CEO's Runaway Lover: My Cold Ex Begs For My Love Again
Four years ago, Madelynn accepted money from Caiden's family and vanished. She thought it was for the best-he would remain the untouchable heir while she faced her tough life alone.
When they met again, Caiden humiliated her in public, yet appeared when she was cornered by a difficult client, pulling her back into his life.
He forced her to stay as his lover, using her mother's medical bills as leverage, whispering, "What you owe me... you'll repay the same way."
Madelynn believed he despised her. Only after the accident, when he ran toward her before the explosion, did she understand-he never let go.
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Chapter 5
Madelynn had drifted off without realizing it, and when she finally stirred awake, she found herself in Caiden's car, which had already stopped at the hospital entrance.
"I'm really okay," she said on instinct, trying to decline, but Caiden didn't give her the chance. He lifted her into his arms without hesitation and walked straight into the emergency department.
The rest of her protest got stuck in her throat.
"I can walk on my own." She tried again after a pause.
But Caiden didn't respond and continued forward as if he hadn't heard her at all.
From wound cleaning and dressing to X-rays and a tetanus injection, Caiden remained present the entire time. He didn't engage in conversation, didn't step away, just stood near the doorway of each room like a fixed shadow keeping watch.
When the doctor began disinfecting her injuries, the sting made Madelynn inhale sharply.
Caiden immediately shifted forward.
The doctor looked between them and said to him, "Are you her family? Come hold her hand."
Without a word, Caiden walked over and took Madelynn's hand.
Madelynn stiffened.
His palm was warm as it enveloped her blood-stained hand, holding it as if it were a fragile treasure.
She barely felt any pain after that.
By the time everything was finished, it was well past midnight.
At the hospital exit, Madelynn paused beside Caiden's car.
"Thanks for tonight," she said quietly.
"It's nothing," Caiden replied evenly.
Madelynn hesitated for a moment. "About Randy... will this affect Infinity Entertainment?"
"No."
Caiden's answer was immediate and final.
Madelynn didn't ask why. "Alright. I'll head back now. My mom is still waiting for me."
Caiden just looked at her.
A strip of gauze covered her forehead, and her elbow was secured in fresh bandaging. Her complexion had turned pale from losing blood. Even so, she held herself upright, her eyes unwavering, as though nothing could break her.
At that moment, he suddenly asked, "What about Isaac?"
He had kept the question bottled up all night, and now, it finally broke free.
Four years ago, she had walked out of his life without a backward glance—for Isaac Curtis.
For years, he had believed she had gotten together with Isaac and had been living in comfort. He had never imagined he would find her like this—reduced to such a miserable state.
The question clearly caught Madelynn off guard.
"He left the country," she answered after a pause. "He visited me once before leaving. We haven't been in contact since."
Caiden said nothing in response.
"Four years ago..." Madelynn began, only to trail off.
She studied his expression, as if hoping to find a sign that could allow her to continue.
But Caiden just stood there, motionless, like a figure carved from stone.
Madelynn forced back the words she had almost spoken.
"I'll go inside now... and thank you, again."
With that, she turned and made her way slowly toward the inpatient wing.
She never glanced back.
And because of that, she missed the fact that Caiden remained there long after she disappeared from view.
True to expectation, Randy didn't stir up any problems for Infinity Entertainment.
Still, the project was quietly reassigned to someone else.
After Madelynn lost two projects in a row, Danny arranged for her to head to Avlester to supervise a production.
She had just arrived in Avlester and hadn't even stepped onto the set when Margot Sullivan's assistant, Paula Blake, hurried her into the dressing room.
"Madelynn, you need to see this. Look at Margot's face!"
Margot was seated at the vanity, one side of her face visibly swollen. A vivid handprint was imprinted across her cheek.
As soon as she noticed Madelynn, she turned her face aside instinctively, avoiding eye contact.
Madelynn inhaled deeply in shock. "Who did this to you?"
"It's Lacey," Paula answered, clearly furious. "It was a slap scene. They reshot it nineteen times, and she hit Margot hard every single time."
Margot dropped her gaze. "I wasn't doing it right; it's not really her fault."
