Finding Hope Where Heartbreak Once Lingered
For three years of their secret relationship, Claire was sure Carsten would never let her down.
But she overestimated herself and underestimated the hold his first love had on him.
Three years of devotion ended with him suggesting she marry someone else, saying, "In six months, after your divorce, I'll marry you."
Heartbroken, Claire walked away and vowed to never betray her new husband.
What started as an arranged marriage blossomed into something real.
Carsten, desperate, searched endlessly for her-only to be met by a nobleman who protected Claire and their unborn child, telling him to let go.
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Chapter 5
Inside the small box lay a carefully arranged collection—a provocative maid costume, delicate lingerie, and various intimate accessories clearly meant for couples.
Placed prominently at the very center was a thick volume boldly titled "A Guide to Marital Bliss and Intimacy."
The moment Claire registered what lay inside, her heartbeat stalled, and her body stiffened as though frozen in place.
"What the hell is this?" Danny exploded, his voice sharp with fury. "What exactly is Logan trying to pull here? He got engaged to Claire just last night, and this is what he sends her? And he even had the audacity to call and ask whether she liked it?"
"Hurry—remove it! Take it away at once!" Turning her head aside in discomfort, Ivy urgently motioned for a servant to remove the box.
Harold's face hardened instantly. The gift went far beyond humiliating Claire—it was a blatant trampling of the Dale family's pride.
Yet the Dale family was mired in crisis, utterly dependent on the Carters for survival.
Even under such degradation, they were left with no choice but silent endurance.
The longer Danny dwelled on it, the more his anger boiled over. He turned sharply, fixing Carsten with a glare full of accusation. "So this is the man you handpicked, out of all possibilities, to be Claire's husband?"
All color drained from Carsten's face. After a prolonged silence, he slowly lifted his gaze to Claire, his voice rough and strained. "Claire… I'm sorry you're being subjected to this. Once—"
"I'm fine," Claire said softly, forcing down her disappointment as she lifted her eyes to his chiseled features with a faint smile. "Logan and I are officially engaged. Sex life is inevitable anyway."
Ignoring Carsten's smoldering stare, she hurried after the servant, seized the box, and hugged it tightly to herself, saying, "What he sent is actually rather useful. I'm sure I'll need them eventually."
She turned deliberately toward Carsten, her gaze openly challenging. "I don't have Logan's phone number. Could you pass a message to him on my behalf? Tell him I'm very pleased with the gift—and grateful for his consideration."
Clutching the box to her chest, she turned and ascended the stairs.
Ivy's voice followed her, heavy with a quiet sigh. "Claire… it's admirable that you're able to see things so clearly…"
Relief was evident in Harold's tone. "Claire has always been a level-headed child…"
Danny's expression darkened with displeasure. "You pushed Claire into marrying that man. What choice did you leave her but to accept it?"
Ivy interrupted him sharply, "We never forced Claire into it. She consented to it of her own will…"
As the family's voices echoed behind her, Claire ascended the stairs slowly, step by step.
Even after entering her room, she heard no movement or voice from Carsten below.
A soft, self-derisive laugh escaped her lips. She stepped fully inside and stared vacantly at the contents of the box.
Absent from the engagement ceremony itself. And sending a gift like this—his disdain and mockery were unmistakable.
Yet it was the Carter family who had initiated this marriage arrangement. And Logan himself had personally requested her hand.
She could not comprehend what Logan truly wanted from her.
...
"If you could understand a psychopath's mind, you'd be one yourself," Addison sighed. She looped her arm through Claire's as they walked through the crowded mall in central Fiklens. "I heard Logan is seriously messed up—he…"
She abruptly stopped, suddenly recalling that Claire was now Logan's fiancée. She swallowed the rest of what she was about to say. "Forget it. I don't want to upset you."
Claire turned her head, her gaze calm and unwavering. "You mean the rumors? The ones saying Logan fell in love with his sister-in-law, arranged the car accident that killed his brother, and that his sister-in-law later jumped to her death?"
Addison froze in shock. "You… you knew all along?"
A faint smile curved Claire's lips. She pulled Addison into a nearby high-end jewelry store and said evenly, "Danny's already told me all about it—many times."
She had heard it so frequently that it had lost all impact.
Addison hurried to her side, confusion written all over her face. "If you knew all that, then why would you still…"
Claire gestured for a sales assistant to bring over a newly released ring. She slid it onto her finger, studying its reflection with measured attention. "Because he was the one who arranged this marriage."
Addison instantly understood that the "he" she meant was Carsten.
She knitted her brows, confusion deepening across her face. "Didn't you say you no longer have feelings for him? Then why are you still doing exactly what he tells you to do?"
"It's exactly because I no longer care about him that I accepted." Claire removed the ring from her finger and passed it calmly back to the sales assistant. "After my parents died, Harold and Ivy took me in. They were the ones who raised me for twelve full years."
She raised her eyes and fixed Addison with a solemn, steady look. "By marrying Logan, I return the Dale family's kindness, gain a legitimate reason to leave their home, and finally cut ties with Carsten—all in one move. Isn't that the ideal solution?"
Addison's brows furrowed deeply. "But you're marrying a lunatic. For the rest of your life."
"I won't be tied to him that long." Claire smiled faintly, took a different ring from the assistant, and slipped it onto her finger. "I'll make sure he grows to hate me."
A man like Logan would never endure a prolonged marriage with a woman he loathed.
The corner of Addison's mouth twitched involuntarily. "Seems like you might be even more unhinged than he is."
Claire found herself amused by Addison's reaction. She was just about to respond when a female voice called out from the store's entrance, "Claire?"
Claire froze the instant she heard the voice. She slowly turned toward the source of the sound.
