At dawn, the woman woke up with a splitting headache and aches all over her body. Glancing around, she realized she was in an expensive suite, clearly in a five-star hotel in the capital—a luxurious room.
Victoria forced her eyes open and, mustering all the strength left in her body, pushed herself to sit up. The scene before her began to piece together the events of the previous night.
Her red dress from the evening was torn, exposing soft, delicate skin as white as snow. Her long blonde hair fell lightly over her shoulders, further highlighting her pale, flawless complexion.
The massive bed had its sheets in disarray, and scattered across it and the floor were not only her clothes but also men’s clothing.
Victoria trembled in shock and turned to look at the other side of the bed. There lay Jackson Carson—the man she had always been infatuated with.
He was the most sought-after bachelor in the capital, not only for his status as the heir to a $7 billion fortune but also for his striking looks. His exhausted face remained serene, his eyes shut tightly, indicating he was in a deep sleep, oblivious to her gaze.
He was completely naked, his perfectly sculpted body exposed before her.
Victoria’s headache intensified.
Had she… slept with Jackson Carson last night?
Her legs gave out, and she sat back on the bed, trying to recall the events of the night before. All she could remember was a visit from her stepmother—after that, everything was a blur.
Fragments of memories surfaced: touches, kisses… there was no doubt. They had been intimate.
But how had she ended up with Jackson?
There was no other explanation—her stepmother must have drugged her. It was the only plausible reason.
“I need to get out of here!”
Victoria thought quickly and tried to leave the bed without waking him. She knew exactly who Jackson Carson was.
He was the direct heir to the Carson family fortune—the wealthiest family in São Paulo. Moreover, he was the most eligible bachelor in the city. Everyone knew he despised women who schemed to trap him, and incurring his wrath was akin to courting death.
The mere thought of Jackson waking up sent shivers down Victoria’s spine. What would he think of her? There was no escaping this situation.
She had been infatuated with him since her youth and couldn’t bear the thought of Jackson hating her.
As she carefully tried to slip out of the bed, an alarm buzzed on the other side, and within moments, Jackson pulled her against his body, gripping her waist tightly. His deep, raspy voice whispered in her ear:
“Victoria Lazer, how dare you drug me?”
Hearing this, Victoria quickly shook her head.
“Jackson, I didn’t… I wasn’t the one…” Before she could finish, Jackson grabbed her face.
“Not you? Then how did we end up in the same bed?” Jackson despised lies, and his fingers tightened on her arms, nearly drawing tears from her with the pain.
Uninterested in her excuses, he saw her as just another despicable, opportunistic woman who had drugged him for her gain.
“I never want to see you again. If you show up again, you’ll regret it!” Jackson pushed her roughly aside before getting out of bed and starting to dress.
At that moment, Ciara, Victoria’s half-sister, entered the room. Upon seeing the mess, she instantly grew furious. She had only planned for the drug to make them pass out and make it appear as though they had been together—not for them to actually sleep together.
Despite her anger, Ciara concealed it well. She had always been in love with Jackson, and this was not the time to slip up or arouse suspicion.
“Victoria, how could you do this?” Ciara exclaimed in feigned shock. “Weren’t you supposed to marry Bruno? Didn’t you claim to be madly in love with him? And now look at what you’ve done—drugged Mr. Carson to sleep with him. How could you?”
Bruno Lima was the man the Lazer family had arranged for Victoria to marry, a match she had never agreed to.
“Madly in love with Bruno? When did I ever say that?”
Victoria questioned, though she knew that no matter what she said, Jackson wouldn’t believe her.
As she glanced at him, Jackson gave her one last look of contempt before storming out of the room. Ciara quickly followed him.
Victoria was left alone in the suite. As she stared at the empty, luxurious room, she couldn’t stop the tears from falling. Jackson surely hated her now. She had lost any chance she might have had with him forever, even though he had never noticed her before.
Wrapping her arms around herself, she sat in silence, dwelling on all that had happened. It took her a long time to finally leave the suite and exit the hotel.
Outside, as she stepped onto the quiet street intending to hail a taxi, she saw Jackson and his family in the parking lot. They stood near their cars, engaged in conversation. Wiping her tears, Victoria looked again and noticed Jackson’s gaze on her. Her stepmother, standing beside him, seemed to be saying something to him.
Victoria knew exactly what her stepmother was doing—framing her.
Her stepmother and Ciara had planned this from the start. Everyone knew Jackson despised manipulative women.
As she approached the parking lot, her grandmother’s eyes landed on her disheveled appearance.
“Just look at you! How dare you drug President Carson?” her grandmother spat in anger. “You’re shameless! You are no granddaughter of mine. Get out, and don’t ever come back!”
“I didn’t drug him!” Victoria protested, only to feel a stinging slap across her face. “It was Suelen who set me up!”
