The Billionaire’s Dark and Twisted Obsession

“Do you, Ms. Lillian Wright agree to take Mr. Xavier Santos to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

My blood turned to ice at the priest’s words.

This was really happening.

It wasn’t a bad dream. It was real life. I was really about to tie the knot with Xavier fucking Santos, the man I hated the most.

He was across from me, wearing a smug look, and I could see the twinkle of triumph in his eyes, the one that screamed “I now own you”.

Fuck! I hated him so damn much that it made my blood boil. I hated him so much that I’d give anything to watch him suffer, to watch him bleed to death like the animal that he was.

But all this was just wishful thinking because it was impossible to hurt him.

Aside from the fact that he was completely untouchable, I must marry him. I must smile like a woman completely in love and say “Yes, I do”. I must put on my best acting skills and show the world that I was in love with Xavier Santos when it was indeed the exact opposite.

I must do it for my family.

He holds my life in his hands and has control over everything that I am. I can't run away even if I tried to. I can't do anything but smile and say I do.

“Yes,” my lips stretched into a faux smile, staring at Xavier right in the eye. “I do.”

His cynical smile widened.

A MONTH BEFORE THE WEDDING.

“Can you believe it, Mara,” I sighed in exaggerated exasperation, getting down from my red Porsche. “Daddy totally stopped me right in the middle of my shopping spree to come to this god-awful restaurant,” I gagged.

“Good afternoon, miss—“ the valet started speaking but I held my hand up to stop him before he yapped my ears off.

“Are you fucking blind? Can’t you see that I am on a phone call?” I glared at him and he cowered, averting his gaze from me. I threw him my car keys, catching him unawares and had him almost tripping on air just to catch them.

So fucking incompetent.

“If anything happens to my car, I’d have your head,” I instructed, looking at him dead in the eye to show him that I meant every word.

He looked utterly mortified but I couldn’t care less, matching off into the restaurant, my phone still glued to my ear.

“I’m already regretting being here already,” I continued ranting to my friend. “Like, what’s even the point!” I lamented. Mara cackled through the phone and I couldn’t even tell if she was making fun of me or not.

“Oh, the horror!” She guffawed and I rolled my eyes at her antics.

“Not funny, Mara,” I chided.

“Okay, I’m sorry,” I could imagine the blonde girl rolling her eyes as well. “But honestly, Lillian, I agree with you. It’s so not cool. Like, why would he ruin your shopping vibe like that?”

“I know right?” The frustration was evident in my tone. “It’s like, totally ridiculous. I was right in the middle of checking out the latest stuff at the Sephora and then he dropped the bomb on me. I swear, parents sometimes just don’t get it.”

Then, the thought of all those make-up palettes and skin care products I had to leave behind made me scream out, alerting a bit of attention to me.

I didn’t care.

“Ugh! I was so looking forward to searching all those new lipsticks. But nope, Daddy-o had other plans. Such a buzzkill.” I poured.

Mara giggled on the other end of the line.

“Well, maybe this place will surprise you, girl,” she said and I hissed, disagreeing with her immediately. “You never know, they might have some bomb fries or something,” she chuckled.

Okay, now she was locking me.

“Please,” I scoffed again. “Like I’m going to find anything remotely decent here. Hell, I highly doubt they even know what an avocado toast is,” I scrunched my nose. Mara laughed again.

“Good luck, baby girl,” she said and I hummed, hanging up.

I exhaled and continued walking, making my way toward the private lounge Daddy had instructed me to meet him in, my mind still reeling from the utter injustice of being snatched away from my shopping.

And as if the universe was so against me today, a dumb, clumsy waitress ran smack into me, sending a tray with a cut of water cascading down my legs.

“Oh my God! Look what you’ve done!” I screeched, my voice piercing the air and alerting gazes to my side, but I couldn’t care less.

This bitch just ruined my Jimmy Choos!

“I am terribly sorry, ma’am,” she began to apologize profusely. “It was an accident. Please, let me—“

She started crouching down to touch my leg with her filthy hands, and without even a moment of hesitation, I raised my hand and slapped her across the cheek, sending her to the floor, recoiling in shock.

“How dare you!” I spat, my tone dripping with venom. “You clumsy imbecile! Do you have any idea how much these shoes cost? Probably more than you make in a year!” I snapped.

“I’m so sorry, ma’am,” she cowered before me like the peasant that she was, begging for forgiveness. “I’ll rectify this immediately,” she tried to touch my feet again.

“Don’t you dare touch me!” I shrieked. “I demand to see the manager! I want you fired this instant!”

“Is everything alright here?” A man I assumed immediately to be the manager came rushing over.

“No, everything isn’t alright!” I snapped back at him. “This incompetent imbecile ruined my Jimmy Choos! I demand that you terminate her employment immediately!”

“I apologize for the inconvenience, madam,” the manager was speaking to me rather calmly. “Rest assured, we will address the situation appropriately. However, I must ask you to refrain from any further outbursts,”

“Oh fuck you!” I retorted back at him. “And fuck this entire restaurant! I’ll make sure you go out of business!”

“Madam, if you don’t stop this misdemeanour, I’m going to ask you to leave,” the manager said firmly, eliciting a gasp from me.

“How dare you!” I screamed again. “Do you know who I am? Do you know who my father is? You are going to regret—“

“Lillian, what on earth is going on here?” My father’s voice cut through the chaos, his brow furrowed with confusion and concern as he surveyed the scene before him.

I turned to him

“Daddy,” I ran to him, going into a melodramatic tirade. “That waitress ruined my shoes! And then the manager was so rude to me. Can you believe it?”

“Mr. Wright sir,” The manager interjected, addressing my father with a questioning glance. “Do you know this young lady?”

My father sighed, a weary resignation settling over him as he nodded. “Yes, she’s my daughter.”

“I want this restaurant shut down!” I continued raving. “They can’t treat customers like this.”

“Keep quiet, Lillian!” My father snapped and I went mute, shocked that he would speak to me like that in front of people.

Then he shook his head, his expression apologetic as he turned to the manager and the waitress.

“I’m so sorry for the trouble, everyone. Please accept my apologies.”

With that, he took my arm and led me away from the scene, leading me towards the lounge area.

“What the hell, Daddy!” I snapped at him. “Why would you treat me like that in front of those peasants? It’s not enough that you dragged me from my shopping but you embarrass me—“

“Shut up, Lillian!” He retorted sharply, cutting the rest of my words off. “I’m not going to have you embarrass me, not when we have a very important guest!” He scolded me.

Important guest?

“Who is this important guest that seems to be more important than your own daughter?” I sassed. He exhaled and opened the door to the private lounge, leading me in.

As I entered the lounge, my eyes fell on a figure seated, his presence commanding and his gaze piercing.

“Lillian,” my father spoke. “I’d like you to meet Mr. Xavier Santos.”