A Second Life, A Fiercer Love

A Second Life, A Fiercer Love

Gavin

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The gavel fell, sealing my fate as a spectacle on a hidden auction stage in New Orleans. My once-great family, the Sinclairs, was bankrupt, and my parents had sold me. Just hours before, my fiancé, Liam Vanderbilt, had broken our engagement, his handsome face a mask of pity as he declared a Vanderbilt couldn't be associated with disgrace. Now, I was a piece of property, and the man who bid for me was Jax Devereaux, my lifelong rival. In my first life, I spat at him, screaming I'd rather die than be his charity case. I still believed Liam would save me. I was a fool. My rejection humiliated Jax, and a man named Julian Croft bought me instead. He was a monster, putting a diamond choker around my neck, and my life became a living hell. When Liam saw me later, he laughed, calling me "high-class trash." I learned Jax died trying to save me-the woman who publicly shamed him. The abuse, the betrayal, Jax' s sacrifice... it was too much. I found a way to end it all. Then I woke up, back on that stage, the auctioneer's voice booming: "Jax Devereaux bids one million dollars. Going once..." This time, I didn't hesitate. "I accept." My voice was quiet but clear, cutting through the silence. Jax, typically arrogant, was utterly speechless. He had expected a fight, a scene, another public rejection. He didn't get one. Instead, he got me, and I kissed him, hard and desperate-a silent 'thank you,' 'I'm sorry,' and 'please, don't let Julian get me.' But Julian Croft, the monster from my past, was already banging on Jax's penthouse door, screaming that I was his property. My body trembled, the memories of torture flooding back. How could I escape him again, now that he knew where I was? And what was Julian' s real connection to this horrifying human trafficking ring?

Introduction

The gavel fell, sealing my fate as a spectacle on a hidden auction stage in New Orleans.

My once-great family, the Sinclairs, was bankrupt, and my parents had sold me.

Just hours before, my fiancé, Liam Vanderbilt, had broken our engagement, his handsome face a mask of pity as he declared a Vanderbilt couldn't be associated with disgrace.

Now, I was a piece of property, and the man who bid for me was Jax Devereaux, my lifelong rival.

In my first life, I spat at him, screaming I'd rather die than be his charity case.

I still believed Liam would save me.

I was a fool.

My rejection humiliated Jax, and a man named Julian Croft bought me instead.

He was a monster, putting a diamond choker around my neck, and my life became a living hell.

When Liam saw me later, he laughed, calling me "high-class trash."

I learned Jax died trying to save me-the woman who publicly shamed him.

The abuse, the betrayal, Jax' s sacrifice... it was too much.

I found a way to end it all.

Then I woke up, back on that stage, the auctioneer's voice booming: "Jax Devereaux bids one million dollars. Going once..."

This time, I didn't hesitate.

"I accept."

My voice was quiet but clear, cutting through the silence.

Jax, typically arrogant, was utterly speechless.

He had expected a fight, a scene, another public rejection.

He didn't get one.

Instead, he got me, and I kissed him, hard and desperate-a silent 'thank you,' 'I'm sorry,' and 'please, don't let Julian get me.'

But Julian Croft, the monster from my past, was already banging on Jax's penthouse door, screaming that I was his property.

My body trembled, the memories of torture flooding back.

How could I escape him again, now that he knew where I was?

And what was Julian' s real connection to this horrifying human trafficking ring?

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My world revolved around Jax Harding, my older brother's captivating rockstar friend. From sixteen, I adored him; at eighteen, I clung to his casual promise: "When you're 22, maybe I'll settle down." That offhand comment became my life's beacon, guiding every choice, meticulously planning my twenty-second birthday as our destiny. But on that pivotal day in a Lower East Side bar, clutching my gift, my dream exploded. I overheard Jax' s cold voice: "Can't believe Savvy's showing up. She' s still hung up on that stupid thing I said." Then the crushing plot: "We' re gonna tell Savvy I' m engaged to Chloe, maybe even hint she' s pregnant. That should scare her off." My gift, my future, slipped from my numb fingers. I fled into the cold New York rain, devastated by betrayal. Later, Jax introduced Chloe as his "fiancée" while his bandmates mocked my "adorable crush"-he did nothing. As an art installation fell, he saved Chloe, abandoning me to severe injury. In the hospital, he came for "damage control," then shockingly shoved me into a fountain, leaving me to bleed, calling me a "jealous psycho." How could the man I loved, who once saved me, become this cruel and publicly humiliate me? Why was my devotion seen as an annoyance to be brutally extinguished with lies and assault? Was I just a problem, my loyalty met with hatred? I would not be his victim. Injured and betrayed, I made an unshakeable vow: I was done. I blocked his number and everyone connected to him, severing ties. This was not an escape; this was my rebirth. Florence awaited, a new life on my terms, unburdened by broken promises.

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