The Beachfront Hotel.

Scarlett, a slender young girl, entered the hotel with a gloomy face. This sudden dinner arrangement made her unhappy — only because that woman begged many times did she finally agree.

When she entered the East Restaurant, the VIP room. No one was in the room.

'That woman has asked me to come here, but she hasn't come yet!!'

Scarlett secretly cursed the woman. She could guess that woman was trying to trick her again like usual.

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She put her anger aside and entered the room. After sitting down on the chair, her eyes fell on the busy street outside, she was deep in thought.

She had been on this Island for a month without doing anything. She knew, what she was doing was worrying her father, but she couldn't be honest with him just yet.

After a few minutes passed, Scarlett heard a knock on the door.

"Please come in..." Her soft voice echoed throughout the room as she turned to look at the door. She saw a waitress come in with a drink in hand. That made her slightly raise her eyebrows.

This restaurant deserves to be a favorite place on the Island. They can read the guest's mind. She did need a cold drink to cool off her burning head after waiting for five minutes, but the woman still had not appeared.

Scarlett decided to give the woman another five minutes. If she didn't show up, then she would leave.

After she saw the waitress close the door, she slowly finished her glass of cold soda and her mood slightly improved.

But…

Moments later, Scarlett could feel her body temperature rise. She feels so hot as if the air conditioner in the room broke down or someone had just turned on the heater in the middle of summer.

Her head was spinning, and at the same time, her body felt heavy to move. All of her muscles felt like they were betraying her.

'W-what happened to me!?' Scarlett tried to escape the sudden burning sensation as she unbuttoned a few buttons of her white shirt.

However, instead of feeling better, she feels worse. Her vision was slowly becoming blurry, and her breathing was getting heavier.

'Why, why am I like this?' She screamed inside, trying to regain her senses, and slapped her cheek hard — the pain made her cheeks burn even more.

She felt a nameless fire burning fiercely in her body. A thin layer of sweat covered her body from the heat making her hair and some part of her clothes wet.

The heat in her chest grew unbearable, followed by irregular hissing from her mouth as her heart began to beat erratically.

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'Do I have food poisoning?' She thought amidst the heat she felt.

She dismissed the thought because ever since she arrived in this room, she had not eaten anything. She had just drunk the cold soft drink served by the waitress who had come a few minutes ago.

Realizing something strange had happened to her, she couldn't help but curse.

'Damn it!'

Instantly Scarlett's body trembled with emotional turmoil.

'That waitress put drugs in my drink? W-Why is she doing this?' She muttered while squeezing the clothes on her chest, trying to draw as much air as possible because now even breathing felt like a tremendous task.

With the last of her strength, Scarlett took a water bottle and a white medicine bottle from her black backpack. She immediately took some antidote pills, which she usually carries. This habit emerged when she was still studying in the US.

After emptying the water bottle in one gulp, she felt her temperature slightly down. But her body still felt hot, and her head still hurt.

At this time, Scarlett could only pray for the antidote she was taking to work quickly. She couldn't lose her strength and consciousness in this place, or else she would be in trouble.

'Scarlett, you have to be strong. You have to hold on...' She tried to spell her mind so as not to lose consciousness. 'That greedy woman. It must be her who did it…' she was sure that damn woman must have some evil plans for her.

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Just before she wanted to leave the room with the last of her strength, she faintly heard footsteps approaching the VIP room she was in. It wasn't just one person coming; two pairs of legs stepped closer.

'I'm doomed! I can't fight them now. I have to do something!'

Although Scarlett's mind could still clearly think, her body was weak. She wouldn't be able to fight anyone at this point.

She forced herself to stay calm. She would stay still and find out why that woman did this to her — when she regained control of her body, she would find a way to escape.

Scarlett put her head on the table, pretending to be unconscious. She felt even tenser when the door behind her opened. She could feel the strong scent of men's perfume, making her head hurt even more.

The bald old man stared at the young sleeping girl with lustful eyes. He could see the girl's pale face looked innocent. And even though she was wearing an oversized white shirt with ripped jeans, he could see her curves and delicate hands.