Wearing white, Daisy sat in a wheelchair as Carsten gently pushed her into the jewelry store.
The moment Claire turned her face, Daisy's face brightened with delight. "So it really is you!" said Daisy.
Her gaze shifted to Claire's finger, immediately catching sight of the diamond ring. "Claire, I heard you became engaged last night. Are you picking out your wedding ring? But… doesn't that one seem a little… too small? And how could you choose a wedding ring with only a friend by your side? Why isn't Mr. Carter here with you?"
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8.7
Lina Carter was just a waitress trying to make ends meet. On the other hand, Alexander Knight was a billionaire who would do anything to safeguard his empire. When he proposes a deal for her to be his fake girlfriend, it seems straightforward, he act like she loves him, stick to the rules, and walk away with a nice payday. No feelings involved. No strings attached. No room for error.
But as they share fake kisses, those moments turn into lingering glances. What starts as cold, business-like orders shifts into a quiet sense of protection. Suddenly, the line between pretense and reality begins to blur.
Then, out of nowhere, his ex-fiancée reappears-gorgeous, ruthless, and hell-bent on ruining Lina's life. When the truth about their arrangement comes to light, Lina finds herself publicly humiliated, tossed aside as if she never mattered at all. She walks away with her pride shattered, but her heart still whole.
Now, the man who once paid her to pretend is realizing he wants her for real. But some betrayals cut too deep... and some love stories start with a lie that's just too painful to forgive. She was brought in to act. He ended up falling for her for real.
7.4
Briony was devastated when her boyfriend proposed to her best friend in front of her. Not only was she betrayed, but she was also publicly humiliated.
Five years later, she became popular after writing her heartbreaking love story into a novel. Her ex-boyfriend was offended. When he condemned her, she swore she would have nothing to do with him anymore.
Unfortunately, fate had other plans. Briony accidentally hit a child with her car, who turned out to be the son of Alexander, her ex-boyfriend! As punishment, she was forced to be his nanny until his cast arm healed.
What would happen next? Could she endure the torture from the ex who secretly still wanted her?
8.1
When the private elevator pinged. That was the moment Eleanor's two-and-a-half years as a billionaire's perfect fake girlfriend abruptly ended.
Julian was terminating her services early because his real first love was moving into the penthouse tomorrow.
His assistant stood by the marble counter, bracing for a screaming match. He handed over a brutal non-disclosure agreement.
He slid a five-million-dollar check across the table, fully expecting her to cry, beg, or throw the money back in his face.
"Miss Palmer... Giselle is moving in tomorrow," he warned.
Instead, Eleanor calmly borrowed his Montblanc pen, signed her name three times without hesitation, and slipped the money into her planner.
"Congratulations to Mr. Caldwell-Prentice on finally getting what he wants," she smiled flawlessly.
They all thought she was just a high-end, emotionless mercenary who felt absolutely nothing for the men she served.
They didn't know she was actually Cara Love, the last surviving heir of the ruined Love Foundation, living under a fake name to avenge her dead father.
For years, she swallowed her burning hatred, playing the perfect emotional substitute to buy dark web intel and hide her unnatural, rapid-healing body from a ruthless medical syndicate.
But now, a tech billionaire client had just uncovered her true identity, and her burner phone flashed with a terrifying emergency alert.
The syndicate had found her.
Eleanor grabbed her suitcase and ordered the private jet back to New York.
The facade was over; it was time to face the deadly storm.
8.6
Kim had thought she could live without Ari. Without the laughter, the late night talks, the quiet warmth of someone who felt like home. But Ari returned changed, apologetic and impossible to ignore. Loving her once nearly Kim. Loving her again might just heal her. Some loves never really end...they just wait.
8.7
My Obsession
8.7
Power. Desire. Blood.
Lauretta Owens has everything-money, beauty, and power that makes even Alphas step back. As CEO of LuneArt Studios, she rules her world with poise and precision. But beneath her confidence lies a secret hunger-to have a little baby of her own though she doesn't care about men or relationships.
One wild night in Manhattan changes everything when she meets Savior Hunt-a devastatingly handsome stranger whose aura screams danger and dominance. Neither of them knows that their encounter will awaken an ancient feud buried in blood.
Lauretta is the daughter of a banished wolf family. Savior is the only heir of the pack that destroyed them.
When passion turns to obsession, and obsession turns to destiny, both must face the truth: they were never meant to love each other... yet they can't stay away.
Torn between duty and desire, loyalty and love, they risk everything to be together-even if it means defying the moon itself.
My Obsession is a dark, seductive werewolf romance filled with explosive chemistry, pack politics, and forbidden passion.
Two powerful souls. One cursed bond.
And a love so dangerous, it could start a war.
8.0
For five years, my husband kept me in a dog cage because he believed I murdered his fiancée, my stepsister Kinsley.
He stripped me of my dignity, my name, and my humanity, all to avenge a woman who wasn't even dead.
When Kinsley finally returned, alive and smiling, I thought my nightmare was over.
Instead, she framed me again.
Right in front of Courtland, she pushed my little brother down the stone steps of the estate.
I held my brother's broken body in the rain, screaming for help.
But Courtland just stood there, shielding Kinsley under his umbrella, looking at me with cold indifference.
He chose the monster over his wife.
That night, I realized love wasn't enough to save me.
So, I stood on the edge of the hospital roof and let gravity take me.
I wanted him to mourn. I wanted him to suffer. I wanted him to burn.
Three years later, at a gala in New York, the Ice King dropped his champagne glass.
He stared at me—the woman in the red dress, the fiancée of his rival.
I looked him dead in the eye and smiled like a stranger.
He cornered me later, his voice trembling with rage and obsession.
"Death is the only divorce in my world, Anastasia. And you are still very much alive."