An Empire of Ash, A Heart of Steel

An Empire of Ash, A Heart of Steel

Rabbit

5.0
Comment(s)
8.3K
View
20
Chapters

To save his date from a spilled drink, he ripped my mother's priceless shawl from my shoulders and used it as a rag. In front of a thousand people, Kurt Salazar showed me my place. But the ultimate humiliation was yet to come. He had me design my own wedding gown-only to use it for his public proposal to another woman. The shock nearly killed me, landing me in the hospital with a literally broken heart. He thought I was just another mess to be cleaned up. He didn't know that from the shards of my heart, a new designer would be born. Now, his name is a curse, his fortune is ash, and he's obsessed with the woman whose soul he tried to steal. He's about to learn that some debts can only be paid in ruin!

An Empire of Ash, A Heart of Steel Chapter 1 1

I stood by the gilded archway, a shadow in a simple dress, my hands clasped tight. Tonight, I was not Katlynn Torres. I was Kurt Salazar's assistant, a title that tasted like ash in my mouth. My real, painful task for the Starlight Charity Gala was already complete. It was draped over the shoulders of Kurt's date for the evening, a stunning, hand-sewn gown I had poured weeks of my life into. It was another one of his tests, I'd told myself, another way to prove my devotion.

Kurt made his entrance, a prince gliding through the ballroom, but he barely glanced at the woman wearing my creation. His eyes were locked on Seraphina Vance. She was a vision in a gown by some world-famous designer, and when Kurt reached her side, his voice carried across the marble floor.

"Incredible," he said, loud enough for me to hear. "Absolutely breathtaking, Seraphina." He never once mentioned the dress on his own date's back.

Then his eyes found me. He crooked a finger, a silent, imperious summons.

"Katlynn. Champagne."

I nodded, my throat tight, and turned to the bar. My role was clear: I was the help.

Later, a collective gasp rippled through the crowd. A guest had stumbled, sloshing red wine down the front of Seraphina's pristine white dress. She looked horrified.

Before anyone could react, Kurt moved. He strode directly to me, his face a mask of cold fury. Without a word, he ripped the cashmere shawl from my shoulders. It was my mother's, a priceless, irreplaceable piece of her that I always wore.

He didn't hesitate. He used the delicate, hand-embroidered fabric to crudely blot the red stain on Seraphina's gown, smearing the wine, ruining the cashmere beyond repair. He then tossed the crumpled, stained mess back at me.

"It's just a shawl," he hissed, his voice low and sharp. "Don't cause a scene."

My breath hitched. The room swam. Then a figure blocked my view of Kurt. It was my brother, Kaleb. His hands were clenched into fists at his sides, his face radiating a cold fury that was far more terrifying than Kurt's hot anger.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Salazar?" Kaleb's voice was dangerously quiet.

Kurt just scoffed. "Relax, Torres. I'll buy her a new one."

Kaleb grabbed my arm, pulling me away from the spectacle. "Kat," he pleaded, his voice trembling with rage. "Please, open your eyes. Look at what he does to you."

Tears streamed down my face, hot and shameful. "He was just stressed," I whispered, defending the very man who had just publicly annihilated a piece of my heart. The lie felt flimsy even to my own ears.

I left the gala alone, clutching the ruined shawl to my chest. As I waited for a taxi, I hid behind a thick marble column, not wanting anyone to see me. That's when I heard his voice again, laced with a cold, dismissive laugh. He was talking to his friend, Rhys Chandler.

"She's perfectly manageable," Kurt said. "I just need her to finish one last project. Once she delivers the wedding gown, she'll have served her purpose. Then, Seraphina is all that matters."

