Five years ago, he upped and left his wife without informing her. He had always felt unworthy. As a result, he decided to go and become a better man. It took him five whole years of daily hard work. When he was satisfied, he returned as a powerful and honorable man. He intended to start a family with his wife. But he got back to meet the greatest shocker of his life. He actually had a daughter!
The night deepened.
It was shockingly cold all year around in Mapleley.
A military jeep just began treading the snow-covered road, leaving a trail of white billows in its wake. The young man in the back seat rubbed his tired, slightly red eyes.
A little ways behind the jeep was a military base with a dense mass of uniformed soldiers gathered at the gates.
At this moment, they all saluted with moist eyes at the fading jeep.
"Thank you for your service, God of War!"
"Thank you for your service, God of War!"
All the soldiers shouted in unison, and the frigid air carried their voices into the night.
A burly man named Vincent Wagner was driving the military jeep, and he glanced at his passenger through the rearview mirror. He cleared his throat and reluctantly asked, "Is this really it for you, General? Are you really leaving the service?"
The man to whom he was speaking was Ryder Valdez. He was a young man who had only been in the army for five years but had already made great contributions.
At the age of twenty-seven, he managed to become the youngest General to ever guard Mapleley.
After rising to the rank of General, he had led his men into countless battles and won, earning himself the title God of War.
"Now that we're unconquerable in Mapleley, who will dare pick a fight with us?"
After saying that, Ryder took out a photo.
In the photo, he was next to a woman with fine features. She looked like she was in her early twenties, and she had long hair, which was tied in a ponytail. Her eyes were bright, her nose was straight, and her mouth was plump. She was even lovelier than those female stars.
However, in the photo, she didn't look happy.
"I wonder how you're doing now, Zoey," Ryder murmured, staring at the woman in the photo.
It was the only picture he had gotten with her. A happy smile soon curled his lips as memories flooded his mind.
Five years ago, Zoey Swain, who just started her senior year in college, founded Sanhoy Group and then went on to become one of the most well-known successful businesswomen in Linbourne.
Unfortunately, at the critical moment of Sanhoy Group's development, she had been set up. She was drugged, and slept with one of her company's security guards.
And that lucky security guard was Ryder.
"Linbourne's Prominent Woman Allegedly Involved with a Security Guard!"
Before Ryder and Zoey could even make it out of the hotel, the news had already spread like wildfire. The media went on a frenzy, and Zoey's reputation went down in flames.
Overnight, Zoey went from being a formidable entrepreneur to being a woman who had a one-night stand with a security guard.
And along with her name, the market value of Sanhoy Group plummeted.
In order to perform damage control, the Swain family searched for and found Ryder and convinced him to marry Zoey.
The news of the two's nuptials quickly gripped all of Linbourne. For a while, it was all everybody could talk about, but at the same time, the Swain family had become a joke.
However, not long after their wedding, Ryder left secretly and went on his own way, hoping to make himself worthy of Zoey.
Over the past five years, he had made Zoey his inspiration. Whenever he thought about giving up, he just pictured her perfect face, and then he was ready to give his all again. Zoey was the reason he had reached the peak of glory.
However, Ryder also felt debilitating guilt when he thought of her.
Three days later, an airliner landed at the Linbourne International Airport.
"Finally, I'm back."
Ryder deplaned and, for the first time in five years, set foot in Linbourne. He couldn't help putting on a bright smile.
"Mommy! Mommy, where are you?"
At the airport's arrivals area, Ryder heard a little girl crying. For some reason, he felt his heart crack a little.
"General..."
Before Vincent could continue, Ryder interrupted him. "We're no longer in Mapleley, Vincent, and I'm no longer General. Put away the title."
Looking at Ryder's serious face, Vincent trembled slightly and muttered tentatively, "Ryder?"
Seeing that Ryder dipped his chin in acknowledgement, he smiled and proceeded, "I can't help noticing that that little girl looks a lot like you. Are you related?"
Ryder turned to look at the crying little girl and knitted his brows. The moment he laid eyes on her, he couldn't look away. A strong sense of familiarity came over him.
