The Man I Married Twice
To save her family's failing empire, Melissa Hartwood agrees to marry the heir of Kingsley Holdings, Liam Kingsley.
It was supposed to be a strategic alliance. She didn't expect to fall for her cold, calculating husband. Until he turns up dead. The only evidence left behind a bloodstained note that reads: Please forgive me.
Framed for his murder and betrayed by the family she married into, Melissa loses everything. Convicted after a corrupt trial and shot during her appeal, her story should have ended there. Instead, she wakes up the morning after her wedding. Liam is alive.
Fate has given her one impossible gift: a second chance to save the man she loves.
She has one year to save her husband.
One year to uncover who framed her.
One year to stop the man who destroys them both.
Because someone inside the Kingsley family is going to kill Liam.
But as Melissa races against time, she begins to see the cracks in the Kingsley dynasty - buried secrets, shifting loyalties, and a rival waiting in the shadows.
And this time, the man who protects her might be the very one who kills him. Because some love stories don't end once. They end twice.
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Chapter 6
Sleep vanished from my eyes. My heart started pounding.
I didn't think. I just moved. "Mom!" I shouted as I stormed out of my room.
When I got downstairs, she looked surprised to see me.
"Darling, you should be asleep. You know you'll be very busy now that you're getting married. We'll have to set up interviews-LoversDaily will definitely want you on their front page-"
She kept going on and on.
"Mom!" I snapped.
"I'm right beside you, dear," she said with a small laugh.
"Why are you doing this?" My voice dropped.
She frowned slightly. "We've talked about this, Melissa."
"It's happening too fast. Can you slow down?!"
"Slow down?" She let out a soft scoff. "We should be moving faster. When you're offered a pot of gold, you take it."
"Do you expect me to just end things with Daniel? He's the one I want to marry." My voice cracked, my eyes started tearing up.
I waited for sympathy. Instead, she looked at me disappointed, almost disgusted."I never liked him." My heart dropped.
"He might be rich and attractive," she continued, "but he's nothing compared to the heir of the Kingsley empire."
"I told you to end things with Daniel a long time ago. You never listen. If you had, your heart wouldn't be so troubled right now."
I tried to speak, but the words caught in my throat.
"Don't be pathetic," she added, though her tone softened slightly as she patted my back. "You'll get over it. Once the contracts are signed, everything will settle."
That was it. That was all I was worth. I didn't respond. I just walked away. I cried myself to sleep. Or at least, I tried to.
Sleep never really came. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw different versions of tomorrow. None of them ended well.
I checked my phone over and over again. The headline was everywhere. By morning, I was sure the entire city had seen it. I dragged myself out of bed and took a shower. By the time I came downstairs, the maids were already setting breakfast.
My phone rang. I hesitated to pick it. Then I saw the name. It was my best friend, Jessica. I'm sure she was losing it, she must have been stunned to see the headlines.
I answered.
"GIRLLLL!!" her voice exploded through the phone. "One minute you're engaged to the love of your life, next minute you're marrying a billionaire stranger. Or maybe he's not a stranger? What am I missing?!"
I sighed. "It's complicated."
"When has anything been too complicated for me to understand? Have you forgotten what I do for a living? I'm coming over."
"No!" I said quickly.
I couldn't deal with everything at once. Daniel was the priority. I had to see him.
"I'll explain everything later," I said. "I promise."
It took longer than expected, but eventually she let it go. Barely. "I'm coming after," she warned. "You're not escaping me."
I grabbed my keys and rushed out before I could change my mind. The drive to Higgins Park felt too long. That was where I met Daniel and where he proposed. Our place.
At a red light, I slowed near a bridal atelier on Richmond Avenue. The display windows glowed under the afternoon sun. Ivory gowns stood behind glass like royalty. One had cascading lace sleeves that fell like mist. Another was sleek satin, smooth enough to catch the light like liquid pearl. A mermaid silhouette hugged an invisible waist before flaring into delicate tulle. There was one covered in crystals-like fallen stars.
For a moment, everything went quiet. I had always imagined my wedding. Just... not like this. Not with the wrong person.
The light turned green. I drove faster wishing the wind would sweep away my worries.
When I got to the park, I saw him immediately. Standing by the lake. Daniel. Tall. Familiar. Mine.
Or... he used to be.
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7.7
BAD REPUTATION
7.7
It was her hair that fascinated him. The reddish-brown mass was parted high to one side, windswept almost. And then there was her make-up, neutral save for the liner around her eyes and the bold lip colour... was that purple?
His gaze narrowed over it and she must have sensed his attention, her eyes flickering in his direction. "You know, it's rude to stare."
Her voice was husky, a crisp edge that rasped along his spine and sealed her appeal. Derek was hooked. Her eyes were back on the doors, her lack of interest obvious.
He should've taken it as a sign, but since when had he backed off from anything he fancied?
