Undying love: Between Power and Pain

UNDYING LOVE: Between Power and Pain {The past is in the past} Amber Gareth believed love was something you survived, not something you chased. Once upon a time, she loved deeply—recklessly, hopelessly. And when that love shattered, she buried it so far beneath her confidence, sarcasm, and sharp tongue that even she forgot what it felt like to hope again. Now, she lives by one rule: no relationships, no attachments, no love. Marriage? Out of the question. Amber is rich, famous, desired, and completely uninterested. With her curvy figure, unapologetic confidence, and biting honesty, men fall at her feet—but she walks past them without a second glance. To the world, she’s the fearless Gareth sister. To herself, she’s a woman who refuses to bleed again. But fate has its own cruel sense of timing. Alexander Wilson is everything Amber avoids. Cold. Powerful. Untouchable. As the president of Wilson Group, Alex has built an empire on discipline and silence. He doesn’t smile, doesn’t date, and doesn’t explain himself. The board fears him. The media speculates about him. And society whispers behind his back—why is a man this successful still unmarried? What they don’t know is that Alex already lost the only woman he ever loved. The past didn’t just wound him—it froze him. Now, pressure mounts. Investors demand stability. The board demands a wife. His parents demand grandchildren. And Alex is forced to make a decision he never planned to face again. Marry… or lose control of everything he built. So when an unexpected solution presents itself, Alex does the unthinkable—he proposes a contract marriage. No love. No emotions. No expectations. Just a signature. Amber never planned to cross paths with Alexander Wilson. And she definitely never planned to become his wife. But circumstances collide, families interfere, and a deal is struck—one that benefits them both. A temporary marriage. A public image. A private agreement. What could possibly go wrong? Living under the same roof was never part of the plan. Neither was late-night arguments. Lingering glances. Unspoken jealousy. Or the way Alex’s cold eyes soften only when Amber isn’t looking. As the contract blurs and emotions creep in, the past begins to claw its way back to the surface. Secrets unfold. Old wounds reopen. Ex-lovers resurface. And truths long buried threaten to destroy everything. Amber’s sharp tongue hides a heart still afraid to love. Alex’s silence hides a pain he never healed from. And when love finally knocks—harder than either of them expects—the question remains: Can two broken people risk loving again… without losing themselves? Or will the past prove that some hearts are never meant to heal?