"Remember your place, Olivia, You're my wife in name only. Don't get too comfortable," Lucas growls, his voice firm and commanding. "What's your problem, Lucas? I was just trying to be nice," Olivia retorts, her eyes flashing with anger. "You should respect the terms we agreed on, remember whose contract this is, Olivia. You should stick to it," Lucas snaps back, his voice cold and intimidating In a world of wealth and power, Olivia will stop at nothing to secure her inheritance - even if it means bringing home a stranger as her husband. With her family's shocking news ringing in her ear - “ get married or give up the company '' Olivia crosses paths with Lucas, a charismatic and enigmatic billionaire with demons of his own. As they navigate their pretend marriage, their initial hatred and distrust slowly give way to a forbidden attraction that they are not prepared to confront. But just as they begin to open up, deceitful lies and secrets threatened to tear them apart. Can they overcome the trauma of their past and confront the truth about their present? Or will they become strangers who never met each other? Dive in to find out……
Lihat lebih banyak[Olivia]
“Olivia, we've heard enough of your empty promises, you have one month to decide if you'll settle down or hand the company back to your grandma,” my dad's voice was firm but I detected a hint of disappointment like he was tired of me giving silly excuses. My eyes snapped open, my mind reeling with the possibility of what he just said, a month? To find a man? I felt like I was being cornered, trapped with no escape. “Are they selling husbands now at the mall?” I thought to myself, my heart raced like a runaway train. I knew I had to do something, but what? The clock was ticking and my future was hanging in the air in front of me. I blurted out the first thing that came to my mind. “Fine, I have a man!” I declared, trying to sound more confident than I felt. “I wanted to keep it a secret till I put some things together before introducing him to the family.” I blurted out avoiding eye contact with my Dad My grandmother's eyes widened in shock, her mouth agape. “You have a man? She repeated, disbelief etched on her face. I nodded, my words tumbling out in a rush. “Yes, I do! But…he's…he's on a business trip right now. Once he's back I'll bring him home.” I added trying to sound convincing. Inside, I was dying. How did I just blurt that out? I couldn't believe my own words, but I think it's the best option, I thought to myself, at least even if it didn't work out anytime soon I could always claim he was still on a business trip. “Then be sure to bring him home once he's back, but if it's another trick of yours and you don't intend to get married anytime soon, you'll have to step down, and that's final.” My Dad thundered, his voice dripped with venom. I rolled my eyes at him, frustration etched all over my face, I picked up my black Dior bag that had been lying freely on the couch, and adjusted my heel to sit perfectly on my legs. “I'll be leaving now, I have some things to do at the office,” I said to them as I stormed out, still bitterly annoyed by their sudden attitude. And who said marriage has anything to do with managing a company? All my cousins who are married, I can see how well they've been doing in handling their businesses- by causing trouble from one end to the other, sometimes Grandma will talk to me to help them sort their messes, and if marriage is supposed to determine how good someone can handle a company, why am I then doing better than them? I stepped out of the sitting room, standing in the middle of our mansion, I looked at the garage where my black Range Rover was parked, I did not have any work to attend to, I had just said so to them to leave their annoying presence, the fact that my dad was even on my grandmother's side was the most annoying part of it, shouldn't he be on my side as his only child? What's with all this marriage stuff? I stood still contemplating what to do, my eyes still settled on the garage, contemplating if I should head to my apartment. I live two hours away from my family's house. I sighed heavily as I settled on going the other direction, opposite the garage, I headed to the garden. I needed the fresh air and the warmth of the beautiful flowers to clear my head a bit. This small garden is my favorite place to be whenever I come home. Where my worries melted away and my soul could breathe. As I entered the garden, the soft rustle of leaves and sweet fragrance of flowers enveloped me in a sense of peace. The warm sunlight casts a gentle glow, highlighting the vibrant colors and delicate textures of the blooms. I felt a sense of calm wash over me, like a soothing balm for my troubled mind. It was my happy place. I went by the swing and sat on it, feeling the gentle sway and creek of the wooden slats as I settled in. The familiar motion was comforting, like a warm embrace, I let out a deep sigh as I gazed out at the garden's beauty. The memory of the only person who could have understood me in this situation and stood by me came rushing back, death didn't let me enjoy the motherly love I needed before it decided to take my best friend, my companion a few years back. The memory of the confession I just made a few moments ago inside the house came rushing back to me, my breath caught in my throat like a lump of fear. I knew that if I failed to show up with a man, I'd be on the verge of losing the one company I cherished so much. I stared at the blue sky, wishing my mum was here with me. I longed for a shoulder to lean on. A man on a business trip? Huh…, Liv, you sounded so stupid back there, I scolded myself. I pulled out my phone to call the one person I knew who could be of help to me in this situation, even when I knew how stupidly she was going to make fun of me But still, I needed to call her, I dialed her number and just on the first ring she picked up, I took a deep breath and relaxed my shoulders. “Hey Joan, I think I just made the most stupid mistake of my life, I'm