Chapter 1—

—A Bride For The CEO—

PROLOGUE—

In the darkness that lurked inside the house, there lived a man, not poor but overly wealthy; lived among humanity, but was locked away from the whole society.

He's naive, lived in the world but knew absolutely nothing about it. He never had a phone or a friend and barely picked up the remote that monitored his television. He was also home-schooled, wholly enclosed from the outside in a cage that to him was the definition of happiness.

But as impossible as it may sound, a man as secured as him, owned a famous company that somebody trustworthy enough supervised under his name.

Fortunately though, that person was needed no more, because what was awaited upon has just been found.

HIS BRIDE. . . Well technically, she wasn't yet his bride, but willing or not, she would be.

He had already spotted her, she had already been chosen, she was his now…undeniably his.

It was on a rare occasion that he had seen her, a time when he had bravely breached the outside. His father had been teaching him how to behave when it was his turn to own the company. His mind had grasped everything, but his eyes had grasped her. She was crossing the street, young and blond with a beautiful smile.

A floral dress had rested just inches above her knees, her shoes protecting her skipping feet and her hands swaying by her sides. She had looked so free, so happy and he couldn't help but want her to be that happy with him. So he had pointed her out to his father and he had promised that today —four years from then— she would be his.

He knew what weight would fall upon his shoulder when he had showed her to his father...the company's; but he cared not, he wanted her and he knew if his father had promised her to him then he surely would have her.

He would treat her just as he had been taught, after all, that was the way to treat a woman. His father had showed him and had even written the steps on the walls of his mind.

His father had told him to look for her, he said she's among them, beautiful and just your type.

One day you'll find her...he had continued...and when you do...let me tell you how to treasure her.

Step one...

Beat her until she submits...

Step two...

Take her without her consent...

Step three...

Chain her in that house and forcibly make her your fiancé...

Step four...

My son; buy two rings, invite a whole lot of guest, take her to a church and get a damn priest... And let me tell you this, if she so much as whispers no, kill her when the crowd's no more, but make sure to warn her before.

That was it, four easy steps and he would accomplish each… just like his father had.

He would undoubtedly make her happy, perhaps as happy as his mother had been before she died.

He would also ensure that her eyes watered with happiness, and would make the bruises he'd implement noticeable, his mother's had been, so it's only fair.

Smiling, he shifted on his settee, dwelling in his thoughts of pleasing her, in the only way he knew how to.

Lexie's life was a life like no other. She wasn't rich, but she had everything she had ever wanted.

She was successful, had fulfilled her dreams of becoming an artist and though she's not as famous as she'd like to be, she knew she had the potential to be.

She had a loving family, had three protective older brothers and a mother and a father who pushes her to do her best.

She had a best friend as well, a ball of sarcasm that always managed to cheer her up after a bad day.

And lastly, she had a boyfriend, someone she loved dearly, so you could imagine how she felt when the manager of the LR company came to inform her that she would be marrying his son.

She had respectfully turned him down, but he didn't take no for an answer, instead he had snapped his fingers and sadly that was the beginning of her captivation.

After that, she had found herself in the grasp of two solid muscled men. They had dragged her to a black car, pushed her in, then immediately drove off...and now, she was seated on the floor, in a dark room with a man she could barely see.

His eyes were on her, despite the darkness, she was positive of that, that and also the ugly smile that adorned his lips. She was scared, who wouldn't be?

But the fact that he hadn't moved since his so called father left had somehow calmed her roaring heart.

Zheme on the other hand sat on his precious settee, his heart was pounding fast and his mind ruminating on numerous ways to take care of such an important aspect of his life. Should he just get right to step one?

Or

Should he at least talk to her first?

He didn't get a chance to decide because just as he was about to, the lovely girl shuffled to her feet and an awkward laugh bubbled up her throat along with a few words Zheme considered just as awkward as her laugh. "Ah, I-I guess I should go now."

Well it seems, she had made the decision of talking first for him.

Zheme's smile whined further across his lips, his gaze neither shifted nor faltered, but his head tilted a little to the left. "To where?"

Through the darkness his bride to be visibly tensed, her shoulders going rigid and her eyes gliding to the floor. "H-home..."

Just that word had something dark sliding through Zheme's veins. He rose from his perch, his eyes shining with a dangerous glint, his hands forming into fists by his sides. "This is your home from now on and bare in mind, you are mine...now and forever more."

