Flash Marriage To The Billionaire CEO
She wanted stability. She found Adrian Blackwell. Dominant, dangerous, and determined to make her his.
After catching her boyfriend of three years cheating, Elena Carter swore never to fall in love again. On a reckless whim, she walked into a blind date arranged by her family and impulsively proposed a flash marriage.
All she wanted was a quiet, dependable man.
What she got was Adrian Blackwell-a ruthless billionaire known for crushing rivals with a single glance. Cold to the world, dangerously charming behind closed doors, Adrian doesn't ask. He takes.
From the moment she slips on his ring, Adrian makes one thing clear:
"You're mine, Elena. No man touches what belongs to me."
But as whispers of his past lovers surface, Elena's heart twists with emotions she swore she'd buried-jealousy, heartbreak... longing. Then, a brutal accident unearths a forgotten memory: a reckless one-night stand years ago... with the same face as her husband's.
Everything falls into place.
Every twist, every detour
It was always Adrian.
Chapters
Share
Chapter 4
The flashbulbs hit Elena like a firing squad. Even through the tinted window of Adrian's Bentley, she could see the press crowding the velvet ropes outside the Blackwell-owned restaurant. Reporters barked questions as though they could claw through glass.
"Smile," Adrian said from beside her, sliding his phone into his jacket. His tone wasn't a suggestion. "If you want to make it out of this car without a scandal in tomorrow's paper, you'll smile."
Elena turned her head slowly, meeting his cool gray eyes with a look that was anything but sweet. "I don't do tricks on command," she said. "I'm not your performing poodle."
His lips curved - not in amusement, but in warning. "Then consider it a command to protect your parents. They're already inside."
That landed like a dart. Elena forced her nails into her palm to keep from flinching. "Fine. I'll smile. But not for you."
The chauffeur opened her door, and the storm broke. Dozens of cameras, the crackling static of shouted questions, the rhythmic thump of helicopter rotors overhead. Adrian stepped out first, a wall of calm in an Armani suit. He extended a hand as if it were an invitation. In truth, it was an order.
Elena ignored it, swinging herself gracefully out of the car without his help. Gasps from the crowd. The tabloids were going to eat that alive.
"Miss Carter! Is it true you married Mr. Blackwell after one date?"
"Are you pregnant?"
"Adrian! Is this a merger or a marriage?"
Elena tilted her chin up and flashed the kind of dazzling, dangerous smile that made gossip columnists salivate. "Why settle for one date," she called out sweetly, "when you can skip straight to the vows?"
A ripple of laughter went through the press line. Adrian didn't even glance at her, but the muscle in his jaw flexed once - a tiny tic that told her she'd hit a nerve.
Inside, the restaurant was sealed off from the chaos, heavy doors shutting out the roar. A hostess ushered them to a private dining room glittering with crystal and candlelight. At the far end of the table sat her parents, glowing with pride like they'd just handed her over to royalty.
"Elena!" her mother gushed, rising to hug her. "Darling, you look radiant!"
"And Adrian," her father added, shaking the CEO's hand with both of his own. "We can't thank you enough. This marriage means... so much to us."
Elena's stomach twisted. Of course it did. Their company was circling the drain, and Adrian Blackwell was their lifeboat - a lifeboat with teeth.
"Anything for family," Adrian said smoothly, sliding Elena's chair out for her. "You raised a remarkable daughter."
"Remarkable is one word for it," Elena muttered as she sat, crossing her legs.
Dinner began with polite conversation, but beneath the linen and wine, Elena felt the weight of control tightening around her throat. Her parents hung on Adrian's every word, laughing at his razor-dry jokes, praising his business acumen. He spoke just enough to charm them, just enough to remind Elena that he could destroy or save them with a single signature.
Halfway through the main course, Marcus appeared at Adrian's shoulder, murmured something, and withdrew to stand by the door like a shadow. Elena caught his eye - and for a split second, his look was almost pitying. Almost.