in a big mess,” I spoke gently to her on the phone, my voice barely audible “Olivia, what's wrong? And why is your voice so low, what happened?” She asked concern edged in her voice. “It's old Mrs Simpson, they are on it again, and they were too serious this time that I had to lie, I had to lie, Joan, I don't know what to do,” I said trying to sound cool but my voice was betraying me. “Hey babe, don't do that, don't…, if you dare shed any tears, then I'm hanging up this call. Where are you?” she asked, her voice gentle and soothing. “I'm still at my family's house, I'm just taking some fresh air in the garden, I don't know what to do at this point, Joan I don't, I'm so confused.” I sighed warily. “But what exactly did you lie about, I have to understand better for us to come up with a plan, and I hope it's not so bad,” she snapped back “That my man is on a business trip, how dumb of me, I don't know why my grandma and Dad won't let me be,” I frowned, my fist turning into a ball. “Your man? Olivia, are you secretly in a relationship, because the last time I checked you're a dead-ass single lady,” she asked. I could swear she was already raising an eyebrow ready to bounce on me if I kept such a thing hidden from her. “Oh, how I wish the invisible young man would just appear, Joan, don't tell me you don't fucking understand what I'm trying to say,” I said to her, frustration evident in my tone. I stood up from the swing I had been sitting on and walked over to the small kettle sitting by the flower pot where a beautiful Geranium bloomed. I picked it up and started pouring on it, from the kettle, trying to calm myself down. “No way!! No way!! Olivia, hold on…hold on, you lied to Grandma about having a man when you don't? Olivia, you must be joking, you know how Grandma detests lies, so what do you intend to do now? She asked,” If I knew what I wanted to do I don't think I would have called her on the phone. “Do you think if I had a solution, I would be here pacing around the garden with a kettle in my hand, trying to water a flower when I'm not a gardener?” I need your help, Joan, I don't know how but you have to do something, we have to find a way I can't lose now” I said to her, feeling my heartbeat increasing every second. “You should get over here this minute” What were you thinking? You could have just worked out if you didn't have anything to say?” She replied. “On it baby girl,” I said to her, if there's one thing Joan is good at, it's having a solution to almost every problem, I call her my mastermind, I quickly dropped the kettle I was holding, and increased my pace, as I made way to the garage where my car was parked, I was in a hurry to get to her? No need to ask her where we would be meeting, because I knew our normal spot to hang out if we needed to discuss something very sensitive. I opened my car door and made my way inside, dragging my seat belt with frustration. I ignited my engine and made my way onto the busy road of Los Angeles. I was a bit happy and curious, happy that I was meeting my mastermind, but curious about the plan she would come up with. What could it be?[Olivia]"You want to know exactly what I'm talking about right?" Lucas tossed the envelope to me, making me gulp down the sudden lump that grew in my throat, but no matter how much I did, it was stuck right there. What is going on? Why is he behaving this way? Did he in any way get access to the video? Why was he asking me who the father of the child was, if I said my heart wasn't leaving my body then I'm definitely joking"Are you going to keep staring at me like that or look at the god damned thing?" Lucas's harsh voice threw me out of my reverie, I didn't realize I was staring at him with my mouth wide open. I swallowed hard, turning my attention back to the envelope, my fingers trembling as I tried to put myself together but it wasn't working"I don't see the reason why you're tensing up!" Lucas's voice rang out again, I ignored him, pulling out the papers from the big envelope, I placed it down taking out one of the papers as I tried to make sense of what was written there. The
[Lucas]"Go ahead baby what do you want to talk about?" I asked Olivia who pulled her hand from me reaching out for her bag, I stared at her as she took out an envelope from her bag, her hand paused and I could see how she was shivering slightly"Baby, is everything alright?" I asked her more like I pulled her out of her thoughts, she quickly put her bag away and turned towards me, a smile playing on her lips as she nodded in response"Everything is okay, but you need to see this!" Olivia handed me the envelope, I stared at her and back at the envelope before picking it from her hands. I had no idea what it was about but I guess I have to find outA few minutes ago, when I was sitting down in my car at the parking lot, I made up my mind to let Olivia know of the biggest secret I've kept from her, she deserves to know, I can't just keep such an important matter away from her. What if she finds out on her own, wouldn't that be selfish of me, what would she take me as? The best way was t
[Olivia]I sat inside my bedroom, my heart thumping hard against my chest as I held onto the pregnancy result, my mind was in a complete mess, abortion? That's not an option, killing an innocent child I can't be so heartless to do that, I know it is still very little to notice, but I would be lying if I said I was not already in love with the little human growing inside meI gulped down as Joan's words from a few hours ago played back in my mind."Listen to me carefully, Olivia, you made the mistake of not informing your husband from the start, and I know how much you love Lucas, you will inform Lucas of the pregnancy, and when the baby is born, we will secretly run a DNA test, and even if it happens not to be Lucas's child, that's a secret you would have to take to your grave because there's no way Lucas would believe you now if you come open to him about what happened,"I can't even imagine telling him about the incident because firstly I lied to him about where I was going, I told