Suelen, her father’s second wife, feigned incredulity at the accusation.
“President Carson, please don’t believe her lies. How could I possibly do such a thing? Victoria is the kind of woman who only thinks about money and fortune,” Suelen twisted the truth.
“That’s why there’s no place for a disgrace like her in our family!” Cassia Lazer added. “You’re no longer a part of this family!”
“If you thought this would make me marry you, dream on!” Jackson said before storming off toward his car in anger.
“I demand to speak to my father!” Victoria retorted, unwilling to accept being disowned, especially when they still controlled her mother’s inheritance.
“Go ahead, but I doubt he’ll side with you, Victoria!” her grandmother, Cassia, replied, winking at her granddaughter.
With that, the family left, shooting her looks of disgust.
Victoria wiped her tears. They had disowned her, but so what? She had never wanted to stay in that family anyway.
She didn’t need them to survive. In fact, her life would be better without them. She would find a way to reclaim everything that belonged to her mother, and she would make them pay.
Victória painfully stepped out of the taxi and dragged her weak, exhausted legs toward the living room. She still wanted to speak with her father. She had barely reached the entrance when she heard cheerful laughter coming from inside. “Bruno, are you sure you can give me this red diamond ring? I’m not your fiancée. If Victória finds out, she’ll be furious!” Both Victória’s grandfather and Bruno’s grandfather had been friends since their youth. As a result, the two families had always been close, and a marriage between the two had been arranged since childhood. Over the years, as they grew up, Bruno adored the idea of having Victória as his fiancée. She was beautiful, and he had to woo her extensively until she finally gave in to the idea. However, at the moment she stepped through the front door, Victória saw Ciara clutching Bruno’s arm tightly, pouting. “Bruno, do you think I look pretty wearing this?” Victória walked straight into the living room without even taking o
Two Years Later...Much had changed in these two years. Victória was living with her aunt and still searching for a job to start over.Every day, she sent out résumés, but when she saw the time today, it was time to feed the kids.Time, even if brief, had been kind to Victória. The helplessness and fragility she once felt had been replaced by an enormous willpower to make things happen. This growth only amplified her beauty.Since being cast out of her home, she sought refuge with her mother’s family—specifically her aunt Valentina, the only remaining member of the Burdeos family.A month after the ordeal, Victória discovered she was pregnant. Her first thought was to terminate the pregnancy, but after seeing two tiny shapes on the ultrasound, something inside her shifted.She completed her education and, since becoming a mother, dedicated herself to giving her children the best life possible.Victória entered the kitchen unhurriedly and began preparing breakfast. The children and her
"I clearly remember saying that day that I never wanted to see you again." Jackson's voice was hoarse and rough with anger.Victória also wanted to stay far away from him, but she had no choice.She had applied for dozens of jobs over the past six months, and this was the only company that had called her back.She needed to support her children.Besides, he wasn’t the only victim of that night. She had accepted the consequences and never sought him out afterward.But the company was huge, and she simply had to try her best to avoid the man and stay out of his way in the future.When Jackson saw Victória lost in thought, he assumed it was intentional."This is my second warning. Stay away from me. I won’t say it again, understood?"Victória nodded. She understood perfectly.But he seemed convinced that she had done it on purpose, that she had planned to be there. Yet her hopes of winning his love had been destroyed long ago, and all she wanted now was a job to support her children."I
Victoria had just left Jake's office and was heading to her desk. The company's senior designer, a young woman two years older than her, was helping her settle into her new job. Her name was Lisa, and unlike Victoria, who was slim like a model, Lisa was plump. When Lisa saw how beautiful Victoria was, a spark of jealousy ignited in her heart.“This woman must be a flirt; I’m sure of it!”Lisa thought, as she had always harbored feelings for Jayric. Seeing him admire this new woman made her nervous.To vent her anger and jealousy, Lisa shoved a pile of drafts into Victoria’s arms and instructed her to review and organize the projects by the next morning. Then, without another word, she turned and went back to her desk.Victoria stared at the tall stack of papers in her arms, nearly reaching the top of her head. It was a lot of drafts. She wouldn’t be able to go home that night.And her children? They needed milk!Victoria could feel her breasts becoming heavy at the thought of her c
Victória intended to defend herself and deny everything, but when she caught the stormy look in Jackson's eyes, her courage wilted. He would probably kill her if she stood her ground. She should just tell him she had done it on purpose. What was the worst that could happen? He would hate her even more. She had long given up on earning his attention or interest! Since she was already in hell, she might as well embrace the devil. “Yes, that's right, I did it on purpose!” Victória held back her tears and bit her lip. “Now, can you let me leave?” He knew it! She had done all of this on purpose. But Victória's confession didn’t make Jackson feel any better. In fact, he felt a discomfort settle in his chest. “And what about what happened two years ago? You planned that too, didn’t you?” “Yes.” Victória answered fearlessly. “I planned that too. I was trying to seduce you, satisfied?” When Victória said this, Jackson immediately released her wrist, and his face dar