7.2
I am a resident surgeon, secretly married to Dr. Barrett Walters, the Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery. It was a transactional marriage; he paid my mother's mounting medical bills, and I was his secret, obedient wife in the dark.
But at the hospital, he was a cold-blooded tyrant who deliberately made my life a living hell. During a major medical conference, he viciously tore apart my successful surgical repair, looking me dead in the eye as he called me incompetent in front of all my colleagues.
The humiliation didn't stop there. With his tacit approval, the senior residents bullied me, assigning me every brutal night shift. When his beautiful, wealthy heiress "girlfriend" visited the ward, he publicly mocked my background to make her smile.
"Some people get in through the back door. They're not fit for the front lines."
Even when I was forced to work as a secret banquet waitress to cover the medical copays he ignored, he found me, ruined the job out of pure possessive jealousy, and then fined my meager resident salary the very next morning just to show his absolute control.
I endured his punishing kisses and cruel rebukes, sacrificing my dignity just to keep my mother alive. But I couldn't understand why he had to destroy every shred of my peace. If he wanted the perfect heiress, why did he refuse to let me go?
Staring at his cold, controlling eyes in the stairwell, my exhaustion finally overpowered my fear. I was done being his victim, and it was time to tear up this contract.
7.2
After a one night stand with the woman whose house Jason broke into, his life has never been the same. Like a siren's call, he can't get the nymphomaniac woman off his mind. Weeks later, while getting intel for the crew's next heist, Jason lays eyes upon the woman and follows her into a secret strip club. She appears to lead a double life. One where she's the CEO of a multimillion company and her father's golden child. The other side of her life is that she owns a strip club and is extremely erotic. Can Jason learn to live with her as she is? Will he put his pride aside to be with the woman? ... especially when his crew is hired to kidnap a woman who turns out to be the love of his life.
7.2
Clifton, the god of esports, was secretly battling a career-ending wrist injury to protect his team.
A year ago, he kissed his duo partner, Justice, only to be met with violent disgust. Justice shoved him away and dry-heaved in the rain, looking at him like a monster.
Humiliated by the straight man's raw revulsion, Clifton cut him out of his life.
But now, Justice suddenly appeared at Clifton's club as a rookie tryout.
Instead of an ambitious climber, Justice played the perfect, pathetic victim. He cowered, trembled, and acted terrified whenever Clifton was near.
He even signed a bloodsucking contract with a toxic teammate, sparking rumors he was brought in to replace Clifton as captain.
During a scrimmage, Clifton hesitated to shoot because he remembered Justice had just severely burned his hand.
Justice showed no mercy. He ruthlessly gunned Clifton down, humiliating the captain in front of the entire coaching staff.
Clifton was consumed by blinding rage and betrayal.
If Justice was so disgusted by him, why did he fake his devotion for six months just to use him?
Why was he acting like helpless prey now, after trampling all over Clifton's pride?
Determined to rip off the liar's disguise, Clifton dragged Justice into a live stream in front of sixty thousand viewers.
"He's asking if you are in love with me."
Clifton smiled cruelly, waiting for the public execution. But just as the trap snapped shut, a choked, terrified gasp came through the headset.
7.5
WARNING: This book contains mature content, explicit scenes, and dark themes. Reader discretion is advised.
"Maybe... maybe I don't ever want to be anyone's wife again."
Betrayed. Banished. Broken.
For eight years, Selena was the devoted Luna of the Knightstorm Pack, until her alpha husband branded her a whore, stripped her of their children, and cast her out.
Years later, she's risen from the ashes as a renowned artist, fiercely independent and done with men forever. But when her ex-husband discovers the devastating truth, that a cruel scheme made him punish the wrong woman, he will stop at nothing to win her back.
His reckless, alcoholic brother has always wanted her too.
And then there's the powerful alpha trapped in a loveless open marriage, willing to burn down his twenty-year union the moment he scents his second-chance mate in Selena.
Three alphas.
One woman who swore she would never belong to anyone again.
As old wounds resurface and new desires ignite, Selena must fight not only for her stolen children, but for the heart she thought was dead.
Who will claim the broken Luna... and will she ever let any of them in?
9.3
Elara Voss never imagined that a single mistake could turn her life upside down. A brilliant marketing strategist with ambition as sharp as her wit, she thrives on control, until the day she crashes her rival's luxurious wedding, causing a scandal that will haunt her in high society.
Enter Dante Cross: the notorious billionaire, charmingly arrogant, and impossibly handsome, the bride's brother. In a moment of impulsive defiance, he proposes an outrageous solution to save face: a marriage neither of them wants... but both are forced to accept.
Thrown together in a world of glitz, power, and unspoken secrets, Elara and Dante clash at every turn. Sparks ignite as pride battles attraction, and the closer they get, the more dangerous their connection becomes. With hidden rivalries, family secrets, and unexpected betrayals swirling around them, Elara must navigate a game of social intrigue and decide if love is worth risking everything.
Will their forced union survive the chaos, or will the very secrets that brought them together tear them apart forever?