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Tempted by the Billionaire Novel Cover

Tempted by the Billionaire

After years of devotion, Arabella Quinn is discarded when her adoptive parents' true daughter returns—and her fiancé Louis abandons her for the heiress. Left broken in a hospital bed, she sheds her kindness for cold ambition. When Malcolm King, a ruthless billionaire, proposes a contract marriage for convenience, she accepts. But as revenge fuels her rise, genuine desire threatens the arrangement. With Celine and Louis facing consequences, Arabella must decide if what she feels for Malcolm is real—or just another dangerous illusion.
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Chapter 1

The entire glass disappeared in a single gulp. Almost instantly, the cool liquid soothed the raw ache in my throat, bringing it back to life. I let out a slow breath, relieved.

“I suppose you feel better now?” he asked, watching me closely.

I tried speaking again.

" Yes," I said, glad that my voice was back to normal.

" Do you remember anything from two days ago?" he asked.

I strained my memory to think for a while.

And slowly it all started coming back to me.

The phone call, me crying my eyes out as I drove, the huge trailer that came out of nowhere and sent me driving straight into a tree.

That was the last thing I remembered until I showed up here. I had been in a fatal car accident and somehow, I had survived it.

My face paled at the thought of that.

What call? Who was I talking to on the phone that had me so distracted that I had let the wheels slip out of my hands?

I could not remember that little bit.

" Thankfully, you are okay and just gained a few scratches. You would be able to get around, and it would be dangerous when you were in a coma, but seeing that you are out now, I can tell you for a fact that you would be fit to leave here tomorrow." He said, beaming at me. A sick bile rose up in my belly at the question I was about to ask.

" And what about the person driving the truck?" I asked him.

His smile faltered a bit, and he sighed, taking off his glasses and wiping it before putting them back on.

The bile only grew.

" He was an old man in his seventies. He was bleeding extensively when they brought him in. We could have saved him if it was a younger person, but he was old and his heart was already giving up. I'm so sorry, but we lost him," he said, and i felt my heart break.

I had claimed the life of someone. Perhaps someone who all he wanted was to eat and provide for his family. I killed someone's husband.

He probably saw the look on my face because he turned to look at me, giving me a small pat on my hands.

" I know most of the time it's hard to hear about the death of someone. The police have already concluded that he was probably driving at high speed, and you were not able to swerve out of his way, you were not at fault," he said.

I appreciated his little effort at trying to comfort me, but the deed was already done. I could already feel the guilt crippling me as my mind made up different numbers of scenarios.

What if I had been more focused and not on my phone? What if I had been able to drive smartly and avoided him? He would still be alive.

There were so many things I wanted to tell the doctor, but somehow, I knew he wouldn’t understand the fears weighing heavily on my mind. So, I swallowed my concerns and forced a small smile. “Thank you so much for everything,” I said.

He gave me another reassuring smile before continuing.

" Well, we tried to reach your family members here in Los Angeles but unfortunately, none of them showed up. Your fiancé gave us the number of your friend in London, and she has been the one paying the bills. I'm sure she will be here very soon to check up on you," he said, and I felt my heart thump wildly.

What was that phone call that I received just before the world started spinning? Why could I not remember it?

" So none ...none of them came to visit? Including my mum?" I asked him, noticing the pain that dawned in his eyes as he slowly shook his head.

" None did," he said.

The room fell silent and he finally said again.

" I have to do a routine check with the rest of my patients. I hope your friend gets here soon enough, and I will be back again to check how you have progressed and see if you are fit to leave tomorrow," he said.

As the door shut behind him, the feeling of anger washed over me. None of them came to visit. After every single night I spent with them, after my childhood with all of them, no one came to visit.

" Oh my baby!" A voice cried out as the door banged open, my friend Tasha coming in.

She pulled me into a hug and I obliged, breathing in her earthy scent to comfort me.

" I'm so sorry about what happened. And also about your marriage. Louis is a real jerk," she said, her eyes sympathetic.

" What did he do?" I asked her and her face contorted in shock.

" You don't remember?" she asked.

And as though that was the only question I needed to hear, the bit of that accident that I missed came roaring back to me. I had called Louis to confront him, to ask him why he would want to marry my sister.

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