Love Turns To Ashes

I grew up with Asher from a young age.

He once saved my life by taking a hit meant for me from an enemy, and I was kidnapped and brutally mistreated because of him.

Everyone in the circle knew that I, the daughter of the Dixon family, was the center of Asher's world.

But when he returned from building a branch in the Golden Triangle after two years, he brought back a young woman dressed in immaculate white.

She looked pure, but she was provocative in her gaze. "Nicola, it was just an accident between Asher and me, but he insists on taking responsibility for me. Please stop him."

I looked at her hand resting on her belly with Asher's ring around her finger. My fingers trembled slightly.

The next moment, the bodyguard behind me pressed a cold gun barrel against that young woman's temple.

I turned to Asher, who was clenching his fists tightly. I said coldly, "If you insist on marrying her, then leave the Dixon family for good."

Chapter 1

Asher's eyes were bloodshot. He stood straight. "Nicola, Gretchen stayed with me in the Golden Triangle for two years. Without her, I might not have made it back. I was drugged, and she had sex with me because she wanted to save me. She's always seen me as her elder brother. It's my fault, and I must take responsibility for her."

I loved Asher dearly, who had been unwaveringly standing up for me.

Yet, he stood against me for Gretchen at that moment.

I tried to stay calm. "If she weren't pregnant, would you choose to marry her?"

He was silent for a moment and then said in a hoarse voice, "The doctor said my last injury was so severe that I might not father any other children. Gretchen's pregnancy is a blessing from heaven. I truly want a baby, Nicola. Please let me have this."

Seeing his tightly knit brows, I suddenly remembered when he held me and said, "Nicola, even if we never have children, I'll always stay with you."

Those words become a blade piercing my heart at that moment.

I slowly stood up and walked to him. "So, do you want her to stay with you? Do you want me to accept her carrying your baby without any resentment?"

Asher's brows furrowed even more tightly. "Nicola, you're the Dixon family's daughter. She's just an orphan like me."

I couldn't help but let out a cold laugh. "Asher, when my father took you in, I protected you and helped you rise. If I weren't the Dixon family's daughter, would you be standing here talking to me?"

Asher looked a little guilty, but he remained stubborn. "I want to keep this baby because I am grateful to you. Gretchen even agrees to give you her baby. She just sees me as her elder brother."

Gretchen Sanderson looked up with tearful eyes. "Asher, don't make things difficult for Nicola. I don't care about these things. Nicola, what happened between Asher and me was an accident. I have no interest in marrying Asher. I just want to stay around him."

I raised my eyebrows slightly, and the black-clad bodyguard behind me stepped forward and slapped Gretchen hard. "This is not your place to speak."

Gretchen's cheek was swollen, and Asher immediately shielded her behind him. "Nicola, Gretchen nearly died when she saved me in the Golden Triangle. How dare you treat her like this? She has a pure heart and no malice."

Gretchen glanced at me smugly, but what she said sounded broad-minded. "I'm fine. I'm not delicate. It doesn't hurt at all. As long as Nicola feels better."

Watching her and Asher perform their little act in front of me, I felt utterly disgusted. "Fine. Have it your way."

Asher looked up abruptly. Disbelief and joy flashed in his eyes. "But there's no room for you and her in my place. If you want to keep your baby, take her back to your place."

Without looking back, I turned and left. "Asher, don't dirty my home."

The butler, John Norris, silently packed up everything that belonged to Asher in the manor.

His firearms, his prized collection of cigars, and the obsidian pendant, which he had spent several evenings crafting for me.

Back then, his hands were covered in tiny cuts, but he smirked and said it was worth it as long as I liked it.

John trembled with anger beside me. "Miss Dixon, you shouldn't have saved him back then, not to mention recommending him as the head of the branch in the Golden Triangle. If it weren't for you, how would Asher have the audacity to speak up today? How dare he bring back a woman with an unknown background?"

I said nothing and tossed the cufflinks I had custom-made for his celebration banquet into the fireplace.

Just then, a servant walked up to me with a grim expression. She handed me a box.

Inside was a jade safety pendant, broken into several pieces.

The jade safety pendants were from my late mother. And I had given one to Asher.

A note, written in a childish scrawl, was attached in the box. "Nicola, I'm clumsy and accidentally broke the safety pendant you gave Asher. But he said it wasn't anything important, so I thought it best to return it to you."

I heard the engine start from the yard. I looked up to see Asher gently helping Gretchen out of the car.

It had been a long time since I'd seen him so tender.

Gretchen was in a loose, plain dress, and her belly was slightly rounded.

She caught my gaze and smiled warmly. "Nicola, Asher's villa in the southern city isn't ready yet. Could we stay here for a few more days? Don't worry. I promise I won't disturb you."

Asher instinctively shielded Gretchen behind him. He said with a hint of pleading in his voice, "Nicola, she's pregnant. Please be considerate."

In the past, he had protected me like that without hesitation.