A lascivious smile framed his greasy face as he turned his gaze to the middle-aged woman beside him.

"Ms. Piers, she is beautiful. Okay! I agree to our deal. I will erase all of your company's debt... as long as this beauty can sleep with me tonight. And, as agreed, she will be my new friend…er… I mean new wife." The vile bald old man's southern accent echoed throughout the room, making Scarlett's body shudder at his words.

'This woman wants to sell me to this old man?'

Scarlett wanted to run away from the room but couldn't control her body. The medicine she was taking had not fully worked. On top of that, she also wanted to know more about their disgusting deal.

She could only hold back her anger hearing the cunning plans of these two evil people sitting not far from her. Under the table, her hands clenched tightly to hold back the anger from her chest.

"Ms. Piers, is your old man aware of this?" asked the bald old man.

Scarlett prayed that the man would not be involved in this plan. But, if he got involved, she would never forgive him.

"Mr. Frans, you don't have to worry. I did this at his request. We agreed to marry Scarlett, with you..." Lauren Piers chuckled, seeing Mr. Frans's face beaming.

She tried to hide her excitement as she continued to say, "This lovely girl will definitely be happy to marry you. Marrying a successful businessman, a tourism industry mogul of this Island, what's not too happy about it!?"

ραпdα nᴏνa| сom "Hahaha… you are praising me too much, Ms. Piers." Frans was so happy with the compliment. "Will this girl accept this decision? Why did you drug hers?"

"Sorry if you have to see our Scarlett like this, Mr. Frans. I had to do this so she wouldn't be shocked, but she would have agreed. Scarlett is a good girl. You won't regret taking her, Mr. Frans. She will become a good wife for you."

"That's great! How old is she now?" Frans felt very happy to get the young beauty to warm his bed.

"23 years old, she graduated from a world-renowned university in Massachusetts, USA, and just came back last month. Now that she has no job, she stays at home doing nothing. Hence, the old man and I tried to arrange for her to marry you…."

Frans almost jumped in surprise. She is such an intelligent girl. Why did they marry her off just for money!?

"Scarlett is still young, the same age as my son. I'm afraid she won't agree to marry the old folk like me." Frans stroked his chin while glancing at the girl who was still sleeping. His mind was filled with sultry thoughts.

A thin smile framed the corners of Lauren Piers' lips. "Mr. Frans, tonight you can seal the deal. You can sleep with her. And we will register your marriage in a few days. Thus, before that…" Lauren put the Marriage Register form on the table. "You must sign this form, sir… we have prepared everything. Don't worry."

The sooner, the better. After tonight this stubborn girl definitely couldn't avoid this arrangement, Lauren thought.

Scarlett almost vomited blood after hearing the woman's sinister plan.

In her mind, she was screaming...

'Mother, why are you doing this to me ? "

To be continued.......

God, do you hate me that much for giving me such a complicated life plot?' Scarlett couldn't help but scold God in her heart.

Countless questions now filled and insulted her mind,

How could her parents exchange her for company debt?

How much debt do they owe for this heinous act?

It was hard for Scarlett to believe that her father could do this to her. She felt her heart shatter, and it felt painful. The man Scarlett had respected and loved all her life betrayed her. She didn't know if, in the future, she would still be able to call him 'Father.'

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"Bwahaha… Ms. Piers, but I still doubt this girl will accept me. I am a widower with five children." Frans' laughter returned to insult Scarlett's ear.

Scarlett was lost for words.

How could her parents decide her future to marry her to a widower with five children?

It had never crossed Scarlett's mind that something like this had happened to her. This kind of thing usually only happens in dramas or movies. But now, she experienced it herself.

"Mr. Frans, you are still young. You are 60 years old, but you still look like you're in your late thirties." she smiled. "Well, don't worry, our lovely Scarlett will definitely agree…."

Scarlett couldn't stand hearing the disgusting plots of these two shameless people anymore. She tried to captivate her mind with all her might so that the antidote's effect could bring her body back to normal. She must escape from this.

While she was still trying to control her leg muscles which were still difficult to move, she heard another person entering the room.

Two big men in black clothes grabbed Scarlett and dragged her out of the VIP room.

