Bound To The Ruthless Wall Street Butcher

I was trapped in a velvet booth at Le Bernardin, Arthur Sterling’s hand crawling up my knee as he whispered that my father would be in handcuffs by morning if I didn't spend the night with him. Desperate to escape, I lunged at the only man more dangerous than Arthur—Gunnar Kirk, the "Butcher of Wall Street"—and kissed him in front of every camera in the room, thinking I was choosing the lesser of two evils. I was wrong; Gunnar didn't just play along, he took possession, forcing me into a cold-blooded contract to be his fake fiancée to save his corporate image from an SEC investigation. While my greedy stepmother and sister were busy fighting over the diamonds he sent, I was living in terror, trying to hide the one thing that truly mattered: my infant son, hidden away with a nanny in a cramped Queens apartment. When my baby suffered a febrile seizure and I rushed to the ER, I looked up to see Gunnar standing in the doorway, his glacial eyes boring into me as he realized the "ruined" socialite was hiding a child from her past. I tried to sabotage the wedding, setting up my fame-hungry stepsister as a decoy bride so I could flee to Switzerland with my son, but Gunnar caught me on the fire escape before I could take a single step toward freedom. He threw me over his shoulder like a sack of flour and told me that if I didn't walk down that aisle, he would personally ensure my father rotted in prison. We stood at the altar and exchanged vows in a ceremony built on blackmail and lies, but as we walked out as husband and wife, Gunnar didn't look at me with affection; he turned to his assistant and ordered a total deep dive into the medical records I had spent a year trying to erase. "Find out exactly what happened during those nine months in Switzerland, and tell me who that baby really belongs to."

Chapters

Chapter 5

The Baxter townhouse was a rotting tooth in a row of perfect smiles. Inside, it smelled of stale wine and desperation.

Elayne found her father, Richard, slumped on the sofa. Meredith was pacing, screaming into her phone.

"They wouldn't let me in! Me!" Meredith shrieked when she saw Elayne. "You useless girl! Why didn't you come get me?"

Elayne walked past her. "I was busy saving us from your debts."

"Don't you walk away from me!"

"Meredith, shut up," Richard groaned. "Leave her alone."

Elayne locked her bedroom door and leaned against it. She slid to the floor.

She crawled to her closet and pried up a loose floorboard. Beneath it was a baby monitor.

She turned it on. The grainy green image showed a crib. A small lump was breathing rhythmically. He was safe. He was at her former nanny's apartment in Queens.

She dialed the nanny, Mrs. Higgins.

"I need to move him," Elayne whispered. "Tomorrow morning. Early."

"He's warm, Elayne," Mrs. Higgins said, her voice worried. "He's been fussy all evening."

"It's just teething," Elayne said, trying to convince herself. "I'll be there at six."

She went to the window. She pulled back the curtain.

Two black SUVs were parked across the street. Men in suits were leaning against them.

Gunnar's men.

He hadn't just sent her home. He had put her under house arrest.

Elayne couldn't leave. If she walked out with a bag, they would follow. If she went to Queens, she would lead them straight to the baby.

She didn't sleep.

At 7:55 AM, Cornell knocked on the door. Behind him was a team of stylists holding garment bags.

"Good morning, Miss Baxter," Cornell said.

"I need to change," Elayne said. "I'll use the downstairs powder room."

She went into the small bathroom and locked the door. She turned on the faucet loud.

She opened the small window above the toilet. It opened into a narrow alleyway filled with trash cans. It was the only blind spot.

Elayne squeezed through. She dropped into a pile of garbage bags, landing hard on her ankle. Pain shot up her leg, but she bit her lip and scrambled up.

She ran. She limped through the alley, out onto the side street, and flagged down a taxi.

"Queens," she gasped. "Fast."

Her phone buzzed. Mrs. Higgins.

"Elayne, he's burning up. It's 104. He's having a seizure."