What I intend to do with Jackson is none of your business, don’t you think?" Victoria stared coldly at her half-sister, her voice devoid of any emotion.She spoke to her as if she were a complete stranger.Her stepmother and Ciara had appeared at her house’s door when Victoria was ten years old, and Ciara was only a year younger than her. Initially, Victoria thought she was her stepmother’s daughter with another man. But later, it turned out she was wrong—her father had been having an affair with Suelen behind her mother’s back for years.They had Ciara in secret. After her mother passed away prematurely, Suelen inserted herself fully into the Lazer family. Two years ago, Suelen and Ciara schemed against her, and her own father hid behind her mother—Madame Lazer—and remained silent.From that day forward, she decided she didn’t need a father like that. She could live much better alone, with her only real family: her aunt and her twins."You are truly shameless! You’ve ruined yourself,
After nursing her children, Victória placed them on the rug in the living room and sat down at the table with Valentina to have lunch together.She needed to eat something to gather enough strength to make it through the day. But before she could finish her meal, Enzo wrapped himself around her legs, holding her tightly.“Mama!”He kept repeating the word he had just learned.It was as if a switch had been flipped in their little heads. They were only a year old and barely knew how to speak, but slowly, they were learning.Enzo had already mastered words like “Mama,” “Water,” “Auntie,” and “Milk,” while Lara was trying to follow in her older brother’s footsteps.Every time the children called her “Mama,” Victória melted, feeling more complete with each passing moment.Victória hugged them again, and Valentina, knowing how exhausting it was to hold both twins at once, stood up and took Lara from her arms. Enzo, however, clung even tighter to his mother.In the end, Victória couldn’t fi
Victória stood silently beside them, watching Lisa’s entire presentation with enthusiasm, even as they acted as though she didn’t exist.Victória couldn’t help but huff in anger. Lisa was such a despicable person. It had been Lisa who forgot her projects in the first place, and yet she wouldn’t even let Victória have lunch in peace.She had done Lisa a favor, and this was how she was treated? How could she possibly call Victória out for being late? Victória lived on the other side of the city—how could she have been any faster?This time, she had to swallow her pride. She was new to her job, having just joined the company, and couldn’t afford to offend someone who was technically her superior. She knew she’d never achieve her ambitions if she couldn’t even endure such a minor slight to her pride. For her children and for Valentina, she was ready to take the hit.This was Victória Lazer!She could handle this!Victória repeated these words to herself twice to keep from giving up. It wa
After thinking about it, he no longer felt upset and went back to his office.It was almost 5pm, and Jackson was busy at work and forgot to meet her, so Victoria had time to go downstairs to meet Harvey.In truth, Victoria didn't want Harvey to come to her company, but Harvey was already downstairs, and she couldn't keep him away, so she sneaked into his car, afraid of being seen by her colleagues at work. However, just then, Jhenifer came into the Carson Group and saw Victoria getting into a black luxury car.Jhenifer frowned when she saw this scene, and knew that Victoria was Jackson's wife. But the car didn't belong to Jackson or to Victoria herself, and Jhenifer had already investigated her and knew that she was penniless because the Lazer family had driven her away.So how could she afford such an expensive car?Clearly, that kind of car was made for men. So she was with
Lazaro wasn't kidding, and he hit Gisele so hard that she almost screamed, so she didn't dare delay, and took off her dress and stood naked in front of him.Lazaro measured the woman's body up and down, and a trace of evil appeared in his eyes.For the next half hour, Gisele was horribly tortured by Lazaro, and when he felt satisfied and wanted to leave, Gisele was bleeding, her head covered in sweat. However, she still remembered why she had sex with him.“Lazaro, do you know Victoria Lazer?” She hated this sick man, but she needed him, and his money and power could help her resist.“What's this got to do with you?” Lazaro was buttoning up his shirt when he heard Victória's name, and he paused and sneered.“Because I'm jealous.” Gisele pretended to love him while holding in her pain. “I'm with you because I love you!”“Do you love me?” Lazaro thought, but he was
“Are you Victoria, JB's designer?” When Victoria was looking her up and down, Gisele saw her too, and asked with an arrogant tone.Gisele had an innocent face, but her eyes were bright, and she was extremely violent, and even if she had good features she still didn't look good, and Victória stopped looking at her. “Yes, I am!” she said as she walked. ”Mrs. Boyer, are we going to talk now, or are we going to do this after you've done your nails?“Sit down and tell me what you're going to design for me this time?” Gisele looked up and said.“I've come up with three plans, but as I rushed through them because I found out about the project yesterday, you may or may not like them! “ replied Victoria as she sat down on the soft cushion.“Tell me everything at once, because I have something to do later. “Gisele was not patient.The designer was very handsome, and his good looks seemed quite natural, which made her feel jealous.That was why she wanted her to leave as soon as she finished he
