Defying The Odds: His True Wife
For three years, I played the role of the quiet, obedient trophy wife to Cristian George, the most ruthless man in New York. Everyone, including me, thought ours was just a cold transaction for his family trust.
Then, his legendary first love, Hayden, returned from Europe after finalizing her divorce. She didn't just come back; she came straight for my husband.
The entire Upper East Side exploded with gossip. My phone buzzed constantly with videos of her sobbing his name in VIP clubs and friends warning me to watch my back. Hayden even showed up at my workplace, sliding a multi-million dollar tourmaline necklace across the table as a condescending welcome gift. The elite circle opened dark web betting pools, mocking me as a pathetic charity case and taking bets on how fast I would be thrown out on the freezing streets.
I was terrified. I had secretly loved him for ten years, but I was just ordinary. I hid the necklace in the darkest corner of my drawer, waiting for the executioner's blade to fall, fully expecting him to run back to his golden girl.
But when Cristian accidentally found that velvet box, his eyes didn't fill with nostalgia. They darkened with absolute, territorial rage. He didn't ask for a divorce. Instead, he pulled me into his arms, threw the multi-million dollar gem aside like actual garbage, and picked up his phone.
"Clear my schedule for Saturday evening. And book a fitting for Mrs. George."
He was going to give the city a show they would never forget.
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Chapter 5
Cristian kept his arm wrapped tight around Cassidy's shoulders as he guided her back into the master bedroom.
He pressed his hand against her lower back, forcing her to sit on the edge of the mattress. He turned and walked into the bathroom, returning a moment later with a dry, white towel.
He dropped to one knee on the floor in front of her. He lifted her right foot and began to gently wipe the dirt and dust from her sole with the towel.
Cassidy gasped. She tried to pull her foot back, her toes curling in shock. Heat rushed up her neck and burned her cheeks. "Cristian, I can wash them myself."
He ignored her protest. His grip on her ankle was firm and unyielding. He meticulously cleaned both feet before standing up and tossing the towel toward the laundry hamper.
He sat down next to her. The mattress dipped under his heavy frame, sliding her slightly closer to him.
Cristian turned his head. His dark eyes locked onto hers, intense and entirely focused. "Besides Hayden, do you have any other questions?"
Cassidy's heart skipped a beat. Her stomach fluttered. She knew this was the opening she needed.
She looked down at her hands. Her thumbnail dug into the side of her index finger, a nervous habit she could not break. A violent war raged in her head.
If she stayed a contract wife, she could be replaced tomorrow. If they had a child, the bond would be permanent.
Cassidy sucked in a deep breath of air. She forced her hands to stop fidgeting. She lifted her chin and looked straight into his dark eyes.
She gathered every ounce of courage she possessed. Her voice shook, but the words were clear. "Cristian, I want to have a baby."
The air in the bedroom vanished. The silence was so absolute she could hear the hum of the air conditioning unit.
Cristian froze. The fingers resting on his thigh twitched and curled into a loose fist. A flash of pure shock crossed his face.
He clearly had not expected his quiet, compliant wife to drop a bomb like this.
Cassidy watched his silence. The light in her eyes died. Panic seized her throat. She started to backtrack instantly.
"I mean, it was just a thought," she stammered, her words tumbling out in a rush. "If you think it is not the right time, we can forget I said anything."
She tried to stand up, desperate to escape the suffocating tension.
Cristian's large hand shot out. His fingers clamped around her wrist like a vice.
He yanked her backward. Cassidy lost her balance and crashed hard against his solid chest.
Cristian twisted his body, pinning her flat against the soft mattress. He hovered over her, his broad shoulders blocking out the light. His eyes were dark, swirling with a dangerous, predatory heat.
"Are you sure?" he asked, his voice dropping to a gravelly whisper. "If we have a child, you are permanently tied to the George family. There is no walking away."
Cassidy stared up at his handsome face. She did not hesitate. She nodded her head. It was exactly what she wanted.
Cristian's Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed. The shock in his eyes melted away, replaced by a deep, terrifyingly intense satisfaction.
