“Yes,” Shane jeered. “He told me that. Do you want me to tell you the other things he told me? Like how many times he had fucked you?” It was a bluff, but because she knew of the billionaire’s sexual stamina firsthand, she was certain he would have made her half-sister come more than once. And when Serenity whitened even more at her words, Shane knew she had guessed right.

“You probably thought you’d be special, just because you were a virgin when you came to his bed. But you’re not. You never were.” Bending down, Shane tried to pat Serenity’s head, as if comforting a pet, and only laughed when Serenity slapped her hand away.

“I hate you,” Serenity whispered.

“I hate you, too,” Shane cooed.

Serenity slowly pushed herself up. “I’m leaving tomorrow.” Her voice was weak but determined. “And I’m never coming back here.”

“Go then,” Shane hissed, throwing everything to the wind in her rage. “Willem paid me to send you off, do you know? He thinks it’s awkward, having the two of you live in the same city. He’s grossed out at the idea that you might bump into each other and then you’d start begging him to…” She pretended to think. “Mm, let me see, what was it you said that morning?”

Serenity’s skin crawled. No. Her mind screamed the word out. She had never, never ever thought that her half-sister would have heard—

“Oh, now I remember.” Shane pretended to sniff. “Please, please wait. Please just tell me…”

Serenity wanted to cover her ears…but she didn’t. Somewhere in her heart, she realized that she needed to hear this, needed to accept once and for all that the Dutch billionaire she had loved was not the man she thought he was.

Shane was looking at her, a catty smile playing on her lips as she asked, “And what did he tell you then, my dear sister?” But she didn’t wait for Serenity to speak, answering her own question.

Serenity watched her half-sister’s lips move, but it was as if she was hearing Willem’s own voice speak the words. His beautifully cultured, strongly accented voice, a sound that made her ache with so much love in one second and then break her heart with so much ease in another.

That’s the problem, Ms. Raleigh. You thought I loved you.

It was Shane speaking the words in front of her but in her mind, it was the Dutch billionaire speaking, rejecting her all over again.

Slowly, wordlessly, Serenity turned her back on Shane and Melanie.

“I hope you don’t think we’ll ever let you come back,” Shane screamed. She didn’t think it was possible to hate Serenity more until that moment. Just looking at the younger woman made her sick.

She hated how dignified Serenity was still able to look and act, hated how without a word Serenity made Shane feel like she was the loser here when it was Serenity who had whored herself and tried to steal Willem from Shane.

Shane watched Serenity start to limp away, and the hatred just grew and grew.

Unable to stop herself, she rushed forward and kicked the back of Serenity’s injured knee. Behind her, she heard Melanie gasp but ignored it, her eyes glued on Serenity. She watched her younger sister fall with a gasp, but it was not enough to make her feel any less empty or cruel, and her hatred continued to grow.

Her mother tried to walk past her to help Serenity, but Shane quickly pulled the older woman back. “She’s a whore, mother,” she said harshly. “She’s used to being on her back.”

Serenity watched her stepmother and sister walk away as she forced her limbs to move. The moment the door closed, she allowed her tears to fall. There had been a tiny part of her that had always hoped, foolishly, that one day Shane and Melanie would love her.

But now she knew that it had been a stupid little dream, as silly as Shane said she had been, in thinking the Dutch billionaire would see her as someone special.

Now, it was time to accept that she was not special, never was, and never would be special enough for anyone to love.

PART II

Seven months after Book 2

“It’s a brand new milestone for the party island of Teleios,” the reporter declared eagerly as he gestured to the majestic façade of the island’s newest establishment, Mageia, which had been built to rival Dubai’s Atlantis by offering a world-class casino, five-star hotel, and aqua theme park combined.

“Tourism stats have gone up by an unprecedented twenty percent,” the reporter continued in an impressed tone, “and I’ve just received news that there is actually a queue at the docks, with hundreds of guests preferring to wait for their turn even though the island’s management has already released notice a week ago about the island no longer being able to take in more guests.”

Back at the studio, the hosts of a U.S. morning show shook their heads in shared amazement at the unparalleled success of Mageia’s opening. “Why do you think it’s so popular with tourists around the world?” Robert, a twenty-year veteran, asked his co-anchors with genuine curiosity.

“I’m asking myself the same question,” Jared, former model turned TV host, admitted. “It’s not like it’s the first of its kind that was built, and I’m sure, in time, other establishments would top it off.”

The only woman in the group, Emmy, stared at them incredulously. “I guess you really don’t see it, do you?”

Her male co-hosts simultaneously shook their heads back at her. “Care to share?” the business expert of their group, Edward, asked.

Emmy sighed. “It’s the people who own Mageia.”

“The de Konigh Consortium?” Robert asked, startled.

“You three are old fudges and see a consortium of royalty and corporate executives in one family, but the masses see it differently. They see one place where they’ve been guaranteed – and I tell you, it’s written in their brochures, it’s a guarantee – that there will always be at least one de Konigh present overseeing business in Mageia every day. So think about it,” she urged her co-hosts. “You’re promised a chance to see your favorite de Konigh celebrity or royalty whichever day you visit Mageia. For many people, that’s worth the price Mageia charges them for.”

“Now that you mention it,” Robert murmured pensively, “I can definitely see the attraction.” He chuckled self-consciously, adding, “I’d be willing to pay the really expensive fees myself if I know when Farica de Konigh’s coming to work.”

“Exactly,” Emmy said smugly.

Edward nodded in understanding. “Yes, I see it now, and no doubt for the opening, all the women are there to see the head of the de Konigh clan, Willem de Konigh.”

His co-hosts murmured in agreement.

“Speaking of Willem de Konigh,” Emmy said, “have you noticed he’s been on a roll lately? Just last month, he was able to close that deal in Milan, which no one saw coming.”

“A roll’s putting it lightly,” Edward argued good-naturedly. “I’d say he’s on a mission to prove to everyone on earth that he is the best negotiator in town. Before the Milan deal, he also won the bidding for the next island in Dubai, and then there’s the hotel chain he’s starting in South Africa.”

“It’s like he’s determined to impress,” Robert interjected. “And perhaps all this is for his future bride, the Dutch model, Shane Raleigh?”

“Possibly,” Emmy acknowledged. “She is the last woman he has been seen with, and it could be they’re keeping everything under wraps while planning a secret marriage. It’s the usual thing celebrities do these days, isn’t it?”

“Oh boy, imagine the buckets of tears women all over the world would cry when that happens.” Jared, being openly gay, added, “I’ll cry with them, too.”

Willem switched the TV off as the rest of the hosts of the morning show laughed at their co-host’s quip. Placing the remote control on the bedside table, he strode back into his suite’s walk-in closet and began dressing himself.