From the moment she got into the car until she reached the restaurant, it was only at this moment that she was able to breathe a sigh of relief. And, noticing Victoria's nervousness, Jackson smiled, and when they were seated in the restaurant, he let her sit next to him.Victoria ate her meals normally this time because she was nervous all the time now and forgot to pretend to behave rudely, and Jackson couldn't help smiling when he saw this.“Don't you have to act like you haven't eaten for a few days today?” he said jokingly, and Victoria, who was drinking lemon juice through a straw, hearing Jackson's words, immediately choked on the juice and coughed a few times.“I... I'm not very hungry today!” At this, his face was slightly red.Victoria thought: “Why did I forget that?”So she took out the straw, picked up the glass and prepared to swallow thejuice. However, just as her lips were about to touc
Victoria was very happy because it was the first time she had faced Ciara with force, and both she and her mother used to be bullied by the Lazer and were never treated well. However, they were too weak to fight back then, and had to put up with it, but now, she no longer had to be bullied like before, and, of course, it was all thanks to Jackson.Victoria looked at Jackson, who was sitting elegantly behind the desk, leafing through the documents and had an idea.She wanted Jackson to help her avenge her mother by bankrupting the Leisure Group, and she couldn't help having sex with him anyway.Victoria stood in the office doorway for a while before Jackson noticed her, and he smiled slightly as soon as he saw her, holding out his hand to her.“Come here!” He said in a soft, deep voice.Victoria approached obediently, and just as she was about to sit down in the office chair opposite Jackson, he patted her leg.&ld
So, the two were in a bad relationship, but without proof, no one could be sure that Lisa did it, and Carla trusted Lisa a lot, and agreed without hesitation: “I know what to do, Lisa!” After that, she left to give the project to Victoria, and when Lisa called Gisele to tell her about the change of designer, Lisa told her that her designer would be made by a new and talented designer from the company.Gisele was in her twenties, quite young, so she didn't find anything wrong with this, and hearing that the designer was the one who had designed Samanta's wedding dress, she agreed.Carla gave the design request files to Victoria and made no mention of Lisa.Victoria read the information on the application, and it was another actress called Gisele Boyer, whom she had never heard of before. Perhaps she was an up-and-coming actress?Victoria didn't doubt it and began to study the actress's interests.Gisele Boyer: a little-known actress in her 20sFavorite: All pink clothes embellished w
At this thought, Jayric snorted and wanted to hint at his feelings for her, but before he could say anything, Victoria spoke first.“By the way, Mr. Rey, are we the only ones organizing the event?”She thought Jayric was too good for her, as he always gave herthe best orders. It was also the reason her colleagues envied her. What if that was the case too?Now her colleagues were better with her. If he still showed her so much favor, they must have some opinions with her again.“No, there are a few other designers who will be taking part, so let's form a team.” Jayric was thinking of confessing to her, but was stopped, so he had to answer her question first.“Okay, that's good. I've never tried teamwork. It's a good chance that I can work in a team with fellow senior designers! “Victoria was relieved and smiled intelligently.She had just come to the company after a few days away, and it wasn't
Jackson thought she was cute as she sat there saying nothing, and her hair was messy and she wore no make-up or fancy clothes, so he had a bit of fun.Did she think he'd get tired of her?“Your messy hair makes me feel like you're doing it on purpose!” He said affectionately and Victoria could feel the air he exhaled making her a little nervous.“That's how I stay at home. I can't do anything if you don't like me like this.”“Do you want me to kiss you?” He smiled, touched her lips softly and whispered, making Victoria blush.She thought: “It's going to happen anyway. I know it can't be good when he asks to meet me at night.”“Jackson, our relationship has just begun. Can we wait... and do it... later?” She bit her lips, trembling.“Do what?” Jackson looked at her, and probably knew what she was thinking.she was thinking.In truth, he wasn't tha
Looking at him walk away, Victoria thought that their relationship wasn't exactly normal, and she didn't mind.She wasn't planning on staying with him forever anyway, and when he got tired of it, she'd be able to get rid of him and wouldn't have to worry about him taking her babies away.She then turned towards the house and went in to see the babies, and it was about half past seven and already dark.Noemia was at a business dinner with her parents, and wouldn'tbe home before 10.Noemia sent a message to Victoria telling her not to wait up and that she had found someone to help with the paternity test, and Victoria was relieved.Lara was in her arms and they were watching TV together. After a while, her phone started buzzing, and Victoria didn't notice it at first.“Mom... cell phone...” Enzo heard the buzzing and went to pick up the phone, pointing at the screen.Victoria understood him, a