Still pretending to be unconscious, Scarlette tightly closed her eyes, but her ears were alert. Try to hear their conversation.

"Poor little girl..." Said one of the men on her right.

"This girl's parents are greedy, selling their daughter to that old pervert!?" Said another man.

"Which floor are we going to?" the man asked as they entered the elevator.

For some reason, that night, the hotel was so quiet. There were no other visitors who crossed paths with them in the elevator.

Scarlett couldn't ask for help. She couldn't say a word, even with these two men carrying her. Her jaw muscles were still weak.

"20th floor, quick… the pervert said we need to put her in room #2011. He'll follow after he's done talking to Ms. Piers…."

"Little girl, please forgive us. We have no choice. We're just carrying out orders." They put the girl on a soft bed and quickly left the room.

After the two men left the room, Scarlet opened her eyes. She was shocked at how luxurious the room was.

That pervert is indeed a rich man. He's willing to spend tons of money on this presidential suite.

Scarlett got out of bed and dragged her weak feet to the minibar — she needed another antidote pill.

She must get out of this room before that shameless pervert comes.

Scarlett found a water bottle. She took five pills from her backpack and drank them all at once. After a few seconds, she felt a little better. She could move her legs, but they weren't back to normal strength. At least that will be enough to get her out of this room.

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ραпdα nᴏνa| сom She limped toward the door, trying to hear any movement from outside. She was afraid the two bodyguards were still standing guard at the door.

But fortunately, after standing there for a while, she didn't hear any sound. Wasting no time, she walked out of the room.

The hotel's empty corridors allowed Scarlett to walk unhindered to the elevators. However, when she got to the front of the elevator, her heart felt like it was going to stop. She saw the elevator go up and seem to stop at its floor.

'Damn you, old pervert! Why did you come so fast!'

She cursed the man while limping towards the emergency exit. The moment the emergency exit closed behind her, she could heard a 'ding' sound.

"Thank you, God!! That was too close…" she muttered under her breath while erasing the traces of sweat off her forehead.

Scarlett slowly walked downstairs. However, only a few steps passed, and she stopped. There were several pairs of footsteps walking toward her. Instantly she felt wary as she realized those people might be the man who brought her into the room.

'Gosh! Who are they? Are they also guarding the emergency exit?'

She changed her plans; decided to go up to the rooftop. Luckily, in the last minutes, her body could be controlled. With light steps, she quickly climbed the stairs.

After a few seconds of climbing the stairs, Scarlett finally reached the top floor—she was relieved that the door was unlocked. Immediately she got out of there and closed the door behind her tightly.

As soon as she came out, her legs were shaking. And for some reason, the muscles in her body felt weak again, but she didn't stop there. With great difficulty, she dragged her feet towards a hidden place in the corner.

Finding a place to hide was a must for her. She knew right now she had not wholly escaped from those people.

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She stood where she was, staring at the utterly invisible sea — that night, the sky was so dark, there was no moon as if the sky was as dark as her feelings.

Scarlett didn't care about the strong wind from the sea slapping her face. She tried to inhale as much fresh air as possible to fill her tight chest.

What happened to her completely drained her mind and energy.

If she didn't have the antidote, she didn't know what would happen to her now. Perhaps, her life was destroyed by her parents and the perverted old man.

"Father, how could you sell me to an old man just because you need money to pay off your debt?"

Scarlett quietly spoke to herself to express what was going on in her mind right now, or else her mind might explode — too much anger.

"I want to forgive you, but I can't accept it now. What you did to me this time was beyond hurtful and disrespectful. How could a father do that to his own daughter?"

For the first time, Scarlett cried in years. Her heart ached so much that she couldn't take it anymore. Only her tears could make her heart feel slightly better.

"Father, I... would rather die than be forced to marry that old man!" Before Scarlett could finish her sentence, a giant palm suddenly covered her mouth and promptly pulled her backward.

In a panic, she struggled to escape the man's embrace, but the man's hands were so strong. He hugged her from behind as if her body was locked between his arms. This man was so strong, she couldn't even scream.

'Damn it!! They found me!?'

