She was just a jilted bride-to-be looking to drown her sorrows. He was a billionaire bachelor resigned to an arranged marriage. But when their worlds collided one fateful night, Lily Walker and James Watson did the unthinkable - they got drunk-married in a spirited act of rebellion. Now, Lily finds herself thrust into James' ultra-elite social circle where his vengeful ex-fiancée Chloe will do anything to take her down. Chloe wages a relentless campaign to sabotage the new couple, Stop at nothing to destroy Lily and dissolve the marriage she sees as a sham. Banding together against the salacious gossip and endless scheming, Lily and James gradually fall for each other's fiery spirits. But darker secrets and escalating scandals loom, threatening to tear them apart for good. Can they fight against the vicious social vultures and build a real partnership? Or will high society's devious shadows finally force Lily out of the lavish life she never asked for?
View MoreChapter 38"Just for a little while," she mumbled, already drifting despite her best efforts to stay awake and alert. Wrapped in James's embrace, with his powerful presence standing sentry, she knew she could afford to let her guard down, if only briefly. Her eyes slipped closed of their own accord as she felt her husband press a lingering kiss on her forehead. "That's it, gorgeous. Just rest now. I've got you..." The rest of his words trailed off into soothing white noise as oblivion tugged Lily under. She surrendered to the lulling pull, knowing without a shadow of a doubt that James would allow no further harm to come to her or their unborn child tonight. Not while he still drew breath. Some indeterminable time later, Lily slowly surfaced from the depths of an uneasy slumber. She blinked muzzily, momentarily disoriented by her stark concrete environment till the memory got her crashing back. The intruders. The fight. She and James take refuge in this heavily fortified panic r
Chapter 37Lily sat unmoved on the sofa, her heart pounding in her ears. She could hear the shouts and the sounds of struggles coming from outdoors. James had rushed out there to handle the new intruders, leaving her behind for her safety. She wanted to go help, to have his back like she promised. But she knew he might in no way forgive himself if something passed off to her or the child. Their baby - Lily's hand drifted to her flat stomach as a wave of fierce protectiveness washed over her. She was carrying their child now. James was right, she needed to stay out of harm's way.The noises of the fight seemed to be getting closer. Lily tensed, straining her ears to try and figure out what was happening. She could make out James's deep voice snarling orders amidst the chaos.Suddenly, the study door burst open. Lily gasped as a large, burly man in dark clothes came barreling inside. He was clutching a nasty-looking knife and his beady eyes locked on her immediately."You're coming wit
Chapter 36A few hours later, Lily found herself pacing the length of the private study, unable to sit still. While James interrogated the captured intruders, she was supposed to wait here out of harm's way. Big chance of that happening.Her mind kept on replaying what has happened earlier. Those armed thugs had come dangerously close to seriously hurting James...or worse. Her chest felt tight just thinking about it.The sound of the door brought her back to reality, she whirl around. James strode in looking grim, his brow furrowed in a deep scowl. Lily felt her stomach clench anxiously."Well?" she demanded without preamble. "Did you get anywhere with those bastards? Who were they and what did they want?"James shook his head tightly, jaw tensing. "Hired muscle, as far as I can tell. Tough guys who don't ask too many questions as long as the money's right."He dragged a hand through his tousled hair, letting out a frustrated grunt. "I leaned on them hard, but none of the grunts know
Chapter 35Lily stared in shock at the groaning, beaten guys lying on the ground. Her heart became nevertheless pounding from the insane fight they had just been through. One minute, the whole thing turned into the best.She glanced up at James, who also looked at her with concern. His top became ripped, and he had a cut over one eye, however, in any other case, he appeared ok. Lily felt a surge of alleviation washes over her. If whatever had passed off to him...She shuddered at the idea."Are you okay, baby girl?" James's gruff voice snapped her out of her daze. He reached out and cupped her face, eyes searching hers closely.Lily managed a shaky nod. "Y-yeah, I'm fine. Just...stunned, I guess. Who the hell were those guys?"James shook his head grimly. "I have no idea. But we're sure as hell gonna find out." He turned to his security team, who were roughly restraining the last couple of intruders. "Get these assholes locked up tight. I want them ready for interrogation ASAP."The gu
