Arranged marriage with a billionaire stranger

Maddison's POV

I always thought life would treat me differently but I guessed wrong. My life took a drastic turn as I turned twenty-three. Twenty-three. The age where life was supposed to be about finding myself, exploring my passions, and maybe even falling in love. Instead, I was staring down at the barrel of a shotgun wedding, an arranged marriage with a stranger rumored to be a ruthless Casanova with a string of broken hearts longer than my grocery list. The culprit? My Dad, the CEO of a once thriving company now teetering on the edge of bankruptcy which still seemed like a mystery to me. And the solution? A strategic marriage to a man who could bail us out.

The news hit me like a ton of bricks. As the first daughter and heiress, I'd spent years studying, building my career to someday meet up to my dad's expectations. The company, our family's legacy, was on the verge of collapse, and I was the sacrificial lamb.

"Maddison, this is the only way," my father had said, his voice strained with worry. "We can't afford to lose everything we've worked so hard to build. This man, he's got the resources, the connections. He can save us."

"Save us?" I scoffed, anger bubbling up inside me. " He's going to own us, Dad."

"He's a good man, Maddison. He has his flaws, yes, but he's also a gentleman. And I believe he'll make you happy."

"Happy?" I'd laughed, the sound hollow and bitter.

"Happy? I'm supposed to be happy with a stranger who's marrying me for our company, and not for me?"

"I understand this is a lot to take in, Maddison," he said, his voice softening. "But he's the only one who can save us."

His words echoed in my mind, a constant reminder of the impossible choice I faced. My future, my freedom, and my happiness were all sacrificed on the altar of our family's legacy. The weight of it all was crushing. I felt like a chess piece being moved around on a board by forces beyond my control. I was a pawn in a game of power, and the stakes were higher than ever.

Alexander Quinn, my supposed fiancé was known to be one of the wealthiest if not the wealthiest man in the city of Las Vegas, and I guessed that must have been the reason why my dad accepted his proposal without seeing the need to seek my consent. He badly wanted to be connected to the Quinn family to attain more power and affluence.

I never imagined getting married this way and never did I plan on getting married this soon as I didn't want to go through the same pain my dad went through years ago when my mom passed away. It was unbearable for me to even watch him. My dad loved my mom so much that even after nearly two decades she died, I still saw him cry at night, staring at her photo. I had seen how painful it was to lose someone you love–it was nothing but torture.

Years after my mom's death, I was diagnosed with the same illness that killed her. It turned out I inherited the illness from her and since then, I'd been battling with it. I was nineteen at that time and I knew that just like my mom, I only had six more years to live.

I never had feelings for Alexander, but I didn't hate him either. It was a few weeks after we had been engaged and were to be married soon, just for me to walk in on him having sex with a lady who seemed like a call girl or maybe his mistress, I didn't care to know.

To my surprise, I was fueled with anger all of a sudden. So the rumors were true after all, but what could I expect from a man this wealthy and powerful, moreover he's got the looks and the charm, so I guess it wouldn't be hard to get any woman he so desires.

I had convinced myself that I was indifferent to Alexander, that our marriage was merely a strategic alliance rather than a romantic commitment. Yet, witnessing him with another woman shattered that façade. I didn't want to care about him or his decisions, but the truth was, I did. I was angry not just because of his infidelity, but because it forced me to confront the reality of my situation. I was about to marry a man who didn't respect me enough to keep to his commitments.

"Men will always be men and nothing can change that," Linda had told me when I mentioned what had happened to her. Linda was my best friend since college times, and we had always been inseparable ever since then. It had always been Maddison and Linda, never one without the other. She was a source of emotional support for me and had always had my back. Linda during college was envied by many as she was super pretty with brains.

After what I had just witnessed, I entered my car parked outside his mansion and ordered my driver to take me to the nearest bar or club, whichever one was fine by me as long as it was far from there.

I leaned against the window when I finally caught the sight of a club. I sat up and quickly told the driver to pull the car over. I just wanted to distract myself and clear my head. Do anything to get over the way I was feeling.

I hurried up to the entrance but I was stopped by two hefty bouncers.

"The club is having a masked party tonight. Everyone has to be on masks." They informed me.

Sighing, I bought a mask by the side, put it on my face, and walked into the club.

I immediately went to the counter where I sat and drank some shots before I ordered a bottle of whiskey to lighten up my mood.Vaguely, I noticed a man standing at the corner watching me closely. He was also on a mask and he was elegantly sipping his glass of wine.

My alcohol-filled senses took notice of how stunning he looked in the suit he wore. I instantly had a feeling that he must have a very handsome face.

As I continued to gush over him, I suddenly longed to be in his arms.

In my twenty-three years of existence, I had never craved intimacy like I do now.

Without thinking twice, not that I would have been able to think twice in my alcohol-filled sense, I got off my chair and staggered towards him.

"Hello, handsome." I purred, my voice sounding so seductive as fuck.

"Wanna spend the night with me?" I asked, hoping to get a positive reply but I was instantly kept silent.

The mystery man stared at me for a second before he finally spoke.

"Hell is not a good place, at least not for an angel like you. I'm sure you're aware of that. Now run along while this demon king is still playing nice and calm." He whispered.

His voice sounded familiar but I just didn't care to worry about it as it was the last thing on my mind now.

And then, he turned to leave, so casually. But then after a few steps, I stopped him in his tracks.

Who was he to tell me what to do? He had no right over me.

"The hell you speak of..." I mumbled, "I... I'd like to see it for myself... Take me there."