Continue Reading

Other books by Rabbit

More
My Alpha's Heartless Contract Wife

My Alpha's Heartless Contract Wife

Werewolf

5.0

"Anya, a 'wolfless' in a world of powerful werewolves, was invisible, drowning her sorrows and desperately lonely. One drunken text, a desperate cry for attention, accidentally reached the Alpha, pulling her into his terrifying orbit. Now, she's trapped, a pawn in his game, forced to warm his bed while he waits for his true mate, her heart breaking with every stolen moment. As a 'wolfless' in the Blackwood Pack, Anya felt like an outsider, always yearning for a connection. One night, in a drunken haze, a misdirected text meant for her best friend landed in Alpha Declan Blackwood's inbox: ""Send me something hot."" Minutes later, the most powerful, terrifying man in the Pack stood at her door, claiming her with a possessive kiss that ignited a dangerous, unwanted fire. The next morning, his cold indifference shattered her world. Publicly humiliated and instantly fired, Anya became a pariah. Her dying mother's urgent need for a million-dollar heart transplant left her with an impossible choice: accept the Alpha's cold, transactional marriage proposal or watch her mother die. She became his ""placeholder"" wife, a contract, not a partner, all while battling a confusing attraction to the man who treated her as property. Why did he demand her, only to remind her constantly of her worthlessness, especially when everyone knew he waited for his true mate? Her world crumbled when she overheard Declan tell his returning ""true mate,"" Kristin Larsen, that Anya was ""just a substitute."" Despite the crushing betrayal and a strange, unyielding pull, Anya, fueled by her mother's desperate need, vowed to survive this gilded cage and reclaim her life before she lost herself completely."

You'll also like

Secret Triplets: The Billionaire's Second Chance

Secret Triplets: The Billionaire's Second Chance

Roderic Penn
4.5

I stood at my mother’s open grave in the freezing rain, my heels sinking into the mud. The space beside me was empty. My husband, Hilliard Holloway, had promised to cherish me in bad times, but apparently, burying my mother didn't fit into his busy schedule. While the priest’s voice droned on, a news alert lit up my phone. It was a livestream of the Metropolitan Charity Gala. There was Hilliard, looking impeccable in a custom tuxedo, with his ex-girlfriend Charla English draped over his arm. The headline read: "Holloway & English: A Power Couple Reunited?" When he finally returned to our penthouse at 2 AM, he didn't come alone—he brought Charla with him. He claimed she’d had a "medical emergency" at the gala and couldn't be left alone. I found a Tiffany diamond necklace on our coffee table meant for her birthday, and a smudge of her signature red lipstick on his collar. When I confronted him, he simply told me to stop being "hysterical" and "acting like a child." He had no idea I was seven months pregnant with his child. He thought so little of my grief that he didn't even bother to craft a convincing lie, laughing with his mistress in our home while I sat in the dark with a shattered heart and a secret life growing inside me. "He doesn't deserve us," I whispered to the darkness. I didn't scream or beg. I simply left a folder on his desk containing signed divorce papers and a forged medical report for a terminated pregnancy. I disappeared into the night, letting him believe he had successfully killed his own legacy through his neglect. Five years later, Hilliard walked into "The Vault," the city's most exclusive underground auction, looking for a broker to manage his estate. He didn't recognize me behind my Venetian mask, but he couldn't ignore the neon pink graffiti on his armored Maybach that read "DEADBEAT." He had no clue that the three brilliant triplets currently hacking his security system were the very children he thought had been erased years ago. This time, I wasn't just a wife in the way; I was the one holding all the cards.

Chapters
Read Now
Download Book
An Empire of Ash, A Heart of Steel An Empire of Ash, A Heart of Steel Rabbit Romance
“To save his date from a spilled drink, he ripped my mother's priceless shawl from my shoulders and used it as a rag. In front of a thousand people, Kurt Salazar showed me my place. But the ultimate humiliation was yet to come. He had me design my own wedding gown-only to use it for his public proposal to another woman. The shock nearly killed me, landing me in the hospital with a literally broken heart. He thought I was just another mess to be cleaned up. He didn't know that from the shards of my heart, a new designer would be born. Now, his name is a curse, his fortune is ash, and he's obsessed with the woman whose soul he tried to steal. He's about to learn that some debts can only be paid in ruin!”
1

Chapter 1 1

07/07/2025

2

Chapter 2 2

07/07/2025

3

Chapter 3 3

07/07/2025

4

Chapter 4 4

07/07/2025

5

Chapter 5 5

07/07/2025

6

Chapter 6 6

07/07/2025

7

Chapter 7 7

07/07/2025

8

Chapter 8 8

07/07/2025

9

Chapter 9 9

07/07/2025

10

Chapter 10 10

07/07/2025

11

Chapter 11 11

07/07/2025

12

Chapter 12 12

07/07/2025

13

Chapter 13 13

07/07/2025

14

Chapter 14 14

07/07/2025

15

Chapter 15 15

07/07/2025

16

Chapter 16 16

07/07/2025

17

Chapter 17 17

07/07/2025

18

Chapter 18 18

07/07/2025

19

Chapter 19 19

07/07/2025

20

Chapter 20 20

07/07/2025