"If your performance needed work, she could've guided you or requested another take. That doesn't justify hitting you so hard every time," Madelynn said, eyes fixed on Margot's swollen face. "Can this be concealed by makeup?"
From the side, the makeup artist replied cautiously, "I can hide it for now, but she still has three scenes left today. If this continues..."
Madelynn didn't respond. She simply turned and headed out.
Paula rushed after her. "Madelynn, where are you going?"
"To see Lacey."
Lacey Holt was working with Unit A and finished her scene in a single take, prompting the director to call cut. She took the thermos from her assistant, then lifted her eyes and noticed Madelynn standing near the monitor.
"Well, if it isn't Miss Douglas," she said, sipping leisurely. "I thought you were taken off this project. What brings you back?"
"Why did you do that to Margot?" Madelynn asked.
Lacey placed the thermos aside, her expression turning innocent. "We were shooting a scene. The director wanted realism, so I was just doing my job."
"The director needed only one proper take, but you dragged it out to nineteen."
"Because her acting was awful." Lacey's smile faded. "Is this the best you could train? She breaks down at the slightest thing—no professionalism at all."
Madelynn met her gaze. "If you're dissatisfied, you can discuss the matter properly. Replace her if you must. But bringing your personal feelings onto the set and slapping her nineteen times—that's called workplace bullying."
At that, Lacey's expression shifted instantly.
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8.3
Betrayed at the altar. Replaced by her own sister.
On what should have been the happiest day of her life, Amara loses everything-her fiancé, her dignity, and her future.
But that same night, a dangerous man steps out of the shadows with an offer she can't refuse.
Marriage. Power. Revenge.
Now bound to a ruthless CEO, Amara is ready to destroy everyone who betrayed her.
There's just one problem...
Her new husband knows more about her past than he should.
And the closer she gets to revenge-
the more she realizes she may have married the man who ruined her in the first place.
8.3
Ayleen Ramirez sat in the sterile Hope Hill Fertility Clinic, her heart shattering as Dr. Finch delivered the crushing news: her third IVF cycle had failed.
Eavesdropping outside a supply closet, she overheard her husband Don on the phone, laughing cruelly. "She's a defective incubator," he sneered to his mistress Alessandra. "I never used my sperm—just cheap bank donation. No trailer trash carries a Bradley heir."
Betrayed, Ayleen confronted him, but her adoptive family ambushed her at home. Her parents and brother sided with Alessandra, now pregnant by Don, demanding Ayleen sign divorce papers to secure family investments. "You're an embarrassment," her mother snapped, threatening to cut her trust fund. Ayleen tossed back their heirloom necklace and walked out.
She stormed the Bradley mansion, slapped divorce papers on Don, packed her bags amid his aunt's insults, and fled into the night.
Drunk in a trendy bar, she stumbled into a powerful stranger—Burdette Guerrero—spilling whiskey on his crotch, then accidentally grabbed a napkin to his trousers. He shoved her away in rage.
Worse, she mistook his penthouse suite for her hotel room, bursting in on his shower, smashing a mirror in panic. He pinned her to the wall, snarling accusations.
How did this arrogant man know her name? Why demand she sign a mysterious contract at 9 a.m.? Devastated and clueless she's actually pregnant—with his stolen heir—Ayleen sobbed alone, the world crumbling.
The next morning, she straightened her spine in the Grand Guerrero lobby, ready to face him and demand answers—no matter the cost.
7.8
Helen was finally brought back to the luxurious Gallagher estate as their long-lost blood relative.
But her new family didn't welcome her; they looked at her with undisguised disgust.
The matriarch mocked her stench of poverty, while her step-sister Candice treated her like a feral animal. The patriarch, Fredy—who had built his empire by betraying Helen's mother—tried to break her spirit. He blackmailed Helen into attending a high-society gala by threatening to cut off her grandmother's medical funds.
At the gala, Candice squeezed into a diamond-encrusted gown, desperate to seduce the guest of honor, Damian Montgomery. Damian was the most powerful man in New York, and he was currently tearing the city apart looking for a mysterious woman named Jane.