Lexie's eyes finally shifted from the floor, her heart palpitating with fear and her feet swiftly moving backwards. She was really scared now, more than she had been, yet she decided to hold onto her defiance.

"I'm not yours." Her voice was soft and gentle yet in the silence, it was blaring to her ears. "I have a boyfriend, I have a home and with or without your approval I'm going back to them."

She waltzed her way to the door she came through and twisted the lock but unfortunately for her, the door was locked from the outside.

Her eyes went wide at the realization and her heart raced until her chest started to hurt. This wasn't just a marriage proposal it was kidnap and it took this much to convince an idiot like her. Now since everything had soaked in, panic washed over her like a bucket of water and her thoughts became a mess, scattered and unable to be garnered.

What was going to happen to her?

Would he hit her?

Forcibly marry her?

Or would he kill...?

Lexie's heart froze and she turned back around to face the man, hoping to get the answer to her questions.

The fisted hands by Zheme's sides became painful as his fingernails dug into his palms. He was angry now, for the first in a long time, he felt such a dangerous emotion.

He stepped forward and continued to do so until he stood firmly before the shaking woman. "What did I just say?" He asked, voice rough with a menacing edge to it. "I doubt you had heard, because if you did, you wouldn't have even remember a door was there, so let me rephrase. This is your home now and you are mine, mine!"

The trembling girl shook her head, the darkness blocking her features, but her pretty, blond hair and her bright, blue eyes stood out. "No, I'm not yours... I'm not."

A slap reverberated against the walls of the room and Lexie held onto her burning cheeks. Her gaze became watery and the room became blurry as tears sprung from her eyes. She tried to compose herself, but she didn't get a chance to, for the man had grabbed her chin in a rough hold, lifting it so she faced him.

"Repeat after me." He sighed, eyes holding hers. "I am yours..."

Lexie refused to, instead, she shifted her gaze and cowered into the walls, aspiring to appear small.

The man's grip on her chin tightened. "Say it."

Lexie swallowed thickly as more of the liquidity that settled behind the dam called her eyes escaped.

She wouldn't say it, she wasn't his and she wasn't going to be. This man and his infamous dad was batshit crazy, even though it didn't seem so on TV. How she got mixed up with such psychotic people was a mystery to her, but even so, she would remain strong.

Mentally avoiding her tears and the unfortunate situation she was now in, she puffed her chest like a spoiled brat. "I am not yours and I never will be."

Pain invaded her cheek once again, only this time she didn't even get the chance to caress it because another was bestowed upon the other cheek. She cried out, cheeks burning as if they had been put above heat. This wasn't what she had expected, but even so, she refused to say those pride disregarding words.

She held her ground even when the psycho slapped her again and again and again.

She held it even when she found herself too weak to stand.

And sure she held it even when her face was eating the floor.

She could already feel the protruding of her cheeks, could feel the ache through the numbness of her skin. She felt helpless, especially when he knelt before her with an evil smirk on his lips. "Say it." He demanded.

But still she refused to.

Sighing, he stood on his feet and just seconds later, one of said feet heavily connected to her stomach. Pain scourged her, her lungs ran out of air and her eyes became blurry once again. This wasn't just a marriage proposal or a damn kidnap, this was murder, bloody murder and she, she was f*cking suicidal.

Why couldn't she just say it?

Why was it so hard?

Was it because of her boyfriend, Mike?

Or

Was it because this would weigh down on her already heavy pride?

She wasn't sure why, but when another kick knocked the air from her stomach, she found herself whimpering. "Pl-please...plea-"

She didn't get to finish, another kick penetrated her abdomen and her tears now sprang freely at the torture.

"I didn't ask you to beg." Flowed towards her ears from that man's lips. "I asked you to repeat after me. Say it; 'I.am.yours!"

Lexie remained silent, hands shaking as pain took a tour along her body. Another kick moulded in her flesh and a pained yelp was all she managed to get out. Her mind was now screaming at her, telling her that the only logical thing to do was to give up, she knew her brain was right, but...but...but she couldn't m-

"Ahhhh!" She screamed as another kick, one with a lot more strength than the others rearranged the organs in her belly. She felt as they moved and saw as black dots slowly took over her vision. She wouldn't give up, but maybe she could sleep...