A Contract Baby For The Magnate
William Donavan is an oil magnate, but his life of wealth and privileges couldn't prevent him from falling ill. Now, with only one year left to live, he must race to secure an heir.
That is, until he crosses paths with Sophia Davis-a young woman who works as a waitress by day and spends her nights sleeping on a park bench.
Sophia is going through the worst phase of her life since her mother passed away and she was forced to run away from home. She works hard and saves every penny, dreaming of affording a place to live.
When she's approached by a man offering her a marriage contract that includes having a child-all she has to do is sign, and her life would change forever.
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Chapter 5
For a moment, I had her far too close to me-so close that I could see the little green flecks scattered in her blue irises. We were so near each other that I could have kissed her. The idea crossed my mind, and I quickly pushed it away. Sophia had agreed to the baby, and I needed to keep things friendly. I had to stick to that, no matter how difficult it was-especially after seeing her in that dress, which made her look even sweeter.
"She's off-limits to you, William. Get a grip!"
"Who's off-limits to you?" Megan's voice snapped me back to the present. "It's so good to see you after all this time, Will."
"Good to see you too, Megan." I approached and greeted her with a kiss on the cheek.
"I have to admit, I was surprised by your call-especially with Amber out of the country." Megan said, sliding her nails down my shirt in an irritating way. "We only ever meet when it's with her."
"Well, today is a different occasion." I stepped back to escape her touch, just as I dodged the topic of Amber. "A friend needs a complete wardrobe overhaul, and I knew you'd be the best for the job."
After seeing everything Sophia had in that backpack, I couldn't put off buying her new clothes until tomorrow. She had nothing besides that dress and a couple of t-shirts.
"Of course-it'll be a pleasure to help. Any friend of yours is a friend of mine!" she said enthusiastically. "But just so you know, I brought some things that Amber would love as a gift. After all, her birthday is coming up."
"Amber's been in Milan for over two months. I'm sure she won't come back wanting clothes." I smiled at her just as Brian entered the room. "I'll let you get settled, and I'll be right back. If you need anything, Brian can help you."
I left eagerly, anxious to have lunch with Sophia. Something stirred inside me, urging me to go to her-the same way it had when I'd left her in the room to get ready.
I didn't want to think about Amber right then. We hadn't seen each other in far too long. The last thing I wanted was to worry about what gift to give someone who already had everything. I was more interested in seeing what Sophia would think of the clothes when she saw them.
"Oh my God," I heard her murmur with her mouth full before I even entered the dining room. "This is divine, Jenna."
I leaned against the doorframe, watching the two of them. My housekeeper had a proud smile on her lips while Sophia chewed the food eagerly.
"Starting without me." I walked in, seeing those beautiful eyes widen at me as she swallowed with difficulty.
"Sorry, sir..." I gave her a censuring look, and she quickly corrected herself. "William-I couldn't resist the smell."
I smiled, sitting at the head of the table with her to my left. Her cheeks were red, as if Sophia was genuinely embarrassed for not waiting for me. It was so refreshing to see all that innocence and wonder in her eyes with every new discovery.
"I'm just teasing. You didn't have to wait for me to eat." I glanced at her plate and back to her face. "And from the moan I heard, the risotto is definitely approved."
Sophia blushed even more as the words left my mouth, and Jenna laughed in a way I hadn't heard from her in a long time.
"Let the girl eat before she chokes, William," Jenna murmured, still smiling as she left the room.
"Looks like you've already won an ally there."
"Jenna's been so kind to me, and she has magic hands. This is the best food I've ever had in my life." She raised her fork to her mouth, hypnotizing me as her lips wrapped around the silverware, taking in the food.
It shouldn't have been that fascinating, but I couldn't look away-not even when she started chewing. I had a vague notion that she'd said something, but my mind refused to process anything except her image.
When she brought the wine glass to her lips and a little dribbled down her chin, I leaned forward, grabbing the napkin from my lap and standing to wipe it for her.
"Oh!" Sophia exclaimed in surprise, and only then did I realize what I'd done.
It would have been sensible to pull back and apologize-say it was an impulse or a cleaning habit, which I clearly didn't have. But I couldn't say a word. I just stood there staring at her face, her eyes locked on mine, while my thumb held the napkin against her chin. What was I doing?
"Am I interrupting something?" Megan's voice broke the moment. I turned to see her entering the room with Brian, her eyes shifting to Sophia. "You must be the girl getting a whole new wardrobe. What's your name, sweetie?"
Sophia glanced at me quickly, a small crease forming between her perfect eyebrows. She was clearly confused by what Megan had just said, and I didn't blame her-I hadn't had the chance to tell her yet.
"Yes, that's her." I took the lead in the conversation. "Sophia is staying here and didn't bring any luggage, so she needs a new wardrobe."
"I can see that." Megan raised her eyebrows, looking Sophia up and down in a way I didn't like at all.
"You don't have to do this, William." Sophia's low tone brought my eyes back to her and her figure shrinking against the chair. "I have some savings. I can buy clothes later."
"I insist, Sophia. You're my friend, aren't you?" I asked, trying to convince her to accept, even though her face was tense.
"I am, but..." I reached my hand across the table, taking hers and interrupting her whispered refusal.
"Then there's no discussion about it. As my friend, you have to accept the gift without arguing. Megan will show you everything, and you can choose the entire collection if you want-even order more!"
Sophia lifted her gaze to the brunette at the door and lowered her shoulders. Megan looked like a model, just like the women she dressed-tall, slim, wearing very high, thin heels, always in high couture.
"Don't worry, cutie. I don't bite."
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8.4
For twenty years, I lived as the adopted daughter of the wealthy Hill family.