Overhearing this, a sick, greedy smile spread across Candice's face. She planned to impersonate Jane to claim Damian's wealth and completely crush Helen under her heel.
"Hide in the corner tonight. Don't you dare try to speak to anyone important!"
They all thought Helen was just a helpless, uncultured country girl they could easily manipulate and step on to secure their stolen legacy.
What they didn't know was that Helen was the real Jane. She was the lethal shadow who had saved Damian in the woods, shattered his grip, and robbed his highly guarded vault just the night before.
Helen calmly adjusted her simple black dress and stepped into the ballroom, ready to tear their stolen world apart.
9.7
For three years, I endured being treated like a walking ATM and a maid by my husband's family, biting my tongue to keep the peace.
Then, my husband's buddy suddenly dropped off a nine-year-old boy at my front door.
The crumpled note from my husband casually explained it was his illegitimate son, blaming me for being barren and demanding I raise the kid as our own.
My mother-in-law was absolutely thrilled, parading the boy around as the true heir at the dinner table.
"Some trees just don't bear fruit, no matter how much water you give them," she sneered.
My brother-in-law cheered, and my drunk father-in-law demanded I cook a feast to celebrate.
They actually expected me to continue paying the mortgage, buying the groceries, and cleaning up their endless messes, all while raising the living proof of my husband's betrayal.
I looked at the parasites who had drained me dry for years, acting like they were doing me a favor by letting me stay in a house that my money paid for.
I didn't scream, and I didn't cry.
I simply called my lawyer to file for an immediate divorce, froze every single bank account and credit card they relied on, and drove off to my grandmother's secluded cabin in the woods.
Let them see how long they survive without my money.
9.7
I secured the lifeline investment for my fiancé's company and went to his office to surprise him.
Instead, I caught Preston sleeping with his top actress—the woman he publicly claimed as his stepsister.
Through the cracked door, I heard him call me his "scarred, ugly bitch shield" to hide their sickening affair.
I didn't cry. I hacked the live broadcast of the Star Awards and played their sex tape to two thousand people.
But that night, drunk and reeling from the agonizing nerve pain in my facial scar, I stumbled into the wrong hotel penthouse.
I was pinned down by a drugged billionaire, Josephus Hodges.
The next morning, he left me a million-dollar check and a Plan B pill.
When he later tracked me down to offer a cold, calculated fake marriage just to absorb Preston's ruined empire, I threw the contract at his chest and told him to go to hell.
But when I got home and looked in the mirror, the chronic, burning torture in my scar was completely gone.
His touch during that terrifying night had somehow cured the agony that had ruined my life.
I had just declared war on the only man on earth who could heal me.
Just then, my ruined ex-fiancé called, begging me to save him with a PR press conference.
"I'll do it, but I control the venue."
I booked it at Josephus's heavily guarded hotel. I was going to slaughter my ex on live television, and force the apex predator to look at me again.
7.1
After the one-night stand with a man who refused to tell her his name, Charlotte would figure out on TV that the man she had s*x with the previous night was the heir to a billionaire empire.
At the same time, Jace Norman-the infamous playboy heir-faces a public scandal that threatens his inheritance. To protect the family empire, his ruthless father forces him into an immediate contract marriage.
And just like that Charlotte would get married to the spoiled, reckless son of the most powerful billionaire in the city.
That One night, Room 55 and Five thousand dollars she desperately needed would change her life forever.
Weeks later, Charlotte discovers she's pregnant.
But before she can process the truth, her manipulative boyfriend claims the child is his and begins blackmailing her.
As their fake marriage becomes dangerously possessive, secrets begin to spiral. An ex-boyfriend demanding money. Jace's jealous college lover is determined to destroy Charlotte. Charlotte's sister is hiding betrayal behind sweet smiles. And a billionaire father who will eliminate anyone to protect the Norman name.
When a forged DNA test claims the baby isn't Jace's, the empire turns on Charlotte.
But the truth is far darker than any of them realize.
Because someone has been orchestrating every lie from the beginning.
And when Jace finally discovers the baby is his...
He will have to choose between his father's empire-
Or the woman carrying his heir.