Elayne's world stopped. The plan to hide him, the plan to run-it all vanished.

"Take him to Lenox Hill," Elayne screamed at the driver. "Turn around! Go to the hospital!"

She didn't care about Gunnar. She didn't care about the contract. Her son was dying.

She burst into the ER waiting room twenty minutes later. Mrs. Higgins was there, holding the small bundle.

Elayne grabbed her son. His skin was on fire.

"Help!" she screamed. "Someone help him!"

Nurses swarmed. They took the baby. Elayne collapsed into a chair, shaking uncontrollably.

She sat there for an hour, staring at the floor.

Then, she noticed the silence. The ER had gone quiet.

She looked up.

Standing at the entrance of the waiting area was Cornell Conrad. He wasn't looking at her. He was adjusting his glasses.

Behind him, walking through the automatic doors, was Gunnar Kirk.

He looked out of place in the sterile, fluorescent light. He looked like a storm cloud.

He walked straight to her. He stopped.

A nurse came out. "Ms. Baxter? The baby is stable. It was a febrile seizure. He's fine."

Elayne sobbed with relief.

Gunnar looked at the nurse. Then he looked at Elayne. Then he looked at the door where the baby was.

"Whose is it?" Gunnar asked. His voice was devoid of emotion.

Elayne stood up. Her mind raced. "A friend's," she lied. "She... she's in surgery. I'm the emergency contact."

Gunnar stared at her. His eyes bored into hers. He knew she was lying. But he didn't care.

"Mr. Kirk," Cornell interrupted gently. "The press is outside. A freelancer followed us from the house. They saw her come in with the child."

Gunnar's jaw tightened. Cornell was already on his phone, his voice a low, brutal command to a subordinate. "Buy the photographer's memory card. And his car, if you have to. The story is that Miss Baxter was visiting a child from the gallery's outreach program. Plant it. Now." He hung up and looked at Gunnar. "Get in the car, Elayne. Now."

"I can't leave him!"

"Cornell will handle the... friend's child," Gunnar said coldly. "You are coming with me. Unless you want the world to see my fiancée holding a bastard child in a public ER."

Continue to next part

"𝐒𝐡𝐡𝐡....𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞. 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐫𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐭, 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞. 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐭." * He marries her to execute his father's cruel revenge plan. She marries him to save her family. He is cold and feared by many. She is soft and beloved by many. What happens when they're thrust into an arranged marriage and they begin craving more than each other's mere presence?

Action Modern Romance

8.6

Do I Have A Thing With My Professor?

8.6

Lilac Stone once wanted nothing more than being unnoticed. But everything changed the moment she met Adrian Cole, the new lecturer. He's distant and completely off-limits. She's quiet, guarded, and unprepared for the way he sees right through her. What begins as harmless conversations after class quickly turns into something far more dangerous-something neither of them can stop no matter how hard they try. But then they're living in a world where rules are meant to be followed, and their connection is one line they were never supposed to cross. Whispers turn to accusations. Secrets are exposed. Their futures are at risk. They are merely two opposites-a lecturer and a student, a male and a female-but they are bound to destroy each other as long as they are huddled in one space at the same time. What then can they choose: forfeit their futures and embrace their happiness, or let the latter slip while keeping their careers intact?

Action Sci-Fi Young Adult

9.5

His Ruthless Claim

9.5

Isla Rivera's mistake was being too good at her job. When she uncovers money laundering at Vitale Imports, she becomes the captive of Dante Vitale - a dangerous mafia don who needs her forensic accounting skills to find the traitor stealing from his empire. The deal is simple: find who's taken fifty million, or lose everything she loves. But nothing about Dante is simple. Behind the ruthless exterior is a man who never chose this life, who protects innocents even as he rules a world built on blood and power. A man whose dark eyes see straight through Isla's defenses, awakening a desire she never expected to feel for her captor. As Isla unravels a conspiracy buried deep inside Dante's own family, the professional arrangement turns personal. Every heated glance, every stolen moment in his penthouse pulls them closer, blurring the line between fear and forbidden attraction. When she uncovers the truth - the enemy is someone Dante once trusted - the stakes explode. Now Isla must choose between walking away safely, or standing beside the dangerous man who has claimed both her heart and her fate. Because she's no longer just his prisoner. She's his partner. And some bonds are forged in fire, loyalty... and love. Mafia Romance • Enemies to Lovers • Forced Proximity • Dark Romance • HEA Guarantee