When Adrian turned to discuss a merger with her father, Marcus leaned close enough for only her to hear.
"Careful," he said softly. "Blackwell doesn't like being made a fool of. And you've been testing him since you stepped out of that car."
Elena smirked, swirling her wine. "Good. Let him test me back. I bite."
Marcus's expression didn't change, but his voice dropped an octave. "This isn't a game, Mrs. Blackwell. Men who cross him don't always walk away."
Elena arched a brow. "Thanks for the bedtime story, Marcus. But I don't scare easy."
By dessert, Adrian had wrapped her parents fully in silk. When the last champagne flute was drained, he excused himself with perfect manners and led Elena out through a side corridor to avoid the paparazzi still swarming the front.
The moment they were alone in the car, his composure cracked - not much, but enough to make the air electric.
"Cute stunt outside," Adrian said mildly, loosening his cufflinks. "Not taking my hand. Joking about skipping straight to vows. The press loved it."
Elena turned toward him, eyes flashing. "Good. You wanted them talking about us, didn't you?"
"I wanted them talking about the image I control," he corrected, voice like ice. "Not the one you invent to amuse yourself."
She leaned in, her lips curling. "Maybe I'm not here to amuse you. Maybe I'm here to remind you that I'm not some pawn you can move around your little empire."
His gaze darkened, and for a moment, the space between them felt too small. "Careful, Elena. Pawns that get out of line don't make it across the board."
"Then promote me," she shot back. "Queen me. Because I'm not bowing to you."
The Bentley rolled to a stop outside the Blackwell estate, tension humming louder than the engine. Adrian opened his own door this time without waiting for the driver, then circled to hers - not out of courtesy, but because he wasn't giving her a chance to walk away first.
As they stepped into the marble silence of the mansion, Adrian's voice dropped to a whisper that slid under her skin like smoke.
"You like playing games, Elena? Fine. But remember - I never lose."
Elena met his stare without blinking, fire for fire. "Neither do I."
You may also like
9.0
Velma spent ten years as Dylan's wife, enduring his mother's cruelty and constant reminders that she was barren-an orphan who didn't deserve him. When she finally became pregnant after a decade of trying, everything fell apart.
Forced to sign divorce papers, heartbroken and pregnant, Velma disappeared.
Five years later, she returned as the world's most famous artist. By her side: Theron, a patient and wealthy man who helped her rebuild her life, and the son Dylan never knew existed.
She came back for an art exhibition, but fate forced her to work at Dylan's fashion company.
The moment Dylan saw her, everything changed. She was no longer the quiet, broken woman he'd divorced. She was confident, powerful, radiant-and married to another man.
Dylan groveled. He begged. He humbled himself in ways he never imagined, willing to do anything to reclaim the wife he'd lost for a second chance.
But Velma was no longer the woman who lived in anyone's shadow.
Will she forgive the man who broke her heart? Choose the man who rebuilt her? Or rewrite the rules and have them both?
Click to find out... This is a why choose when she can have both book.
9.4
On our wedding anniversary, I came home to find my husband, Jace, celebrating with another woman in our living room.
She was wearing my mother's necklace-the only thing recovered from the explosion that killed my parents. Jace laughed, calling it a "cheap piece of junk," and tried to write me a check to buy a new one.
His family called my parents' ashes "garbage" and "unsanitary." When I confronted them, Jace sided with his mother, ordering me out of the penthouse I secretly owned. He let his friends publicly humiliate me, calling me a gold-digging leech with no background.
But that wasn't the worst of it. When a gunman stormed the restaurant we were in, Jace shoved me directly into the line of fire to shield his mistress.
The shotgun blast tore through my arm. As I lay bleeding on the marble floor, I stared at the man who had just used me as a human shield, his face pale with terror as he protected her.
In that instant, every ounce of love I ever had for him died. The pain in my arm was nothing compared to the cold, hollow void that consumed my heart.
