The Unwanted Wife's Spectacular Design Comeback
I gave up my future as a top design graduate to play the perfect trophy wife for Wall Street billionaire Dominick Carrillo.
But at a high-profile gala, he suddenly returned from his overseas trip three days early, parading a Hollywood actress on his arm.
He dropped a million dollars on her charity necklace in front of the entire Manhattan elite, publicly humiliating me.
When I confronted him with proof of his lies back at our penthouse, he threw his limitless black card at me like I was a high-priced escort.
To punish my defiance, he violently pinned me down, forcing himself on me to assert his absolute control.
The next morning, he caught me fixing the terrible architectural sketches for his new boutique hotel project.
He coldly locked my designs away in his briefcase without a second glance.
"The business world doesn't care about sketches. Just be a good Mrs. Carrillo and max out your credit cards."
I stared at the empty room as he left for a hotel, my phone buzzing with mocking texts from other socialites.
For three years, I had locked my talent in a golden cage for this marriage, only to be treated like a brainless canary and a disposable line item on his balance sheet.
The rules of this marriage were done.
I opened my laptop, found a national design competition sponsored by his biggest corporate rival, and hit submit.
I didn't apply as Mrs. Carrillo. I applied as Aubrey Middleton.
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Chapter 3
The lights in the dining hall dimmed as a renowned auctioneer from Sotheby's took the stage to host the charity bidding.
Aubrey looked across the table at Dominick. "I read Bloomberg every morning," she said smoothly, brushing off his question.
Dominick stared at her for a long second. He didn't push it, but his eyes tracked her every movement.
The auctioneer presented the next item. It was a vintage Bvlgari emerald necklace, donated by Veronica.
"Starting bid at one hundred thousand dollars," the auctioneer announced. A few paddles went up in the back.
Veronica turned her head and looked at Dominick. Her eyes were wide, practically begging him to bid.
Aubrey watched them. She picked up her water glass to hide the bitter twist of her lips.
Dominick's face remained completely expressionless. He raised his paddle. "One million."
The entire room went dead silent. Then, a wave of shocked gasps and frantic whispers flooded the hall.
A million dollars for a necklace worth barely three hundred thousand. It was a massive, public declaration of support for the actress.
Portia Vaughn leaned past two chairs just to look at Aubrey. Her eyes were filled with fake pity and real cruelty.
Aubrey's fingernails dug so hard into her palms that the skin nearly broke. She kept the smile glued to her face.
The gavel slammed down. "Sold!" Veronica gasped, covering her mouth with her hands. She looked at Dominick with teary eyes and mouthed a thank you.
Dominick gave a single, curt nod. But his eyes immediately slid diagonally across the table, landing on Aubrey.
Aubrey didn't give him a single second of eye contact. She looked down at her phone, typing a fast reply to Sloane's angry text.
The dinner finally ended. Guests began filtering out toward the valet waiting area.
Aubrey pulled her velvet shawl tightly over her shoulders. She just wanted to call her own driver and escape the suffocating air.
She walked down the side corridor of the museum. A large, solid figure stepped out of the shadows, blocking her path.
Dominick stood there. He held an unlit cigar between his fingers. He smelled of expensive cologne and raw power.
"Let your driver go," he ordered. His voice left no room for argument. "You're riding back with me."
Aubrey let out a harsh laugh. "Why? Is Veronica's van not big enough to fit your ego?"
Dominick took a step forward. His dress shoes clicked heavily against the marble floor.
"There are paparazzi swarming the exits," he said, looking down at her. His voice was ice. "Do you want tomorrow's New York Post headline to be about the Carrillo marriage collapsing?"
Aubrey ground her teeth together. She knew the rules of her family's trust fund. She couldn't tank his stock prices.
She glared at him, her chest heaving. She stepped around him and walked aggressively toward the exit.
They pushed through the glass doors together. A blinding wall of camera flashes assaulted them instantly.
Dominick's large hand clamped down on her waist. He pulled her flush against his side, playing the role of the fiercely protective husband.
The heat of his palm burned right through the velvet of her dress. Her entire body went rigid.
The bodyguard pulled open the door to the stretch Lincoln. Aubrey practically dove into the backseat to get away from his touch.
Dominick climbed in right behind her. The heavy door slammed shut, instantly cutting off the screaming reporters.
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7.2
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7.5
Ivy is the last heir of the fallen Highmoor Pack. At sixteen, she entered Silvercrest Pack by a blood contract and became the partner of Alpha heir Julian. For three years, she was loyal and silent, but never loved.
In a crisis, Julian abandoned her and chose Selena. Heartbroken, Ivy insisted on ending the contract. She refused Julian's gifts and threats, determined to regain freedom.