Action Mafia Romance

9.3

Luciano's Forbidden Desire

9.3

She's sin wrapped in a nun habit. He is the devil who makes her want to confess. Luciano Moretti, the mafia's most feared enforcer, kills without hesitation, prays to no god, and bleeds for the Cosa Nostra. Sister Elizabeth has spent her life behind church walls, burying her desires under layers of penance and prayer. She is supposed to be untouchable-a quiet, secluded nun devoted to faith. But when she finds him bleeding on the altar one night, their worlds collide in a sin neither heaven nor hell can cleanse. He's meant to marry her sister to seal a deal between two mafia empires. She's meant to keep her vows and distance. But temptation has a cruel sense of humour... Because he's the last man she should want. She's the only woman he can't have. But one touch, one look, and everything sacred begins to crumble. Luciano does not seek salvation. Instead, he lures her into a dangerous path, one that includes everything she is meant to avoid, and everytime she whispers "forgive me, Father," her soul sinks deeper into him. As bloodlines clash and loyalty turns to betrayal, Elizabeth learns that the war outside the chapel isn't the only one she must survive. Because Luciano's world is built on violence and secrets, one of which binds her fate to his in ways neither of them saw coming. Desire clashes with devotion. Duty turns to betrayal. And when they're both drowning in a love so forbidden, not even God can save them.

Action Mafia Romance

9.5

My Husband's Affair, My Anniversary Gift

9.5

"You'll be my wife on paper only. You'll have everything-except my heart. You'll never be Marina." For five years, Lily lived as David's secret wife-his poised secretary by day, his invisible stand-in by night. Every cold touch reminded her she was just a replacement. Every whispered "Marina" cut deeper than the last. Their marriage was born from an accidental night-a mistake he turned into a contract. He wanted nothing but an image and a convenience, yet she foolishly gave him her whole heart. So when the real Marina returns, Lily knows her time as the placeholder is up. David's actions make it clear: she was only ever a convenient replacement. Without a fight, she signs the divorce papers and walks away, surrendering the position he always wanted to give to another. But why is it that the man who once swore he'd never love her... now refuses to let her go? David doesn't understand why Lily's absence haunts him. Why her quiet strength burns him in ways Marina never did. All he knows is that he's determined to get her back. By any means necessary. Even if it meant breaking her all over again. She paid the price for loving him once. Now, he'd pay for losing her forever.

Action Modern Romance

9.6

Possessed By The Mogul's Dark Will

9.6

I was his possession. The entire world knew that Jackson Walters, the ruthless tech mogul, had destroyed my life to claim me. Then he brought home his new intern, Kaila, and sat me down. "I've decided," he said casually, "I want you both." When I fought back, he dragged me to a remote warehouse to teach me a lesson. My parents were bound and gagged, suspended by ropes over a massive, grumbling wood chipper. He gave me ten seconds to accept Kaila, or he'd drop them. "I agree!" I screamed in surrender. But it was too late. A frayed rope snapped, and I watched my parents plunge into the machine's grinding teeth. The horror of it all killed me. But when I opened my eyes again, I was back in his bed. The date on my phone was the day he brought Kaila home. This time, I wouldn't fight him. I would be his perfect, obedient wife. And while he was distracted, I would fake my own death and disappear forever.

Action Horror Romance

Bound To The Ruthless Wall Street Butcher

Chapter 5

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