Scarlett felt like crying, realizing that her escape was futile. It didn't take long for them to find her here.

"If I were you, I would stop resisting and making any noise…" a voice sounded in her ear. His voice was very charming, like hearing the voice of an actor who used to play the king in royal dramas. It didn't sound urgent, but it made her immediately obey his words.

Scarlett's body froze when she realized the man who dragged her was not the bodyguard who chased her but someone else.

Who is he?

From the fresh masculine scent, she could recognize the man wearing an expensive Eau de Parfum. She knows this scent. Her friend, a major US company's CEO, usually wears this EDP. She also saw the watch he was wearing, one of the latest collections from the expensive watch brand Patek Philippe.

She wanted to look back, but the man seemed to be holding her head, purposely keeping her from turning.

"Silence! They are approaching."

Hearing his warning, Scarlett immediately realized that she wasn't safe from her parents and that perverted old man.

Suddenly her chest felt tight, and her legs felt weak as she remembered what had happened to her. Slowly she lost her senses. Her head lowered as the darkness swallowed her.

"Miss, they all left. You can leave now..." The man in the gray suit said. But the girl in his arms didn't respond. "Are you sleeping?"

He turned her body towards him.

"How could you lose your consciousness just like that, girl!?"

The man in the gray suit was speechless.

He pulled her, placed her head onto his right shoulder, and made a call.

"Prepare the car at the back door. We're going to the hospital…" after he ended the call. He carried her gently and left the roof.

To be continued........

At Hospital.

The terrible discomfort in her body woke Scarlett up.

She slowly opened her eyes, but the bright light on the ceiling dazzled her eyes. She narrowed her eyes, trying to adjust to the light.

However, just moving her body a little made her wince softly. The pain from several parts of her body was unbearable. Her calves were tight, and her head badly hurt, as if someone had just punched her head using a hard object.

'W-Where am I?'

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The last memory in Scarlett's mind; she tries to escape from her stepmother's evil plans. And the most upsetting thing is her father is involved. This was the second time she had been hurt by her father, ever since he decided to remarry that damn woman Lauren.

Ever since Scarlett was a teenager, she has avoided Lauren. She chose to leave this island to continue her education abroad. But for some reason, that damn woman still hated her; sadly, her father seemed to be influenced by her. It was as if her father was bewitched by the woman. And he always agreed with whatever she did to his own daughter.

After returning to this W country, Scarlett thought that her stepmother would change. But she was wrong. The woman greeted her with her grand shameless plan. How evil!

Now, Scarlett became sure of her decision; she won't be coming back to this island again. It would be better for her to stay alone in the Capital than to be here and accept their shameless scheme to use her to pay off their company's debt.

She wouldn't let that happen.

However, now she faces a big problem. She still remembers that her shameless stepmother had already prepared the marriage certificate form. She feared the woman would fake her signature and process the document.

Damn it!!

Instantly, her head felt like it was spinning—She looked around.

She was surprised when she realized that she was lying in a hospital bed with an unfamiliar-looking medical machine near her bed.

'Why did I end up here?'

Scarlett tries to get up, but the IV line stops her momentarily. She lay down again on the bed, but simultaneously, her eyes caught the figure of a man standing by the glass window with his back facing her.

After trying to remember who the man was, she suddenly noticed the color of his suit, the same color as the man who covered her mouth on the roof of the Beachfront hotel.

pαndα`noνɐ1--сoМ It's him!?

Without knowing, her hoarse soft voice escaped from her dry lips, "H-Hello, excuse me…" her heart trembled when she saw the man turn to look at her.

The man's face looked dashing and youthful. Still, the aura that radiated from his sapphire blue eyes indicated that he had a lot of life experience.

Judging from his outfit, she believed this man had an important position in a large company. He was definitely not an ordinary employee. He wears expensive things.

Scarlett couldn't ignore her heart which slightly trembled when she saw his long legs stride towards her. The distance between them becomes closer. She could clearly see his strong jaw. There was a neatly trimmed, thin beard that made him even more manly and mysterious. His hair was neatly combed back, making him look like the young CEO she used to see in dramas. The perfect handsome man many women would undoubtedly adore.

