile, paced back and forth in the hallway in a hurry. "If something bad had happened to Vince, I would have killed Derrick myself!"The incident today was indeed a surprise beyond their expectations. They had thought that the worst thing that could happen was a breakdown in negotiations, not realizing that the new mafia leader had abandoned the traditions that the mafia had upheld for years and started going rogue.Early in the morning, Cecil is just out at a cafe drinking coffee and flirting with a French beauty. He is not a shareholder in the business, so he has no intention of getting involved in the affair, nor does he want to expose
A conference room with a baroque style.Thick velvet curtains blocked the light from the windows. A long table made of precious wood is in the middle of the room, and several wide and comfortable black boss chairs are placed on each side of the table.Frescoes, candelabras and other decorations make this room look even less like a modern room and more like the council chambers of aristocrats centuries ago.Soft lighting adds a touch of mystery and obscurity to the room. Two groups of senior bodyguards with sunglasses stood on either side of the room.In the middle of the room, there are some men sitting in the boss's chair with their faces hidden in the shadows of the light, making the atmosphere more elusive."I have always appreciated some of the principles of your mafia, such as keeping your promises and treating your partners well, and that is why I chose to work with you. But I don't know why you, as the new mafia leader, would break these rules. I think we need an explanation."
In the Rolls-Royce car, Lydia leaned back in her seat with her head resting on the window.The car was running smoothly, the shock absorption design made it almost impossible to feel any shaking. The street lights reflected in the car windows, flashing Lydia's face as the car moved.The colorful lights lit up Lydia's face, and then the darkness swallowed her expression again.Vince sat quietly next to her and did not disturb her.Lydia felt more comfortable than ever. Her hand still hurt from hitting Bernice's face so hard.So this is the feeling of fighting back. In the old days, grievance, sadness, and powerlessness wrapped around her like an invisible thick cloth, leaving her with a feeling of suffocation. Her parents didn't care about her, forcing her to be a woman that rich men would like: meek, obedient, and easy to control. No one told Lydia she could say no to injustice, and no one stood behind her to help her fight back against her bullies. Tolerance was her only recourse bef