"Crawl to me, Jo," his voice was a low, dangerous command. I crossed my arms, glaring at him, trying to ignore the pulse of my blood and the heat pooling between my legs. "Make me," I shot back. His smirk was the only warning I got. I knew I was in deep trouble. --- Joan Madison has always despised Aaron Thompson, her best friend's arrogant, insufferable brother. The feeling was mutual-until it wasn't. A vacation meant to be a getaway with her friend Rhoda takes a sharp turn when Joan finds herself tangled in a steamy, reckless encounter with the one man she swore she'd never want. What should've been a fleeting mistake becomes something far more dangerous as Aaron refuses to let her go-and his hunger for her only deepens. Jo's trapped between desire and defiance, but one thing is clear: this game they've started could burn them both.
~Joan~
"This place is... wow," I muttered as we entered the house, its floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city, a fireplace glowing faintly, a rooftop pool gleaming under the fading light, and more rooms than I could count. The house was absolutely perfect, yet something felt off.
"So... how did you know about this place?" I asked Rhoda, who had already sunk into the plush sofa, crossing her legs, while I stood by the window staring at the dazzling city of Spain below.
"Well, this is one of Aaron's properties," she chuckled. My stomach dropped. Aaron?
"He doesn't know we're here. I have the spare keys to the building. I mean, why ask when I can just walk in?" Rhoda said, making a playful gesture with her arms, her smile wide and carefree.
"This is Aaron's house?" I asked slowly. She whipped her head around, her smile fading, eyes narrowing slightly.
"Yeah, it's his." Her voice grew sharper as she met my gaze. "What's going on?"
I pinched the bridge of my nose, feeling disbelief wash over me. "I can't believe you brought me to Aaron's house of all places," I muttered, my pulse quickening. I felt foolish for admiring the place, now knowing it belonged to the last person I ever wanted to be near.
Rhoda straightened up on the couch, her amusement dimming. "Exactly why I said he has no idea we're here. Jo, your feud with my brother is seriously getting ridiculous."
"Oh, really? You think this is childish?" I snapped, crossing my arms. "Have you forgotten the time we both landed in jail and he bailed you out, leaving me there to rot?"
Rhoda opened her mouth to speak, but I cut her off. "Or the time we crashed his party, and guess who got blamed for that? Me! He called me a bad influence, told me to stop dragging you into 'bad things.' He acts like I'm the villain in your life."
"Jo..." Rhoda started softly, probably trying to calm me down, but my anger was bubbling over.
"And now you bring me to his house? You really think I won't get blamed for this too?" I spat, feeling the sting of frustration in my chest.
Rhoda stood and closed the distance between us, her face softening. "Jo, I'm really sorry. I didn't think. I just wanted us to enjoy our girls' trip, and this house is... well, it's perfect." She gestured to the room around us, but I barely glanced at it. "I should have talked to you about it. You're right."
I exhaled slowly, trying to push away the tension in my body. "If we hadn't spent a small fortune getting here, I'd drag us both back to New York right now," I muttered.
Rhoda grinned, relief flooding her face as she pulled me into a hug. "Now come on, let's go explore the city. We didn't come all this way to sit inside, did we?"
"Please tell me we're going to see Barcelona," I said as she grabbed my hand, and she nodded enthusiastically.
"Of course! Coming to Spain and skipping Barcelona would be criminal," she replied as we headed to the bedroom where our luggage was dropped.
I tried to shake off my discomfort while Rhoda gushed over the inbuilt walk-in closet. I forced myself to admire the design of the room, but my insides churned. The house was beautiful, but knowing who owned it left a bad taste in my mouth. Something was gnawing at me, and I couldn't shake the sense that everything was about to go wrong. My instincts had never failed me before.
"Tomorrow, we'll get up early enough to make it to Madrid in time," Rhoda said cheerfully as we walked back after wandering through a few blocks and malls.
I hummed in response, distracted, my mind still not fully in the moment. Rhoda tipped her head back, letting the cool evening breeze wash over her face, her eyes closed, a peaceful smile on her lips.
"It's nice to breathe fresh air outside of New York," she sighed. I glanced over at her and followed her lead, lifting my gaze to the night sky. The tension in my muscles eased ever so slightly.
Rhoda suddenly snapped her eyes open, a mischievous glint in them. "First one back to the house gets a paid manicure at the fanciest salon in the city!" she challenged, and before I could respond, she darted off, her laughter trailing behind her.
I couldn't help but laugh, my worries slipping away for just a moment as I chased after her. By the time we stumbled back into the house, both of us out of breath and giggling, it felt like a weight had been lifted, if only temporarily.
Maybe I could enjoy this trip after all.
Rhoda pushed the door open and froze, her smile vanishing. I stepped in behind her, peeking over her shoulder, and my heart sank.
There he was, sitting in the living room, swirling a glass of something dark. His expression was unreadable as he downed the last of his drink, the sound of the glass slamming against the table cutting through the silence. Rhoda shuddered, and I felt a knot form in my stomach as I frowned.