Who is this man? How come she never knew there was such a handsome man in W country?

"Miss Piers, I can help you!" His friendly tone made Scarlett stop looking at his face. She averted her eyes, trying to hide her embarrassment, but then she realized this man was calling her name.

She was surprised.

"You know my name?" Scarlett asked while trying to sit up so she could talk to him comfortably. Still, before she could sit properly, the man approached her, taking Scarlett by surprise.

Their bodies were so close that she could smell his signature scent. She remained immobile for fear that their faces would be touched. After the man finished setting up her bed and putting the pillow behind her, she smiled.

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"Thank you…" she said softly.

Her first impression of seeing this man; he looked reserved and hard to approach. But, apparently, what he just did, made her slightly change her view of him; this man was a gentleman.

The man didn't say anything. He just nodded.

Scarlett chuckled inwardly, seeing this man return to being a quiet and cold man again.

"How do you know my name?"

"From your ID card. We need that to admit you here."

"Ah! So you open my bag."

"Yes. I don't see any other choice. I'm sorry if that bothered you."

"No problem. I can understand. And thanks for bringing me here." Scarlett smiled before continuing, "Earlier, I clearly recalled that you said you could help me. If I may ask, what kind of help would you like to offer?" She was confused about it.

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"About your marriage arrangements..."

Instantly Scarlett's pale face slowly blackened at his words. What happened at the Beachfront Hotel returned to her mind and tormented her.

Her problems with her parents have not been resolved. She had to get this over with quickly, lest her shameless stepmother registers the marriage without her consent — she knew that damn woman was smart enough to do such a thing.

She looked at her smartwatch and was surprised to find it was already 1 am. She had been asleep in the hospital for quite a while, and this handsome man was still with her. He is very kind!

"You talk too loud, so I hear everything you say!" His tone was calm.

Scarlett was utterly speechless. She could interpret his words; 'don't blame me for eavesdropping on your problems....'

Gosh, this guy! He's a nice guy, but his attitude is slightly odd.

"How will you help me out of this shameless matter?" Scarlett was no longer ashamed to discuss her family issues with him.

"Marry me!"

"What!? M-Marry you?"

Scarlet couldn't contain her surprise. Her eyes were sharp on him. She couldn't believe what she had just heard.

Does this handsome man want to marry her?

She had not returned to this country in a long time, so she felt confused.

Has there been a cultural shift in this country?

Nowadays it is so easy to ask someone to marry. There is no need to know each other anymore, let alone date. Just request a random person to marry, just like this man.

Gosh!

She was speechless.

"Yes!"

"Wait! Sir… mister…"

"Xander. Call me Xander."

Scarlett scratched her head that didn't itch, too confused by what was happening to her.

"Mr. Xander…"

"No need to use Mr, just Xander."

Fine, whatever!

"Xander, sorry to ask. Are you drunk? How can you ask a random woman to marry you?"

This man is very handsome and also seems pretty rich. Indeed many women are willing to throw their underwear at him. But why was he so desperate to ask her to marry him? Even though they had just met.

She only knows his name. She doesn't know where he works. Where does he live, and what family does he come from?

Only a crazy person would accept his offer. And right now, she does not fall into that category. Her mind is still sane.

"Please don't get me wrong. I'm just trying to help myself. And at the same time helping you."

Scarlett was even more confused.

"I know my problem is complicated. But, I think being married to a man I just met, without love, feels weird..." she said.

"This is not a real marriage but a contract marriage that you can set up to your advantage. And also mine."

Scarlett listened silently; inside, she was shocked and a bit perplexed.

Xander crossed his arms over his chest while looking into Scarlett's eyes. He continued, "As I said before, I will help you, and at the same time, you will help me. I don't need to explain what my problem is. But, I assure you, if you agree to do a contract marriage with me, then your problems will be solved. So what do you think!?"

Scarlett was in no hurry to speak. She slowly raised her head and said, "So I can put any clauses I want in the contract?"

The man nods, saying, "As long as it doesn't hurt me."

Scarlett offered a handshake to Xander, "Okay. You got a deal!"

To be continued........