[Olivia]My heart thumped hard against my chest as I stared at the sight before me, I was leaning on the bathtub, my mouth clutching over my mouth as I stared at the pregnancy test strip in front of me, since the moment I vomited from the smell of food four days ago in my office when Lucas brought food, I have been vomiting ever since. I finally felt the need to take a test because my period had been delayed for weeks. It's not the first time it's been delayed like this, but I felt compelled to check it, and here it is. I am pregnant."Olivia, are you not done?" Joan knocked at the door, we were in the guest bedroom downstairs, and I had locked myself in the bathroom. Staring at these results, my mind keeps drifting off in an unknown direction, placing so many thoughts in my head."Olivia!!!" Joan yelled at the door, pulling me out of my thoughts, I immediately flushed down the pee and washed my hand thoroughly, holding up the strip as I strode out the door. I turned the doorknob and
[Lucas]Walking out of my doctor's office with the same report I have had over the past few years since my accident, staring down at the report, I had thought at least that my doctor would tell me that everything was okay now, I had been contemplating on how to tell Olivia about this, I wanted to come by for the last test to see if a miracle could happen before deciding on what to do next.It's been a week since we returned to Los Angeles, and I would say that loving Olivia has been the best thing that has ever happened to me. At times, I think back to when I was with Felicia, what I have with Olivia now is not comparable to what I had with her. With Felicia, it felt more like lust to me than love, overlooking her mistakes, begging her to be with me, her ghosting me and just coming back whenever she wanted, and I would open up my arms for her, thinking that was love, but it wasn't, it was just that I needed love and she was right there, and I did not mind her toxic love as long as I w
[Olivia]I walked back into the house, Lucas had called me earlier that he was going to come home a bit late, I was a bit grateful that he was not home yet because of the state I was in right now, there is no way he would not know that something was wrong and I am fucking tired of lying to him, what the heck is all this temptation?I made my way to the sitting room, dropping my bag and my car key on the table. I plopped down onto the couch, burying my face in my palm as I sucked in my breath. The day was already messed up for me.My mind wandered back to the idea Joan brought up, would it be possible for it to happen before that three weeks? Joan had suggested that I give her the number the stranger texted me with, she has a friend who knows someone who can hack the number and trace whoever this person is; she said she would reach out to the guy as soon as possible to know what can be done, even when I can't tell if hacking the number will help muchIs it possible that we could find o
[Olivia]"You should do what!!!" Joan asked, snatching the phone from my hand to take another look at the message, what kind of stupid option was that?I should get the hell out of Lucas' life. Are these the options?"Joan, hold on." I took the phone from her and immediately sent a message to the numberMe: [Can you elaborate more, get the hell out of whose life, you said you would message me this morning and I am just seeing your message, and as much as I do not want to sound disrespectful, your words are sounding weird.] I punched in the message and it was delivered, and in a matter of seconds, the number was typing backStranger: [You don't tell me when to message you, you are completely at my mercy right now, and all you should do is pay attention to me or else you will not like the other side of me, so my options are, you either divorce him and let go, you don't belong to him, it is either you file for divorce or you will have me sending these videos to him and you will still be
[Olivia]We walked down the stairs with our bags. Grandma was downstairs, and my father had already returned, Usher and Mia were also present. We walked down and headed directly to the sitting room when my father's voice brought me out of my thoughts."Olivia, you okay?" He asked, and I batted my lashes as my gaze shifted to him, am I making it obvious that something is bothering me?"Yes, Dad, I am fine, just a little weak." I smiled at him and my eyes met Usher's, his eyes were fixed on me, I don't know if it was my imagination or if I had seen a smirk on his face, he averted his gaze and concentrated back on his laptop."You guys sure you don't want to stay a little longer?" Dad asked Lucas."We would love to, but we need to move, especially because of the distance to our workplace," Lucas replied. My gaze shifted to Mia as I attempted to read her facial expression, but she was preoccupied with the drama she was watching, could she be the one? Is she the one sending me the messages
[Olivia]"Is everything okay?" Lucas asked me as I stared at him and then back to the pictures and messages on my phone. I pressed my lips together and took a slow deep breath."Olivia, are you okay?" He asked again and stood up, I can't let him see this, I have to do something"No, baby, don't worry, it's a picture from...from Joan, she just sent me some pictures," I spat out the first thing that came to mind, forcing a smile that I knew did not reach my eyes, and he sat back, his gaze still fixed on mine."Baby, it's nothing, she wanted to send her boyfriend a sexy picture, so she sent it to me to help her choose the one with a good posture, I did not expect her to do that, oh my God, Joan can be so silly!!" I chuckled and averted my eyes from him, if I keep staring at him, he might start seeing right through me that I am lying as fuck."You almost scared me, I thought something happened.""Not at all, baby." I was not looking at him anymore, rather I was walking towards the washroo
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