He thought he was sacrificing a quiet, useless wife to secure his future. He had no idea he had just declared war on Captain Cilla Henson, West Point valedictorian and the most lethal operator of the Eagle Task Force.
7.5
Amelia has slaved her whole life, working multiple jobs to help support her poor husband Caleb― only to discover he is a millionaire!
When confronted, Caleb feels no guilt. He divorces her immediately to pursue his true love, leaving her with nothing to her name.
"Kelsie is the woman that I love, the woman who truly deserves to be by my side," Caleb said. "Now, sign the papers and I can end this farce of a marriage."
But thankfully, fate has yet to close all its doors on her.
The messy breakup has led Amelia to meet the elusive Matteo Montgomery, the mysterious owner of X'el International Inc., and even though Amelia could have sworn that this is the first time they have ever met, Matteo seemed to hold more interest in her than ordinary.
With her divorce finalized, Matteo's courtship quickly grows more extravagant. He offers her everything, from a job as his secretary, a new penthouse apartment, and a permanent home in his heart.
But just as Amelia's heart begins to open up to Matteo's sincerity, Caleb comes crawling back, determined to ruin her life.
***
[Excerpt]
"Oh?" Matteo asked, and Amelia caught a hint of amusement in his voice. "Then pray tell, what did we converse about?"
Amelia swallowed. Good heavens, he was so close. She could barely even breathe, afraid that every movement she made would just amplify how loud her heartbeat was. It was racing like a bullet train at this point, and she felt it clog at her throat, refusing her a chance to speak.
"I... I...I―"
"I have no girlfriend, Amelia," Matteo said. "And before you overthink, I do not have a wife in secret either."
His fingers didn't let go of her wrist, and instead, it even tightened its grip. It wasn't painful in the slightest, but it sent surges of electricity rushing through her body as though she had been struck by lightning in the most thrilling of ways.
A coy smile curved his lips, and he leaned in just the slightest. His lips were now a hair's breadth away from hers, and Amelia instinctively held her breath.
"Unless, perhaps you would like to volunteer?"
7.7
It's common knowledge that Ethan married me only because I look like his first love.
Three years of marriage, and he never once slept with me, because he thought it would be a desecration of his first love.
On the surface, I was madly in love with him. In reality, I was blowing through his money like crazy and keeping a man on the side.
But now there's a problem.
The man I've been keeping… how does he look exactly like the richest man in New York? And even have the same name?
9.7
Giana woke up drugged and burning with fever in a luxurious hotel suite. Standing before her was Cornel Stark, the most ruthless billionaire in New York.
Memories of her past life stabbed into her brain. In that life, her adoptive family and her fiancé Gary had stolen her inheritance and left her to die a brutal, agonizing death.
She also remembered how fighting Cornel only made him more violent. So this time, she didn't scream.
She endured his brutal punishment, escaped the moment he let his guard down, and swallowed a Plan B pill on the freezing streets.
Returning to her adoptive family's mansion, she faced the people who had destroyed her. Her fiancé and her stepsister put on masks of fake concern, secretly mocking her.
Instead of throwing a useless tantrum like before, Giana deliberately threw herself down the steep wooden stairs.
She smashed her head against the marble floor, using her own blood to shatter their plans and win back her mother's trust.
She thought she had finally taken control. She was ready to crush the people who had betrayed her and live for herself.
But she didn't understand why the billionaire she had just escaped was suddenly turning her life upside down.
When she woke up in the hospital, her room wasn't filled with her family's fake tears, but an ocean of blood-red roses.
The heavy door swung open, and Cornel Stark walked in, his gray eyes locking onto her with a dark, predatory hunger.
"Remember this feeling, Giana. Every breath you take belongs to me now."
9.3
Adrian Blackwood , billionaire CEO of Blackwood Holdings, Alpha of the Blackwood Pack... Mated to a weak, broken and wolfless female?!! No way! This is impossible, this must a sick prank by the moon goddess and fate.