I chuckled softly and said to John, "Remove all his belongings."

Everyone followed my orders.

Asher pulled a long face. "Nicola, do you really have to do this?"

I said, "Isn't it the path you chose?" Then I was about to leave.

Gretchen quickly stepped forward to block me. "Nicola, don't blame Asher. It truly was an accident for me to get pregnant with Asher's baby. You can't let Asher be left without any children, can you? If you love him, shouldn't you be thinking of what's best for him? Besides, you haven't gotten pregnant with his baby because he was injured when he saved you after you were kidnapped back then."

I stared at her sharply. "Who are you to say that to me? I am so kind to let you stand here."

Back then, Asher's position was unstable, and he was ambushed by his rivals.

I was kidnapped as a result.

After I suffered endless torment and humiliation, my health was damaged, so it was difficult for me to conceive again.

Asher had once promised me that he would keep the secret forever and never leave me.

But he actually told Gretchen about it and allowed her to say it publicly.

Asher stepped forward and grabbed my wrist. He said anxiously, "Nicola, she spoke without thinking. Don't hold it against her."

I shook him off and drew the dagger he once gave me for self-defense from my boot. I thrust it towards Gretchen forcefully.

Asher blocked it with his arm, and his arm was wounded instantly. He was bleeding.

I took my hand back coldly. Gretchen, if you're really something, have Asher leave the Dixon family. Otherwise, don't provoke me. I can elevate him to his current position, and I can also take everything away from him."

Gretchen trembled all over. Her face turned pale as she supported Asher.

Asher looked at me with disappointment. "Nicola, what do you mean by this?" "I'm now the head of one of the branches. Half of the southern city's branches are under my control. What gives you the right to make me leave?"

I stood there, stunned.

When I was sixteen, my father, Jacob Dixon, was conned at home by his enemy.

Asher was covered in blood and fought his way to me. He carried me on his back and ran away. "Nicola, don't be afraid. I'm here."

Even though he nearly died after being wounded in the chest, he never abandoned me.

But in the end, even that couldn't withstand the erosion of time.

He supported Gretchen, who looked fragile. He said in a soft voice, which I had never heard from him, "Gretchen, don't be afraid. I'll take you to see a doctor."

"Asher, take your woman and leave my place. We have no connections from now on."

Asher was certain that I wouldn't dare to truly break things off with him.

He and Gretchen didn't move out. Instead, they settled into the manor's turret.

He gave her lavish gifts at auctions, just to see her smile. He casually handed her the keys to a newly acquired sports car.

He even went as far as renaming the most profitable nightclub in the southern city after her name in a grand gesture.

Gretchen flaunted the limited-edition jewelry Asher gifted her at socialite gatherings.

Gossip spread in the circle that Asher had abandoned me for a delicate beauty.

My finger brushed over a financial report on the table. "If I recall correctly, the approval documents for the Golden Triangle trade route's funding and personnel allocation require my signature. Right?"

John nodded beside me. "That's right, Miss Dixon. Mr. Dixon insisted back then that all the core business matters be approved by you. It would prevent others from becoming too influential."

I let out a cold laugh, picked up the pen, and rejected that application.

That evening, Asher burst into my study.

He looked anxious. "Nicola, what do you mean by this? Why are you rejecting Gavin's appointment? He's the most suitable one to oversee things there. You are blocking the funding for the Golden Triangle operations. Do you realize how much we'll lose if there's a problem with the goods supply there?"

I toyed with the pen in my hand and said leisurely, "Are you questioning my decision?"

Asher took a deep breath and then said, "Nicola, you can be angry with me, but don't joke about the business. It concerns the entire Dixon family. You'd better prioritize the bigger picture."

I raised my eyebrows and said, "Did you check Gavin's background before promoting him? He owes millions in gambling debts. You promoted him as the head of the Golden Triangle. Are you trying to hand it over to our rivals to pay off his debts? And I have my plan for the funding problems you mentioned."

Asher's face turned a mix of pale and flushed. After a moment of silence, he said, "Nicola, think it over. I'm not breaking off our engagement out of respect for the past. Don't make trouble for Gretchen and me."

I walked up to him and shot him in the left shoulder. "Asher, you once said if you ever let me down, you'd give me your life. Does that still hold?"

He fell to one knee in pain, and sweat beaded on his forehead.

Suddenly, a strong force shoved me aside as Gretchen rushed in to support Asher. "He never got injured so badly, even in the Golden Triangle. You've gone too far! You think you can do whatever you want just because you're the daughter of the Dixon family. You deserve to be humiliated."

I pressed the gun to her lips. "Say one more word again, and you'll never speak again."

Asher quickly pulled her behind him. He stared into my eyes and said word by word, "Nicola, you can think I've let you down. But if you continue to target Gretchen, I won't show mercy to you."

I remained expressionless and said coldly, "Then go ahead and try."

I looked out at the roses Asher once planted. They were withered now.

He had said the roses were like me, passionate, yet capable of causing pain.