Chapter 34 Intruders. James heard them too judging by the thunderous look that settled over his chiseled features. Without hesitation, he moved in front of Lily in a protective stance, pushing her in the back of him. "Stay returned, child," he growled in a tone that brooked no argument. His eyes appeared like flint as he glared toward the source of the disturbance. "Daddy's were given some uninvited visitors to address." Lily opened her mouth to protest, however, the sounds of violent warfare spilled out into the hallway, slicing her off. Two masked figures burst into view, grappling furiously with individuals in their safety detail. One guard was sent crashing right into a desk with a pained grunt, successfully taken out of fee. The opposite changed into embroiled in a savage hand-to-hand struggle with one of the intruders, trading vicious blows and grappling viciously. "You've got to be kidding me," James snarled, any strains of his earlier joviality replaced by bloodless fury
Chapter 33 One Year LaterLily stretched out lazily on the front room chair, soaking up the warm sun. She sighed contentedly as a moderate breeze ruffled her hair. Man, this private seashore within the Bahamas was an absolute paradise."You look entirely too relaxed over there," James's deep voice rumbled from beside her.She cracked one eye open to see her husband watching her with an amused smile, those intense blue eyes of his sparkling. He was shirtless and bronzed from their tropical vacation, looking like some kind of ridiculous romance novel cover model.Lily grinned back at him cheekily. "Well, why wouldn't I be? We're living the dream, babe."James chuckled low in his throat. "Fair point. Still getting used to this whole life of leisure, I suppose.""Better get used to it fast," Lily teased, poking his rock-hard ab muscles playfully. "Because I could get accustomed to this level of luxury and pampering."It was wild to think how much their lives had changed in just one short
Chapter 32An hour later, Lily and her dad were settled into a lavish penthouse suite, courtesy of James's security team. The place was like a fortified bunker - cameras mounted everywhere, armed guards patrolling the halls. Lily felt identical elements reassured and unnerved by using the intense precautions."Goddamn, that is a few next-level stuff," Michael muttered as he took a look around the opulent residing region. "Your husband simply does not do something half-assed, does he?"Lily shook her head, sinking onto one of the plush couches."That's an understatement. When James goes into protective mode, he holds nothing back."Her mind drifted to her husband, questioning where he might be now and what he was probably facing. She attempted not to stay too much at the myriad worst-case eventualities.Her dad must have read her worried expression because he settled a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Hey now, don't you start fretting too much. James is a tough son of a bitch - he can
Chapter 31Lily withdrew from James's embrace, cleaning her wet cheeks. "I'm so sorry, I look messy right now. It's just...I've been so scared to tell you about my past. That was why I was so scared when Chloe reappeared...I'm sorry."James shook his head. "No need to apologize, babe. We all got baggage." He shot her a wry look. "Hell, you've seen how crazy my family can get. The Watsons aren't exactly Leave It to Beaver material."That startled a watery giggle out of Lily. Leave it to James to find the humor, even in such an intense moment. Her husband had a gift for cutting through the tension with his blunt charm."I suppose you've got a point there," she conceded, feeling herself relax a little. "Your grandmother certainly seems like a piece of work."Michael cleared his throat then, reminding them both of his presence. "Sorry to interrupt this heartfelt moment," he said dryly. "But maybe you could fill us in on what you found out, James? About Chloe's situation?"James's expressi
Chapter 30Lily stalked back and forth across the intimate waiting room every bit as jittery as another. However, her dad, being the one in the chair, continued to snore lightly. She couldn't blame him for being so wiped after the crazy kidnapping attempt. She checked her phone again, hoping for another update from James. Radio silence so far. Lily nibbled her thumbnail, stomach churning with worry and impatience. What if this lead on Chloe's location was a dead end? Or a trap?With an irritated huff, she plopped down in the chair next to her dad. Sitting still was impossible right now. Her leg jiggled up and down as she tried to rein in her racing thoughts.That is when her dad began to move, his eyelids opening with a soft moan. "Oops, I didn't realize I slept off Lil," he muttered, rubbing his eyes. "Any word from James yet?"She shook her head. "Not since he said they might have a lead a little while ago." She bit her lip, unable to mask her anxious tone. "Dad, I'm really worried
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