Reborn To Love My Paranoid Billionaire

I ruined my marriage and abandoned my billionaire husband for the man I thought was my true love.

But instead of a romantic escape, I found myself cornered on the edge of a yacht by three mercenaries.

Through a burner phone on speaker, my lover casually ordered my murder.

"Finish the job cleanly. No bodies, no evidence."

In the background, my own cousin giggled. My supposed best friend chimed in, demanding they strip the diamond bracelet off my wrist before tossing me into the freezing waves. They were celebrating a massive trust fund payout built entirely on my death.

As I was brutally thrown into the churning black abyss, the freezing saltwater filled my lungs.

Sinking into the crushing darkness, I realized I had blindly trusted venomous snakes. My dying thought was of Barrett Kensington-the husband I had tortured with my rebellion, and the only man who truly loved me. If the universe granted me one more breath, I swore a blood oath to tear my betrayers apart piece by piece.

Then, the freezing water suddenly vanished, replaced by stifling heat.

I opened my eyes and found myself pinned against a silk mattress by a furious Barrett. I was back three years ago, on the exact night I first tried to escape him.

This time, instead of fighting him, I relaxed my wrists, looked into his paranoid eyes, and softly whispered.

"Hubby."

--

The piercing Atlantic wind whipped Audrey's face like shattered glass, but it was nothing compared to the ice freezing her veins.

Backed against the yacht's fragile railing, she stared down three heavily tattooed mercenaries.

Suddenly, a harsh burst of static pierced the howling wind.

The lead thug held up a phone. Carl Santos's voice echoed from the cheap speaker. It was the voice Audrey had once loved deeply, the voice she had abandoned her billionaire husband for.

"Is the dumb bitch dead yet? Throw her to the sharks. I'm sick of pretending to love her."

A sharp, sweet giggle immediately followed in the background. "Be patient, babe. Don't scare our baby."

"Wait, don't just push her!" Another eager, shrill voice chimed in. "She's wearing the 'Pink Star' diamond bracelet Barrett gave her! Chop off her hand if you have to, but get it! It's worth millions!"

The voices twisted together, slicing open Audrey's chest like a physical meat cleaver. Her lungs spasmed, unable to draw in a single breath.

Carl, her supposed "true love." Celina Hayes, the cousin she had housed, fed, and treated like a sister. And Jasmin, her "best friend" who had constantly brainwashed her into believing Barrett was a monster!

The sheer weight of this triple betrayal crushed her like a sledgehammer.

For these people, she had alienated her fiercely devoted husband. She had handed over her shares, luxury cars, and endless resources, single-handedly elevating Carl from a penniless nobody into a wealthy elite, while dressing Celina and Jasmin in head-to-toe designer labels. But these ungrateful wolves, these parasites who had sucked her dry, had not only conceived a bastard child behind her back-they now wanted to chop off her hand for a final payout after draining every ounce of her worth!

Her knees buckled. She slumped weakly against the freezing metal railing, her hands gripping the cold steel so hard her knuckles turned bone-white.

The lead thug drew a hunting knife, his greedy eyes locked on her wrist. "Hold her down. I'll take the hand."

"Don't touch me!" Audrey screamed, her eyes bloodshot. She would never give them the satisfaction. She would never let them mutilate her!

She stared dead into the burner phone's camera, burning the sound of their laughter into her soul. If I become a vengeful ghost, I swear I will drag you all to hell!

Without a second of hesitation, she leaned back and threw herself over the railing.

Splash!

The freezing, pitch-black ocean swallowed her instantly. The massive impact nearly shattered her ribs, forcing every ounce of air from her lungs. Salty water violently rushed into her nose and throat.

As she sank into the suffocating abyss, endless despair wrapped around her.

In her final moments of fading consciousness, only one man's face broke through the absolute darkness. Barrett Kensington.

Her legal husband. The ruthless, terrifying billionaire tycoon she had called a monster. The man she had viciously stabbed in the shoulder just yesterday because he refused to let her elope with Carl.

"Audrey, even if we burn in hell together, I will never let you go."

Blood had stained his white shirt, yet his eyes held only a desperate, suffocating love for her. He had given her everything, shielded her from the shadows, and how had she repaid him? She had ripped out his heart for a pack of ungrateful wolves!

I was so blind... I was such a ridiculous fool!

Tears mixed with the freezing seawater. Her lungs burned like fire.

Barrett, I'm so sorry... She swore a blood oath to the deep. If the heavens grant me one more breath, I will tear those traitors apart inch by inch! And I will spend the rest of my life loving you.

Darkness completely consumed her.

...

Then, the freezing seawater suddenly vanished.

It was replaced by a stifling, physical wave of intense heat. The air was heavy with the scent of cedarwood, expensive mint, and a faint trace of blood.

Audrey's lungs expanded violently. She gasped for air, coughing uncontrollably as fresh oxygen rushed into her body.

"Look at me!" a deep, furious roar exploded next to her ear.

Her wrists were pinned fiercely against a soft silk mattress. A heavy, muscle-coiled body suppressed her completely.

Audrey forced her eyes open. Her blurry vision gradually focused, revealing a sharp jawline, a torn white shirt stained with fresh crimson, and a pair of bloodshot, dark eyes burning with madness and agony.

Barrett Kensington.

"Am I that disgusting to you?!" Barrett's voice trembled, carrying a terrifying mix of rage and absolute heartbreak. He gripped her wrists tightly, his chest heaving. "You'd rather die? You'd rather kill yourself than stay in my house for one more night?!"

Audrey's brain short-circuited.

The dark mahogany headboard. The emerald silk nightgown she was wearing. And the blood-stained shirt on his body.

She was reborn.

She was back exactly three years ago-back to the very night she had pressed a shard of glass to her own throat, threatening to kill herself if Barrett didn't sign the divorce papers so she could run away with Carl!

Seeing her blank stare, the light in Barrett's eyes completely died, giving way to endless defeat. The terrifying business tyrant now looked like an abandoned beast. "Fine..." he whispered hoarsely, slowly loosening his grip. "If you really hate me that much... I'll let you go."

He tried to stand up and leave.

No!

Before Barrett could fully straighten up, Audrey's survival instinct-and an overwhelming, soul-crushing wave of guilt-took over her sanity.

She lunged upward. Ignoring the blood on him, ignoring his shocked gaze, she threw her arms tightly around his neck and buried her face deep into his burning chest.

She breathed in his scent greedily, her tears instantly soaking his shirt.

Barrett's entire body went rigid. He froze, completely stunned, his hands hovering in mid-air, not daring to move an inch.

Audrey buried her face in the crook of his neck. Carrying two lifetimes of regret and fierce, intense love, her voice trembled as she softly sobbed:

"Don't let me go... Hubby."