But today, they forced me to sign a severance agreement and kicked me out so their precious biological daughter, Malia, could marry my fiancé.
To ruin me completely, they framed me for stealing Malia's engagement bracelet, threatening me with prison.
I calmly exposed the "sapphire" as cheap glass, then rolled up my sleeves to show the reporters my scarred, punctured arms.
For two decades, I wasn't a daughter. I was Malia's living blood and bone marrow bank.
They drained my health to keep her alive, even ordering doctors to ignore my failing organs just so she could attend a gala.
"Take this million dollars and shut your mouth," my adoptive father sneered, throwing a check at my feet.
My ex-fiancé looked at me with disgust, and Malia screamed that I was a crazy, vindictive liar.
They had stolen my life and my health, yet they still looked down on me like I was garbage.
I ripped the check into pieces and threw it in their faces.
Just as they ordered the butler to drag me out, a group of men in black suits shattered the chaos.
The heir of the untouchable Montgomery dynasty stepped through the door, ignoring the Hills' fawning, and handed me a DNA report.
I wasn't a disposable blood bag. I was the long-lost true heiress of old New York money.
And now, I was going to take back everything they stole from me.
8.4
Evelyn Rowe never thought she could survive Victor Blackthorn nor his fists, especially since her unborn baby didn't.
But what she didn't expect was to be saved by Dominic Russo, after being publicly blamed for her miscarriage and humiliated in front of the world.
Finally finding the strength to divorce Victor, and the path to become the independent woman she always wanted to be, Evelyn becomes unstoppable.
What no one expects is for three dangerous men to claim her: the heir apparent to the British throne, the billionaire who rules the corporate world, and a mafia lord who bows to no one.
They were enemies at first, but for her, they became lovers.
And when her ex-husband finally realizes what he destroyed, she already belongs to kings who would do everything in their power to keep her.
9.6
For four years, I played the perfect, naive, low-income wife to my wealthy husband Duke, completely hiding my true identity as a top-secret DARPA scientist.
On our anniversary, I discovered he was having an affair with an old-money socialite named Adelia.
He used our marital assets to buy her a half-million-dollar Birkin bag, but that wasn't the worst part.
While hiding in a parking garage, I recorded him telling his mistress that the daily prenatal vitamins he lovingly gave me were actually high-dose contraceptives.
He had secretly sterilized me to ensure I would never produce a "low-class" heir, planning to toss me aside with a tiny settlement in six months.
When I confronted him, he violently attacked me, smashed my head against a marble dresser, and locked me in our bedroom.
I thought of the four years I spent crying in doctors' offices, blaming my own body for my infertility, while he held my hand and comforted me with perfect, monstrous concern.
I didn't wait to be punished.
I climbed down the second-story balcony in the dark, leaving behind every diamond and luxury bag he had ever given me.
Sitting in the back of a taxi, I wiped the blood from my forehead and opened a secure app on my phone.
"Divorce fraud. Initiate sequence."
It was time for him to finally meet Dr. Patterson.
9.6
In a world where mates are found by scent, he should have known but he didn't.
The richest supernatural billionaire in the city. The most feared Alpha of the most powerful pack. Untouchable. And cursed, or so he believes is unable to smell his true mate.
Yet something keeps pulling him toward her. No scent. No bond. Only a relentless, inexplicable obsession.
She knows the truth. She knows he is her mate. But revealing herself would put them both in danger, and risk exposing secrets she has fought to keep buried.
Now, every glance, every accidental touch, every near encounter drags them closer to a connection neither of them can deny.
In a city of shadows, power, and hidden wolves, can love survive when the bond cannot be smelled, yet cannot be ignored?
8.0
She gave him her innocence. He gave her a mark she could never escape.
Five years ago, Elena's world shattered when she was betrayed by everyone she loved. Left homeless and heartbroken, she found fleeting solace in the arms of a devastatingly handsome stranger-a single night of raw, primal passion that became her secret touchstone of strength.
Now, she's rebuilt her life from the ashes, fighting to provide for her young son. But every door she tries to open slams shut, sabotaged by a powerful, unseen force.
That force is Dax Valiente.
Billionaire. Alpha. Obsession.
As a human girl, Elena has never expected what awaits her when she walks into the Valiente Group.
That ruthless man was not just her new Boss, but the werewolf king who wants her to be his.
8.9
For fifteen years, I thought my mother had died in a tragic fire.
Then the wealthy Ross family's butler knocked on my door, revealing she was alive—locked away in the psychiatric annex of their massive estate.
I rushed into the lion's den to save her, only to run straight into Graydon Ross, the ruthless billionaire CEO.
He looked at my cheap clothes with pure disgust, convinced I was a bottom-feeding scammer trying to extort his family.
"Throw this bitch out into the snow."
He ordered his armed guards to drag me away, completely cutting off my only chance to see my mentally broken mother.
But as he violently grabbed my collar to throw me out, I saw a custom eagle-head cufflink hanging from his coat pocket.
My blood turned to ice, and a wave of paralyzing terror crashed over me.
Eight months ago, I accidentally slept with a masked stranger in a pitch-black hotel room and fled before dawn.
That cufflink belonged to him.
The man who took my virginity—the Wall Street tyrant I had been hiding from—was Graydon Ross.
If he ever found out I was that woman, he would literally destroy my life.
But to save my mother, I couldn't be thrown out.
When his grandmother suddenly appeared, I dropped to the floor, exposed the dark bruises Graydon had just left on my wrists, and sobbed.
I framed the billionaire for assault to secure my place in the mansion, forcing myself to live right next door to the monster whose bed I had fled.