He lowered his head until his lips brushed against her ear. "Alright. As you wish, Mrs. George."
The sound of her title on his lips sent a violent shiver down her spine.
Cristian's mouth crashed down on hers. It was a punishing, bruising kiss, demanding everything she had. He was punishing her for trying to run away a second ago.
Cassidy closed her eyes. She reached up, her hands gripping his wide shoulders, kissing him back with equal desperation.
He tore the buttons of her pajama top open. The fabric gave way, and the cool air hit her skin before his burning hands replaced it.
This was not their usual routine. This was raw, desperate, and completely consuming.
Hours later, the sky outside began to lighten. Cassidy lay exhausted, her head resting on Cristian's arm. She fell asleep with a small, secure smile on her lips.
Cristian lay awake in the dark. He stared at her sleeping face. His fingers gently traced the curve of her cheek. His eyes were dark and unreadable, swirling with a heavy, unspoken possessiveness that he himself had not fully realized yet.
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7.7
My husband, Bennett, and I were New York's golden couple. But our perfect marriage was a lie, childless because of a rare genetic condition he claimed would kill any woman who carried his baby. When his dying father demanded an heir, Bennett proposed a solution: a surrogate.
The woman he chose, Aria, was a younger, more vibrant version of me. Suddenly, Bennett was always busy, supporting her through "difficult IVF cycles." He missed my birthday. He forgot our anniversary.
I tried to believe him, until I overheard him at a party. He confessed to his friends that his love for me was a "deep connection," but with Aria, it was "fire" and "exhilarating."
He was planning a secret wedding with her in Lake Como, at the same villa he'd promised me for our anniversary.
He was giving her a wedding, a family, a life—all the things he denied me, using a lie about a deadly genetic condition as his excuse. The betrayal was so complete it felt like a physical shock.
When he came home that night, lying about a business trip, I smiled and played the part of the loving wife.
He didn't know I'd heard everything.
He didn't know that while he was planning his new life, I was already planning my escape.
And he certainly didn't know I had just made a call to a service that specialized in one thing: making people disappear.
8.1
Born into luxury, Hermione Watson-Pierce has always felt like merely a pawn in her parents' ruthless game of power. She learned to suppress her emotions, earning herself the title of the "Ice Queen."
Just then, Aiden Mendes bursts into her life-a charming playboy known for his reckless reputation. Aiden chooses to cope with his inner turmoil through a lavish lifestyle, using his charisma and striking looks to keep others at bay.
A looming threat forces them to face a contracted marriage or risk losing their inheritance. When they first meet, Aiden is struck by an unexpected attraction, as if it were love at first sight. Yet, his notorious reputation precedes him, and Hermione makes no effort to hide her disdain.
As their contractual marriage evolves into a battle of wills, Aiden must work to melt Hermione's icy heart, proving that he is more than what meets the eye. But can he persuade her to rise above her prejudices and bravely pursue love?
8.8
I was the despised adopted daughter of the Sanders family, hiding behind heavy gothic makeup and enduring their daily disgust.
The day my adoptive father died in a severe car crash, my adoptive mother and stepsister didn't even bother to call me.
Instead, while his body was still warm, my mother filed a multi-million dollar life insurance claim.
"I am not feeding a useless freak for another day. Pack your trash and get out."
She kicked me out into the freezing rain, but that wasn't the worst of it.
My stepsister Cornelia stole my greatest secret. Five years ago, I saved the life of Fidel Vaughan, a ruthless billionaire heir, from a burning estate.
Cornelia claimed my identity, accepted a million-dollar reward, and secured a marriage proposal from him, burning my only proof to ashes.
They thought I was just a helpless, pathetic high schooler they could discard and replace.
But when I hacked the police files, I discovered my father's crash wasn't an accident. It was a targeted hit, and the Vaughan Group had hijacked the traffic cameras to cover it up.
I washed off the ugly black makeup, shedding the disguise of a pathetic outcast.
I am Spectre, the world's most elusive hacker and underground doctor.
