"Leo?" A smooth, flirtatious voice said from behind him as Leo made his way to go to grandpa.
Sydney stepped over and clasped his arm. "Were you waiting for me here?" She had picked out a dress with an off-the-shoulder neckline just for the event, which made her look more delicate.
Leo grimaced slightly when he saw her and responded, "No."
Sydney's face froze since she didn't expect him to be that straightforward. She spotted a beautiful woman standing next to grandpa Eric before she could say anything, and she felt scared right away.
Mona? Leo's ex wife? What was she doing here?.. Sydney thought.
Mona was currently turning down grandpa's offer to join him on stage. "Grandpa, I can't go up there right now," she said. "
"Why?" Grandpa yelled. "I told you a long time ago that I only see you as my granddaughter-in-law. The rest doesn't matter!"
Mona had only ever gotten warmth from grandpa after she married Leo for those three years. She could only grin softly now. "Leo and I are divorced now, and Miss Harlow has married him. It should be miss Harlow instead."
"Pretense right? That's what you're good at after all. It should be miss Harlow instead bla..bla bla... trying to look pitiful to grandpa isn't it?" Leo, who had somehow come next to them, said.
"I.." Mona tried to talk, but cut short by Sydney.
Sydney looked at her with disbelief and said, "Why are you here?"
Wasn't she in another country? How could she be here?
Sydney grabbed Leo by the arm to hers without thinking about it, to make Mona feel jealous.
Sydney was trying to make her jealous? What a fool!
Over the years, her feelings for Leo had faded, and now, even if she wished them a long and happy life together, it wouldn't move her heart. Mona put on a polite smile and said, "Hello miss Harlow."
Sydney interpreted her smile as a challenge, especially after all these years of grandpa Eric's dislike for her and his love for Mona. And suddenly Mona was right next to him!
"Hi miss Hunt. I was told you travelled to another country, right? What made you come back all of a sudden? Could it be..." Sydney smiled sweetly as she leaned on Leo's arm even more and said, "If you have any problems, I can ask Leo to help you."
Mona made a face. She didn't care for Leo anymore, but that didn't mean she could let Sydney be so rude to her.
"Is that so?" She said with a laugh. "Mrs. Cox really does have a kind heart. She..."
Grandpa scoffed before Mona could even finish her sentence. "She's not Mrs. Cox, and our Cox family's door isn't open to just anyone."
These words made the people around them start to whisper.
Sydney's cheeks got pale when she heard grandpa's word and stared at Leo.
His grandfather had always been very biased toward her, and Leo didn't want to overtly go against him. He could only gently pat Sydney's arm.
Sydney would have usually let it go before, but Mona was standing next to grandpa now! Also... Maybe Leo didn't even realize, but he always appeared to look at Mona seductively without meaning to.
Sydney had done everything she could to make grandpa happy for years, but he never accepted her. And now Mona was back...
She was so upset that she yelled, "Grandpa, are you going to turn down the child in my womb too, even if you don't want me?"
Mona gazed right away at Sydney's stomach.
Leo hesitated and asked Sydney, "Are you pregnant?"
Sydney looked down shyly and said, "You were drunk one week ago in Paris..."
One week before, Leo had gone to Paris for work, and Sydney had gone with him. Leo was intoxicated at a party hosted by his business partners three day after their arrival in Paris, and woke up the next morning seeing Sydney next to him in bed, naked.
He asked Sydney to take a contraceptive pills before he left for work that morning, and didn't even know she didn't take it.
Leo looked at Mona, and when he saw that she didn't react, a complicated look crossed his face.
Sydney said, "I know you've always liked kids, and now that we have a symbol of our love, why not give the child a home?"
She saw that Leo wasn't as happy as she had hoped.
Leo loved kids? Was it truly like that? Mona couldn't help but laugh when she heard this.
Leo pressed his lips together. He nodded after a time and said, "If that's how it is, I....."
