Ava Taylor was born into an extremely wealthy New York family, but endured a miserable childhood witnessing her parents' toxic, loveless marriage. Eventually going into business herself, she swore off romance after seeing how it destroyed her mother. Liam Parker had a vastly different upbringing, having to hustle on the streets of Brooklyn just to survive until a teacher helped him turn his life around and earn a scholarship to an elite university. When Ava and Liam first meet at a Manhattan bar, she's initially put off by his brash advances. But Liam's charisma and seeming depth intrigue Ava enough to let down her guard. However, unbeknownst to her, Liam is perpetrating an elaborate lie - he accepted a dare from friends to try making a wealthy woman like Ava fall for him, just to win a lavish vacation. Using coaching from a friend, Liam completely constructs a fake persona of a sophisticated, successful businessman to woo Ava with extravagant dates and an air of wealth. She becomes smitten, convincing herself to keep things casual to protect her heart. Just as guilt is threatening to make Liam confess, a bombshell emerges - Ava will only inherit her father's fortune if she marries before age 27 in six months. Desperate, she propositions Liam to enter a marriage of convenience, offering him $10 million from her inheritance. Despite knowing it's wrong, Liam's greed and faint hope of somehow earning Ava's love override his conscience. They hastily marry under false pretenses of his lies. But Ava's unhinged ex soon begins sabotaging their union, revealing Liam's deceptions as part of a larger, murderous scheme to inherit Ava's fortune himself. When the truth finally explodes, Ava is devastated by Liam's betrayal. However, Liam proves his feelings became real when he risks his life to protect Ava from her psychopathic ex's attack. In the traumatic aftermath, they're able to rebuild from honesty, cherishing the profound connection that improbably bloomed from deception.
Chapter 1 Burying the Past
"Another deal closed," Ava muttered under her breath as she marched out of the conference room. The familiar thrill of victory coursed through her veins, tempering the relentless drive that had propelled her this far.
At only twenty-five years old, she had already earned a lot of respect in the tough corporate world of Malicon Oil and Gas Company. Her sharp mind and total professionalism came from dealing with really difficult personal challenges when she was younger. Those tough experiences had made her quite cynical and unwilling to get caught up in romantic relationships.
As she headed back to her office, her colleague Jake teased her, "Time for celebratory drinks? Or are you still swearing off all men these days?"
Ava shot him an annoyed look. "As if I have time for either of those things," she scoffed, tucking a loose strand of her chestnut brown hair behind her ear.
"You can't keep that icy wall around your heart up forever, you know. And remember all work no play make Ava a dull girl," Jake just grinned at her
Ava let out a dismissive snort but didn't slow down. While Jake meant well, his constant attempts to set her up on dates only reminded her of how bad she was at romance and relationships. Not after what she had witnessed growing up in her family.
The memories still felt raw and painful, like they had just happened yesterday, her mother's suitcases sitting by the door, the bitter screaming echoing through the huge halls of their mansion. Ava had been 12 years old, old enough to understand the devastating truth that true love was just an illusion, a pretty fairy tale sold to naive people.
Over a decade later, the lessons from her parents' toxic divorce had turned into an unshakable cynicism about romance inside her. Success was her one driving pursuit, an empire she could command through sheer willpower and hard work.
Ava headed straight to her luxurious corner office with its sleek furniture and amazing views of the New York City skyline. She took off her blazer and loosened her silk blouse, finally allowing herself a moment to relax after another grueling day of tough business negotiations.
Her eyes landed on the framed photo on her desk - a candid shot from her college graduation, with her parents standing stiffly beside her with frozen, fake smiles. Even back then, the hostility between them had been obvious, like the tension of a ticking time bomb beneath their hollow act of being a unified family.
With a tired sigh, Ava turned away from the unpleasant reminder of her past. She didn't have time to dwell on those ghosts, not when her future at Malicon looked so promising. Landing that huge Crestotech business acquisition had been a major career achievement, cementing her reputation as a heavy-hitter in the marketing world.
A sharp knock on her office door interrupted her thoughts. "What is it?" she called out, exasperation creeping into her voice.
The door opened a crack to reveal her anxious assistant, Riley.
