Life, Once Again! - Chapter 82

“Block him.”“He's technically still my boss.”“Then block him with dignity.”The call ended again.And then started again.I let out a sound somewhere between a growl and a sob, then finally answered with the enthusiasm of a snail crawling through salt.“Yes, Mr. Walton?”“Have you changed your mind yet?”I collapsed onto the towel and gazed at the sky as though it might consume me entirely if I pleaded sweetly enough.“Do you ever take a break?” I asked, shielding my eyes with one hand.“You're avoiding the question.”“Because it's a dumb question.”He exhaled, the sound sharp and irritated even over phone. “It's not a dumb question. It's a business offer.”“It's a weird offer-one that I already said no to.”There was a brief pause, and I could practically hear him clenching his jaw through the speaker.“You are acting unreasonably.”“ Unreasonable?” I sat up. “I'm not the one drafting fake girlfriend contracts like it's a normal Tuesday.”“Isabella-”“Certainly not, Mr. Walton.” I mimicked his tone perfectly. “I told you I'm not doing it. You need to find someone else to play pretend with.”SYNOPSISIsabella Miller thought saying no to her boss’s fake dating offer was the end of the story.But Adrien Walton doesn’t take no—especially not when he’s convinced she’s a gold digger.Suddenly, her student loans are piling up, her father’s vet clinic is on the brink of eviction and her brother is about to be kicked out of college. Coincidence? She thinks not.Adrien Walton is calm, calculating—and he's just pulled every string to corner Isabella into the perfect position.Now she’s stuck choosing between pride and survival.So she agrees to his offer: be his fake girlfriend.No feelings attached. No drama. Just business.Or so she thought.“Conference Room B. Fifteen minutes,” he said, passing by without a glance.The folder he pushed across the table landed with a thud.I opened it. The contract. All of it.---Enemies to lovers? Check.Slow burn? Hmmnyea.Banter so sharp it might file your nails? Yes.Delicious workplace tension? Of course.Tension that could melt steel?Absolutely.Smut?? Wanna find out?Welcome to corporate romance warfare. There’s no escaping this contract.

She, has always refused to let go of her childhood pride.Initially, he forced her into submission in the harshest way possible, which made her despise him to the bone.At twenty, she abandoned her husband, followed a man she thought was worthy of her, only to end up being violently mistreated.Yet, it was he who raised her from the rain when she was at her most helpless moment.Fate brought her back to her eighteenth year, for a do-over. She emerged from her cocoon, when hate was replaced by regret, she shed her thorny exterior, but does she still have the right to pursue happiness?But why does he always remind her in the coldest voice, “He Zhilan, I don't want the He Family to raise an ungrateful wretch.”Or menacingly warn her, “He Zhilan, don't force me to take away your freedom!”

Getting the [Boosted Gear] is expected for Issei. What if he gained it a month early and another one as well? Let the Games Begin... IsseiXHarem (if it wasn't, it wouldn't be DXD). Now has a TVTropes page! Getting the [Boosted Gear] is expected for Issei. What if he gained it a month early and another one as well? Let the Games Begin... IsseiXHarem (if it wasn't, it wouldn't be DXD). Now has a TVTropes page!

Lyra Shedd faced a brutal betrayal—her grandfather violently stole her superpower and handed it to her nemesis; her beloved younger brother, in his stupidity, leaked their only hidden assets to her enemies.Once a genius, she was reduced to nothing, drifting in the sea of stars.During her most agonizing years, she finally accepted the fact that her family didn't love her. Realizing she had nothing left to lose, she decided to throw off all moral restraints and become a villain!On her journey of revenge, she encountered many handsome men—but to a cold-blooded villain, they were nothing but tools for her vengeance!This time, she would make all those who pushed her to the brink tremble and scream for mercy!