"Today is my birthday. Stop saying stupid things and keep quiet." Grandpa spoke loudly before Leo complete his statement.
Billionaire's Regret: Ex Returns
The day Ava Smith discovered she was pregnant, her husband handed her divorce papers. Cold, cruel, and heartless, Logan Smith claimed he never loved her and that their marriage was nothing but a deal forced by his grandparents. His true love, Arabella, had returned... and Ava was no longer needed. Heartbroken and cast out, determined to change everything. Ava thought she had lost everything, until fate led her back into the arms of the powerful brothers she thought were gone forever. When they learned the truth, they vowed to destroy the man who broke her. The forgotten had come back with more than a broken heart. She came back with a child and a legacy. Now, Logan wants her back, claiming to repay for the past years. He fell on his knees saying, "You can't marry him, I still love you. I am sorry."
Bad Boy And Me
It started with a DM from a guy named Jules. One night on his Yacht. No strings. No promises. Tori thought it was all fun until she caught feelings. What began as a crazy night on his Yacht turned into crazier days... Now she's drowning in a love story that's hotter, messier, and more dangerous than she ever imagined. Because loving Jules comes with one RULE... And love that feels too good never comes without a PRICE...
The Night Before I Knew Him
I let a stranger destroy me in a hotel room. Two days later, I walked into my internship and found him sitting behind the CEO's desk. Now I fetch coffee for the man who made me moan, and he acts like I'm the one who crossed a line. **** It started with a dare. It ended with the one man she should never want. June Alexander didn't plan to sleep with a stranger. But on the night she celebrates landing her dream internship, a wild dare leads her into the arms of a mysterious man. He's intense, quiet, and unforgettable. She thought she'd never see him again. Until she walks into her first day at work- And finds out he's her new boss. The CEO. Now June has to work under the man she shared one reckless night with. Hermes Grande is powerful, cold, and completely off-limits. But the tension between them won't go away. The closer they get, the harder it becomes to keep her heart and their secrets safe.
Claimed By The Biker Kings: A Forbidden Queen
I grew up in a glass tower-protected by badges, blinded by lies. My father, the Commissioner, built walls around me so high I never saw the darkness creeping through the cracks. Not until one reckless night led me into the Inferno Club... and straight into the arms of Chicago's most dangerous men. Three kings rule the shadows. Each more lethal than the last. Each is determined to claim me. Jaxon shatters me and puts me back together with his hands and his hunger. Maddox weaves riddles and seduction until I forget my own name. Ronan strips away every mask I wear and demands surrender I never knew I could give. They think I'm just another spoiled rich girl playing with fire. But I've been burning since the day my mother died-and now I'm ready to show them exactly how dangerous a caged viper can be. In Chicago's underworld, love is a weapon. And I'm learning to wield it like a queen.
The Hidden Heiress: Tangled with Two Billionaire Kings
She spent her life running from the empire that destroyed her family... only to fall into the arms of its two most dangerous heirs. For years, Elena Cruz has lived under a stolen name, hiding from the Sterling dynasty - a ruthless corporate empire built on power, lies, and blood. A forged scholarship to the elite Sterling Academy is her last chance to disappear for good. But the moment she arrives, she collides with Damian Sterling - cold, calculating, and impossibly magnetic - and his younger brother Adrian, reckless, charming, and just as dangerous. Both are drawn to her... and neither believes she's who she claims to be. When a mysterious letter exposes her as the missing heir to the Sterling fortune, Elena is thrust into a world of cutthroat boardroom politics, high-stakes seduction, and a corporate conspiracy that could destroy her. The brothers are rivals in business and in love - but they may be the only ones who can protect her from the shadows closing in. The clock is ticking toward the Founders' Gala, where one choice will crown her as the empire's savior... or its downfall.
RIGHTFULLY MINE
This is a story about Zoe, who travelled back in to the country after a year of working overseas, to surprise her five-year-old son and her twin sister, Chloe, only to come back and find out that Chloe is now married to the father of her son, using her identity.