I intercepted the billionaire heir's heavily armed convoy in the dead of night. They thought they could steal my life and murder my father, but now, I hold the needle that controls Fidel Vaughan's sanity, and I will make them all pay.
9.4
I spent the night with a stranger...
Who got me pregnant...
And turned out to be my boss...
Whoops, sorry, did I say "boss"? I meant a MOB boss.
To be fair, I didn't know he was my boss when I slept with him.
I thought he was just the kind stranger offering me a place to stay.
But one night in Misha Orlov's hotel room got me way more than I bargained for.
It got me champagne that tasted like starlight.
Satin sheets as soft as a dream.
And a man with silver eyes who showed me how it felt to come undone.
And then, in the morning...
He was gone.
That's I needed to get my life together anyway.
After all, my ex-not-quite-husband (it's a long story) just emptied all our bank accounts and disappeared, taking my home and my money and my job with him.
So I'm starting from a blank slate.
I find myself a new apartment.
A new job.
And I put both Misha and my husband behind me.
At least, I thought I did.
Until Day 1 of orientation.
When I learn that Misha Orlov is my new boss.
That's bad enough.
What's worse is what came next.
A car crash.
A doctor's appointment.
And two pieces of unsettling news.
Congratulations, the doctor says. You're pregnant.
Congratulations, Misha says. You and I are getting married.
7.1
Bonnie Galvan woke up to the suffocating scent of lilies, staring at the mirror in the exact same seven-figure wedding dress she had worn seven years ago.
In the doorway stood her so-called best friend Itzel and her secret lover Erwin, desperately urging her to elope.
They warned her that her soon-to-be husband, the billionaire Arlington Townsend, was a crippled monster, and marrying him would ruin her life forever.
In her previous life, she blindly believed their lies and ran away from the altar.
Because of her public betrayal, the ruthless Townsend family completely bankrupted her father's company in retaliation.
Erwin and Itzel swooped in as her saviors, only to steal whatever was left of her family's wealth and power.
When she was finally stripped of her value, Erwin pushed her down an icy mountain slope during a brutal blizzard.
With a shattered ankle, she could only watch as Itzel smirked and Erwin coldly walked away, leaving her to be buried alive under the freezing snow.
As her lungs burned and her heart gave out in the agonizing cold, she was consumed by hatred.
Why did the man who swore to protect her and the friend she trusted with her life plot so meticulously to destroy her?
Opening her eyes again, Bonnie was back in the bridal suite, minutes before the ceremony.
This time, she didn't run.
She walked straight down the aisle, looked the terrifying Arlington Townsend in the eye, and firmly said her vows.
"I do."
9.5
Janet woke up gasping, the phantom fire of a deadly explosion still scorching her lungs. She had been reborn three years in the past, on the exact day her mother forced her into a marriage contract with Gaylord Bradford, a paralyzed and severely disfigured billionaire.
Before she could even process her second chance, her cousin Kandy kicked the bedroom door open, flaunting a massive diamond ring. Kandy, who had also been reborn, smugly announced she had stolen Janet's Wall Street golden boy fiancé, Jax Adler.
"You're going to marry that paralyzed monster," Kandy spat, gloating that she would build a billionaire dynasty with Jax while Janet wiped drool off a rotting corpse. Kandy expected Janet to have a complete mental collapse, completely unaware that Gaylord's own medical team was secretly injecting him with lethal neurotoxins to finish him off.
But Janet only felt a cold, clinical pity. Kandy's "prophetic" memories were a polluted lie. Jax was actually sterile and dying of irreversible kidney failure, while Gaylord wasn't a dying freak—he was a dormant god whose body was merely in a high-dimensional hibernation. Why would Janet mourn losing a doomed fraud?
Leaving her delusional cousin behind, Janet packed her bags and headed straight to Gaylord's maximum-security military cell. She physically tackled his corrupt doctor, drove three bio-electric silver needles into the crippled king's spine to awaken his deadened nerves, and looked him dead in his glacial blue eye.
"Sign the marriage contract," Janet whispered. "I will make you walk again, and we will take back everything."