Aaron.
The devil had arrived.
"A million dollars," he said, his voice flat, like he was negotiating over a car, not a person. Astrid shook her head, opening her mouth to protest, but he cut her off. "Let's make it two then," he offered. She stared at him, stunned, wondering if he'd lost his mind. "Mr. Voss..." "Final offer. Five million," he said, his gaze steady, unyielding. Astrid took a deep breath, her heart pounding. "Fine. I'll be your wife." *** When Astrid Blythe, a rising event planner, runs into her ex, Adrian Voss, at his engagement party, she's shocked to discover that his fiancée is missing. What starts as a strange encounter quickly spirals into something even more surreal when Adrian offers Astrid a proposal of his own: marry him in a cold, calculated, no-strings-attached arrangement. Despite her better judgment, Astrid agrees to the deal. But as the line between business and desire blurs, she finds herself drawn back into Adrian's dangerous orbit-and realizes, to her horror, that she's falling again for the man she once loved...the man who had a hand in the death of their child.
Janet was adopted when she was a kid -- a dream come true for orphans. However, her life was anything but happy. Her adoptive mother taunted and bullied her all her life. Janet got the love and affection of a parent from the old maid who raised her. Unfortunately, the old woman fell ill, and Janet had to marry a worthless man in place of her parents' biological daughter to meet the maid's medical expenses. Could this be a Cinderella's tale? But the man was far from a prince, except for his handsome appearance. Ethan was the illegitimate son of a wealthy family who lived a reckless life and barely made ends meet. He got married to fulfill his mother's last wish. However, on his wedding night, he had an inkling that his wife was different from what he had heard about her. Fate had united the two people with deep secrets. Was Ethan truly the man we thought he was? Surprisingly, he bore an uncanny resemblance to the impenetrable wealthiest man in the city. Would he find out that Janet married him in place of her sister? Would their marriage be a romantic tale or an utter disaster? Read on to unravel Janet and Ethan's journey.
They don't know I'm a girl. They all look at me and see a boy. A prince. Their kind purchase humans like me for their lustful desires. And, when they stormed into our kingdom to buy my sister, I intervened to protect her. I made them take me too. The plan was to escape with my sister whenever we found a chance. How was I to know our prison would be the most fortified place in their kingdom? I was supposed to be on the sidelines. The one they had no real use for. The one they never meant to buy. But then, the most important person in their savage land-their ruthless beast king-took an interest in the "pretty little prince." How do we survive in this brutal kingdom, where everyone hates our kind and shows us no mercy? And how does someone, with a secret like mine, become a lust slave? . AUTHOR'S NOTE. This is a dark romance-dark, mature content. Highly rated 18+ Expect triggers, expect hardcore. If you're a seasoned reader of this genre, looking for something different, prepared to go in blindly not knowing what to expect at every turn, but eager to know more anyway, then dive in! . From the author of the international bestselling book: "The Alpha King's Hated Slave."
“Drive this woman out!” "Throw this woman into the sea!” When he doesn’t know Debbie Nelson’s true identity, Carlos Hilton cold-shoulders her. “Mr. Hilton, she is your wife,” Carlos’ secretary reminded him. Hearing that, Carlos gives him a cold stare and complained, “why didn’t you tell me earlier?” From then on, Carlos spoils her rotten. Little did everyone expect that they would get a divorce.
Linsey was stood up by her groom to run off with another woman. Furious, she grabbed a random stranger and declared, "Let's get married!" She had acted on impulse, realizing too late that her new husband was the notorious rascal, Collin. The public laughed at her, and even her runaway ex offered to reconcile. But Linsey scoffed at him. "My husband and I are very much in love!" Everyone thought she was delusional. Then Collin was revealed to be the richest man in the world. In front of everyone, he got down on one knee and held up a stunning diamond ring. "I look forward to our forever, honey."
“Do I want a taste?” his voice deeper than he had ever spoken. His eyes pinned on me like I was the only thing that fascinated him. “What do I do?” I thought to myself as he moved closer to me, I wanted to run away, to resist him but I was pinned to the wall by him. “Gosh I hate this man so much” his scent, his body, his beautiful green eyes, he was driving me crazy. I know this is wrong, he has a fiancee and all but that makes me want him even more. “Get on the bed and spread your legs” his cold voice woke me up and then I remembered I was just a maid to him. “Yes master”.
June Rivera was divorced by her husband after three years of marriage because he wanted to be with her sister who was pregnant for him. Kicked to the curb with a divorce and rejected by her parents,she struggles to make ends meet and get a job until she saves Luis Ambrose from an accident - the only child of Rafael Ambrose, a widowed man and the CEO of Ambrose Corporation. When little Luis asks to have her as a nanny, and Rafael's mother pressures him to get married, they draw a contract. To be Luis's nanny and his fake wife for one year in exchange for 50 million dollars!