When Ivy was attacked, silver-eyed Silas Blackwood saved her. He is the powerful Lycan King, above all Alphas.
Ivy's wolf awakened and recognized Silas as her real fated mate.
Escaping Julian's control, Ivy broke free from her painful past. Protected by the Lycan King, she regained dignity and strength.
The abandoned Luna finally rises, embracing her true destiny and love.
9.1
Elise thought her life was finally falling into place. She turned down her father's company to work as executive assistant to Marcus Grey-the boy she's loved since childhood, now the powerful CEO she's devoted her life to.
But when Marcus proposes to another woman, Elise's world crumbles. Enter Sebastian Deluca-Marcus's tattooed, ruthless, long-estranged brother. He's everything Marcus isn't: dangerous, magnetic, and determined to take back his place in New York.
But, there's something odd about him.
Something changed since he arrived.
Bound by family secrets and a mutual desire to expose Marcus's fiancée, Elise and Sebastian form an uneasy alliance. But as sparks ignite between them, Elise must choose: remain loyal to the boy she thought she loved, or risk everything for the man who sees her as more than a shadow.
Some loves are safe. Others are consuming. Which one will she survive?
9.5
My husband, Colton, the Wall Street mogul, slid annulment papers across the table, coldly discarding me and our unborn child. He thought he was getting rid of a useless wife, but he was actually throwing away the secret architect of his entire empire. Now, I'm ready to make him pay for every insult, every lie, and every single secret I've kept.
For three years, eight months pregnant, I secretly saved Colton's ten-billion-dollar company from collapse, enduring a cold, transactional marriage.
One night, he shattered that illusion, serving annulment papers and callously discarding me and our unborn child.
I signed, leaving luxury behind. Exposing his butler's fraud, I escaped. Colton later found his wedding ring gone and, on his desk, my SEC compliance fixes—proof I was his hidden genius.
Blindsided, he realized he’d destroyed his own empire. His mother then called, gloating. The injustice ignited a fierce resolve within me.
The next morning, I launched Kidd Legal Consulting. I'd use forty-seven folders of Farmer Capital's un-patched loopholes to force a fair settlement, securing my daughter's future.
7.4
For five years, Jodi was the perfect, compliant secret lover to billionaire CEO Armand Taylor.
Then, she woke up to a cold email and a seven-figure wire transfer. Armand was marrying European royalty. The money was a severance package to quietly warehouse her out of sight.
Refusing to be his dirty secret, Jodi invoked her contract's termination clause to leave for good. But Armand wouldn't let her go easily. He forced her to personally train her vicious new replacement, Selah.
Selah immediately tampered with a crucial financial file, framing Jodi for sabotaging Taylor Corp's multi-billion-dollar tech acquisition.
Without a second thought, Armand took the new girl's side. He cornered Jodi in the boardroom, his eyes dead and cold.
"You have three days to fix this. If you fail, I will personally see to it that you go to prison for corporate fraud."
He froze her bank accounts and stripped away her dignity, ready to destroy her life over a blatant lie.
He thought she was just a weak, discarded toy who would break under his threats.
What Armand didn't know was the terrifying secret Jodi had just discovered hidden at the bottom of her bathroom trash can.
Three positive pregnancy tests.
If the ruthless billionaire found out she was carrying his heir, he would never let her escape.
Wiping her tears, Jodi slipped into a severe black silk gown and crashed an exclusive Hamptons gala to intercept the tech CEO herself.
This time, she wasn't playing the obedient lover. She was going to clear her name and burn Armand's empire to the ground.
8.5
I was rushed to the emergency room with a bleeding head after a horrific car crash.
But while the doctor was stitching my forehead, I heard the nurses whispering.
"The CEO of the Finley Group is upstairs right now, playing nurse to that pregnant actress."
My heart stopped. I ripped out my IV and dragged my battered body to the VIP suite, only to watch my billionaire husband tenderly wipe away his mistress's tears.
I filed for divorce that night and left his penthouse with nothing but a basic suitcase.
Carter was furious. He tracked me down, completely ignoring my injuries, and mocked me relentlessly.
"You're nothing but a breeding tool. You won't survive a week without my money."
When I later collapsed from severe stomach cramps, he abandoned me on the floor because his mistress faked a panic attack over the phone. He even nearly ran me over in the freezing rain as he sped back to her side.
I had loved him in secret for ten agonizing years, pouring my bleeding heart into a novel about my unrequited love. I couldn't understand how a man could be so incredibly cold-blooded to his own wife.
But Carter didn't know I was the anonymous author of that global bestselling book.
So when he tried to use his massive wealth to buy the film rights and give his mistress the lead role, I walked straight into his boardroom, slammed my contractual veto on the table, and finally fought back.