"Sorry to bother you, Miss Taylor. Your mother is on line two. She says it's, um...urgent," Riley stated with her head bowed.
Ava's brow furrowed as a knot of dread formed in her stomach. The word "urgent" was never a good sign when it came to her mother Elaine.
Bracing herself, she picked up the phone with a resigned sigh. "Hello, Mother. What is it this time?"
Her mother's familiar clipped tones came through the line. "Is that any way to greet your own mother, Ava? Honestly, I don't know where you get this prickly attitude from. I am your only mother remember," she added.
Ava rolled her eyes up to the ceiling. Here we go again.
"Sorry, you're right. I've just had a really long day. What did you need to discuss?"
"Well, if you must know, I've finally decided to take that European river cruise I've been talking about forever. Luxury accommodations, private tours, the whole experience as you know we only live once," Her mother's voice took on a wistful, dreamy tone. "But I'll need someone to keep an eye on the Laptons estate while I'm away, make sure the staff doesn't let the place go into total disrepair, I can trust you with that," she added.
Ah, there it was. The real reason for her call was poorly disguised as casual mother-daughter chit-chat.
"Mother, you know I barely have time to take care of my own apartment, let alone a massive estate hours away," Ava said through gritted teeth, trying to control her frustration. "Why don't you just hire someone for once? It's not like money is ever an issue for you."
A disapproving cluck came through the line. "And leave my home in the hands of total strangers? When I have a daughter. Don't be ridiculous, Ava. This is a family matter."
Those last two words family matter, gnited a spark of irritation inside Ava's chest. As if their family wasn't shattered into a million dysfunctional pieces already, barely held together by money and a sense of obligation.
"We haven't been a real family in years," she blurted out before she could stop herself.
A heavy, loaded silence fell between them, thick with years of unspoken resentments and emotional wounds. Ava instantly regretted her harsh words hitting so close to the truth, but a bigger part of her stubbornly refused to take them back.
"Well." Her mother's voice was strained, clipped, and brittle with barely restrained emotion. "If that's how you really feel, then I suppose I shouldn't burden you any further."
The line went dead, leaving Ava clutching the phone receiver as a storm of conflicting emotions: anger, guilt, frustration, swirled inside her chest. Those messy, tangled feelings were all too familiar these days when it came to her broken family ties.
With a weary sigh, she set down the phone and raked her fingers through her hair, her scalp tingling with stress and fatigue. So much for unwinding and feeling satisfied after her big career win earlier. Leave it to her mother to find a way to suck all the joy and pride out of the moment with her endless demands and emotionally manipulative mind games.
Pushing back from her desk, Ava crossed the room to the floor to ceiling windows overlooking the glittering New York skyline. She had fought like hell to claw her way into this life, to escape the toxic dramas and empty comforts of the ultra wealthy elite world she had been born into.
Yet no matter how high she climbed in her career, no matter how many impressive achievements and accolades she racked up, the deep emotional scars from her traumatic childhood refused to fully heal. The same inner critical voices, laced with ruthless self-doubt and bone deep cynicism, haunted her at every turn.
You're better off alone forever. Love is just a lie to be exploited.
Gritting her teeth, Ava spun away from the view, her jaw clenched with renewed determination. She didn't need romantic relationships or messy emotional entanglements slowing her down and holding her back. All she truly needed was her own unstoppable drive and relentless work ethic, a razor-sharp focus on climbing the mountain of success to drown out the echoes of her parents' legendary failures.
The city that never slept spread out before her, pulsing with infinite possibilities and potential conquests waiting to be seized. And Ava was more determined than ever to conquer it all, one massive business deal at a time.
She would show her mother, she would show them all, that she didn't need an intact family unit, or a husband, or any of the trappings and comforts of conventional domestic life in order to find purpose and fulfillment. Her own hard earned power and ever growing achievements in the business world would be more than enough for her.
This fast paced, cutthroat corporate life was hers now. And she wouldn't let anything or anyone jeopardize the gleaming empire of wealth and success she was so singlemindedly building for herself, not her emotionally draining mother, and certainly not the fragile, treacherous illusion of romantic love.
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