The poor thing was still sobbing, and every second of it broke his heart.
As if sensing Ryder's gaze, the little girl suddenly stopped crying and looked in his direction. She wiped her tearful eyes with her tiny hand.
Ryder and the little girl stared at each other for a few heartbeats. Ryder couldn't explain why, but he felt strongly drawn to the little girl.
She had a delicate face and smooth skin. She blinked her big, misty eyes at him. Her eyelashes were long, and they had tears on them.
The little girl seemed four years old. Although she was still a kid, she was already magnificent. She would definitely grow up to be an incredible beauty.
"Daddy!" the little girl suddenly called out.
Before Ryder could react, the little girl was already running to him. Then, she hugged his legs tightly.
At this moment, Ryder's ears started ringing. He felt as if his mind was melting.
Standing aside and watching this scene, Vincent was also shocked. He asked, "Is she really your daughter, Ryder?"
After a while, Ryder snapped back to his senses. He squatted down and faced the little girl who was staring at him with huge, expectant eyes. In the gentlest voice he could muster, Ryder started, "Young lady, I think you've mistaken me for someone else. I'm not your daddy."
However, just as Ryder finished his sentence, the little girl burst into tears again.
"No!" She whimpered in between sobs, "Daddy doesn't want me anymore! Daddy doesn't want me anymore!"
All the passers-by looked over and started whispering and pointing at Ryder.
Ryder began panicking. He didn't know what to do. He couldn't stand seeing the strange little girl cry.
As the General in Mapleley, he had made numerous men tremble with fear, but now in front of a bawling four-year-old, he was helpless. If news of this ever spread, many would absolutely be dumbfounded.
"I'm so sorry, sweetie, but I'm really not your father."
"Daddy doesn't want me..."
Every time Ryder tried to say something, the little girl cried even harder.
Five minutes passed.
Finally, with sweat all over his forehead, Ryder decided to carry the little girl in his arms.
Once again, the little girl stared at Ryder with her big, tearful eyes. From the moment Ryder scooped her up, she had held on to him and refused to let go, fearing that he would leave her.
"Ryder, since this little girl likes you so much, why don't you raise her like she's really yours?" Vincent teased Ryder with a smile. Ryder shot him a death glare, which immediately made him shut his mouth.
Helplessly, Ryder took the little girl to the airport's information desk.
The little girl started crying again when Ryder set her down, but Ryder suppressed his emotions, turned around, and left with Vincent.
As soon as Ryder and Vincent left, a long-haired woman in a black business suit rushed into the airport's information desk.
"Sloane! Oh, thank God!"
When she saw the crying little girl, she almost collapsed with relief. Tears welled up in her eyes as she locked the little girl in a tight embrace, unwilling to let her go.
For her, this little girl was her everything.
Five years ago, not long after she got married, she found out that she was pregnant, but the father of her child suddenly disappeared. Her mother told her that her husband asked her father for five hundred thousand dollars and then left.
At that time, she was so heartbroken that she attempted to kill herself but gave up at the thought of her baby.
She spent the last five years in total humiliation. During her pregnancy, her family seized the first-ever enterprise she had built from the ground up. And all that pain and disappointment were because of that man who abandoned her and their daughter.
She hated that man. He left without saying goodbye and vanished into thin air, and she hadn't heard from him in five years.
"Mommy, I saw Daddy!" Sloane exclaimed, blinking her doll-like eyes.
Then, she pouted and appeared as if she was about to start crying again. "But Daddy doesn't want me anymore!"
Hearing her little girl's words, the long-haired woman shivered. She felt as if she had just been struck by lightning.
After getting into a violent car accident, Claire woke up in a hospital in immense pain. She had thought that her husband of three years would come to see her, but unexpectedly, he strode into the ward next to hers to take care of another woman! And as if that wasn’t bad enough, he even threatened to put her in jail for that woman’s sake! "You gave me five hundred million as compensation, right? Now, I'm exchanging it for a slap on her face." Claire looked at her husband, Darren, coldly. "Let's get divorced." At that moment, Claire regretted wasting three precious years trying to win Darren's heart. It was time to end all of it.
