SHADOWED DECEPTION

The Placeholder Bride's Secret Billionaire Revenge

Luo Ye

For two years, I was the invisible force behind tech billionaire Kieran Douglas, convinced that our "private" romance was his way of protecting us from the tabloid spotlight. I managed his mergers, warmed his bed, and waited for a future that didn't exist. The illusion shattered at 6:00 AM when a Page Six alert debuted Kieran's "real" romance with socialite Aspen Schneider. Before I could even process the betrayal, Kieran sent me a cold, professional text: "Order flowers for Aspen. Pink peonies. Her favorite." When I tried to walk away, my own mother called me a disgrace and threatened to lock my inheritance forever unless I married a sixty-year-old businessman to save her failing estate. At a high-society gala that same night, Aspen intentionally crushed my burned hand in front of the cameras, while Kieran stood by and dismissed me as a "mediocre assistant" who had overstayed her welcome. I stood in the cold New York rain, drenched in champagne and humiliation, realizing that every sacrifice I made for Kieran was a joke. I was a ghost in a penthouse that was never mine, discarded the moment his "soulmate" returned. To the world, I was just a placeholder whose time had run out. But Kieran forgot one thing: my father's multi-million dollar trust fund unlocks the moment I legally marry. I didn't need love; I needed a signature and a shield. I walked into a discreet law firm and signed a marriage contract with a man I believed was the city's most notorious, scandal-ridden playboy. I thought I was marrying a degenerate "beard" to buy my freedom and secure my revenge. I didn't realize the man who signed that paper wasn't a playboy at all, but Gaston Collins-the most powerful and dangerous man on Wall Street-and he had no intention of letting our fake marriage stay fake.

Modern Playboy Billionaires

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"Run Melonie," my mother's friend, Evy, screamed out, causing me to jump in fear.

I stood there frozen, scared to move. My face crumpled like a piece of paper, my eyes welled up in tears as I stumbled backward, as if punched in the gut.

I stared at my mother, Maela, who was swallowed in sweats, fighting off some unexpected, scary animals.

"Melonie, you need to leave, run and hide. I promise to explain everything to you...RUN," my mother, Maela, screamed.

It was my eighteenth birthday; I had just returned from my party only to meet them fighting monsters.

"Is that a werewolf?" I thought to myself, shivering in fear.

The fight was toxic, and I felt like that thing was aiming at me for a reason.

Having no choice other than to flee from the scene, I dashed out of the house at full speed.

"What were they?" I murmured, frightened.

Hurrying back to my birthday party, I looked around for my best friend, Arlo, when I got hit by a young man, more like he was trying to pass through me but couldn't.

"Strange things are happening today," I muttered, frightened.

He stared at me curiously before looking away.

My best friend, Arlo, came closer, elbowing me back into reality.

"I heard you were looking for me," he blurted out.

"Yes, I am, I'm scared," I declared, clutching at his arm.

"Scared...why? It's your party, Melonie," Arlo stated, laughing sarcastically.

"I'm serious you idiot," I yelled out with seriousness.

"Alright...what's up," he calmly asked.

"Look at that guy and his friends," I blurted out.

"What guy?" Arlo asked in confusion.

"Those men standing right there," I insisted.

"I don't see men standing in the direction you are pointing at," Arlo screamed in frustration.

"What do you freaking mean you can't see anyone," I yelled back with intense frustration.

"Are you calling me crazy? Focus and look closely," I added.

"And when do I need to focus before I see something? I don't see anyone in that damn direction you are pointing at!" Arlo retorted with raised eyebrows.

"That's strange," I cried out, marching towards the strange man who kept staring back at me in the middle of his friends.

"What are you?" I blurted out, fearlessly.

"You can see us?" He asked to be certain.

"That's such a stupid question, I just spoke to you," I retorted.

"Why can't my friend see you?" I asked again.

"Simply put; we are from a different world," he responded.

"A different world? That's something only you should care about. What the hell are you doing at my birthday party?" I scolded in fury.

"I'm sorry, but the different world is now something you should care about," he replied with a smirk.

"I don't like you," I stated, shaking my head vigorously.

"That's not something we care about in our world. And guess what?" He announced.

"What?" I asked, anticipating.

"We are here for you. Seize her," he blurted out.

Immediately, rough hands bound my wrist, rendering me helpless. The feeling of being completely at the mercy of my captors was a crushing weight, threatening to consume me whole.

It was like a vise, squeezing the life out of me as I struggled to break free.

"I know what you are thinking, but we are not your enemy. We are here to make sure you are safe. you can call me Arwan," he explained.

"Don't you think telling me what is going on is more trustworthy than holding me down like a criminal?" I asked in anger.

"Melonie, your new age activated something in our world, like in other realms. You are a very powerful tool, and as we speak, things from different realms are searching for you," Arwan declared.

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