My name is Katia, and I am just trying to survive until my fated mate arrives. Which may be easier said than done. Rejectection is the last straw. Whispering my acceptance of his rejection. I run through the pack house, out across the manicured lawn into the forest. "I'm sorry, my sweet girl," I say to my wolf. I'm sorry you have been stuck with me and have had to suffer everything I have. She whispers," it's not your fault, Katia. We came to a cliff with a waterfall. The hurt keeps pounding at me. I need it to stop. My sweet girl, and I just want peace, I keep running and leap off the cliff. Spreading my arms wide, with tears streaming down my face, I fall, not making a sound, waiting for sweet oblivion where we feel nothing ever again. "I love you, my sweet girl! Until we meet again, "My wolf replied just before we hit the water, "I love you too, Katia. I have never regretted a moment with you." The Snow Moon pack is having their last barbecue of the summer next to the waterfall on their land. The adults are laughing and joking while watching the pups play. The alpha, beta, and gamma are swimming with some of the older children and playing a game of Marco Polo. Someone yells, "Oh my goddess, someone just jumped over the waterfall!" Everyone is frozen as they watch what looks to be a child falling arms spread wide, no one makes a sound. The small body hits the water like a plane crashing into the side of a mountain. The alpha, beta, and gamma, spring into action, swimming towards the area the person went under. The alpha is screaming his wolf is going crazy repeating, "Find her. Find her...find her!" They dive and the beta surfaces with a small person in his arms. Alpha takes the girl from his beta, laying her on the ground. The men are shocked by what they see. She is covered in scars and injuries. Her body is twisted and broken. The Beta asks, "Who could have done this to someone so defenseless?" Alpha drops to his knees, repeating, "MATE...MATE...MATE!"
Life was perfect until she met her boyfriend's big brother. There was a forbidden law in the Night Shade Pack that if the head Alpha rejected his mate, he would be stripped of his position. Sophia's life would get connected with the law. She was an Omega who was dating the head Alpha's younger brother. Bryan Morrison, the head Alpha, was not only a cold-blooded man but also a charming business tycoon. His name was enough to cause other packs to tremble. He was known as a ruthless man. What if, by some twist of destiny, Sophia's path were to intertwine with his?
Belinda thought after divorce, they would part ways for good - he could live his life on his own terms, while she could indulge in the rest of hers. However, fate had other plans in store. "My darling, I was wrong. Would you please come back to me?" The man, whom she once loved deeply, lowered his once proud head humbly. "I beg you to return to me." Belinda coldly pushed away the bouquet of flowers he had offered her and coolly replied, "It's too late. The bridge has been burned, and the ashes have long since scattered to the wind!"
Her fiance and her best friend worked together and set her up. She lost everything and died in the street. However, she was reborn. The moment she opened her eyes, her husband was trying to strangle her. Luckily, she survived that. She signed the divorce agreement without hesitation and was ready for her miserable life. To her surprise, her mother in this life left her a great deal of money. She turned the tables and avenged herself. Everything went well in her career and love when her ex-husband came to her.
Darya spent three years loving Micah, worshipping the ground he walked on. Until his neglect and his family's abuse finally woke her up to the ugly truth-he doesn't love her. Never did, never will. To her, he is a hero, her knight in shining armour. To him, she is an opportunist, a gold digger who schemed her way into his life. Darya accepts the harsh reality, gathers the shattered pieces of her dignity, divorces him, takes back her real name, reclaims her title as the country's youngest billionaire heiress. Their paths cross again at a party. Micah watches his ex-wife sing like an angel, tear up the dance floor, then thwart a lecher with a roundhouse kick. He realises, belatedly, that she's exactly the kind of woman he'd want to marry, if only he had taken the trouble to get to know her. Micah acts promptly to win her back, but discovers she's now surrounded by eligible bachelors: high-powered CEO, genius biochemist, award-winning singer, reformed playboy. Worse, she makes it pretty clear that she's done with him. Micah gears up for an uphill battle. He must prove to her he's still worthy of her love before she falls for someone else. And time is running out.