Melting The Billionaire's Frozen Heart

Celia

My heart sank in my chest as I blinked in disbelief at my father, clutching my purse tightly in my hand as my entire body trembled.

"W-what did you just say, dad?" I stuttered, unable to hide the tremors which seeped into my voice.

I watched my father get up from his desk before making his way over to me, a somber expression on his face.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart, but that's the only way to save our company. You have to marry Shane Reynolds. Our business is going under and without his help, we would be wiped out in no time."

My entire body froze as my heart sank deeper in my chest. He wanted me to marry Shane Reynolds. The Shane Reynolds. The man who was known for his brutality and violence.

The billionaire madman. That was who my father wanted me to marry for the sake of the company?

I had never seen Shane in person. I didn't know who he was, but the news about him on the tabloids every now and then was enough to tell me he was bad news.

"Really, dad? You're asking me to marry a mentally deranged man for the sake of the company?!" I exclaimed, simply baffled by what I was hearing.

I had a feeling that someone was probably listening in on us at the door, but I simply didn't give a shit who it was. I was too distressed by what I had just heard to care.

Dad's expression turned frantic as he walked towards me, a pleading look in his eyes as he held my hands, his hands trembling slightly.

"Please, Celia. You have to do this for the company. For me. Without Shane Reynolds' help, everything I have worked for all these years will be taken away from me. If you don't marry him, I will lose everything."

"But dad! How can you tell me to do this? What about Ian? We have been dating for two years! How can I just break up with him and marry someone else?! This isn't right! And what about Nora?! Why can't she marry him instead? Why do I have to sacrifice myself for this family over and over again?!" My lips quivered as tears streamed down my eyes.

Just then, the door opened and the banes of my existence walked in. My step-sister and step-mother. A terrified gasp escaped my lips as I instantly took a step back, my skin turning pale.

Nora, my step-sister looked at me with nothing but disdain which quickly disappeared as soon as it appeared. It only disappeared for one reason. Because my father was there.

Victoria, my step-mother walked towards me, her face neutral as she placed her hand on my shoulder. Her hand was pressed so hard on my shoulder that it was painful enough to shatter my bone, but I couldn't dare cry out.

Her blood red lips broke into a smile which was clearly fake and her blue eyes screamed nothing but malice which I knew my father would never notice.

"Celia, dear. Don't be like that. Don't act like you are the only one making sacrifices around here. Your father asked Nora first and you know she would have dropped everything to help the company like the good girl that she is,"

Nora nodded in agreement, her eyes wide with false innocence which made my skin crawl as Victoria continued speaking.

"But we both know that she would be better off helping us at home. You are the first daughter of the West family.

It is your duty to help elevate this family no matter what. Are you going to just sit back and watch the company your father toiled so hard to build crumble before his very eyes? Are you so selfish and callous that you would simply watch that happen?"

Tears trickled down my eyes as my entire body trembled. Victoria was not saying all these because she cared about my father or the company.

She was just trying to manipulate me to leave and it was so sad because there was nothing I could do about it. No matter how much I tried to fight, she would get her way.

"But I don't want to marry Shane. Isn't there any other way to save the company?" I protested feebly, my lips quivering as I tasted my tears.

"What is wrong with you, Celia?!" Victoria said firmly, placing her hands on my shoulders and I flinched as she pressed way more than it was necessary.

"This isn't something you should even be thinking about. Look at your father! He needs you! The company needs you. Why are you so selfish?! Can't you think about someone else but yourself for once in your damn life?!" Victoria raised her voice as she shook me violently by the shoulders.

Dad had no choice but to intervene at this point. He gently placed his hand on her arm. "It's okay, Victoria. Let go. If the company crumbles to the ground, I'll have no choice but to rebuild no matter what even if I die trying."

"No, sweetheart. Don't say things like that!" Victoria exclaimed and I could instantly sense the fake concern which dad seemed so blind to.

"Let me talk to her. We should be able to figure something out."

Without waiting for my reply, my step-mother grabbed me by the arm, dragging me out of the office and slamming the door shut.

Once we were in the doorway, she turned to me, her expression murderous as always and I instantly braced myself for what was coming next.

"Now, listen here, you little shit. I have had enough of your excuses and your bullshit. You really don't expect my Nora to marry that psychopath now, do you? Do you have any idea what he could do to her?"

"What about me? What about what he could do to me?!" I cried, my eyes shining with tears and Victoria's curled down in a sneer as disdain shone in the depths of her eyes.

"No one gives a shit about you, Celia. You're a nobody. You're nothing," She sneered, her expression turning malicious.

"You're going to do what I say or face the consequences. You know what happens when you disobey me, don't you?" The corners of her blood red lips lifted in a wicked smile which made my insides churn as my body trembled violently.

"I–I'll do it. I'll marry Shane Reynolds." I said, unable to stop my lips from quivering.

Victoria's wicked smile grew even wider as she patted me on the head in a condescending manner. "Good. I'll let your father know."

With tears in my eyes, I made my way to my boyfriend's house to break the news that I was going to marry another man.

Celia

I couldn't believe the direction my life was currently headed. In just a couple of moments, my entire life had been turned upside down.

I had to break up with my boyfriend of two years to marry a psychotic man whom I barely knew. How did things even get to this point?

I was in so much despair that I didn't even bother taking a car and even though Ian's apartment was a bit far, I walked.

The rain began pouring in unforgivable torrents, but I barely felt it as I was too deep in thought.

By the time I got to Ian's place, I had been soaked from head to toe and my hand trembled as I raised it to knock on the door.

After I knocked twice, the door opened, revealing Ian and his eyes went wide when they landed on me.

"Celia?! What the hell?!" He exclaimed, his eyes wide with surprise and dismay as he quickly ushered me into the house.

"What in the world happened? Why did you come in the rain?!" His voice was filled with concern as he rushed into the room and came back with a towel in his hand before proceeding to dry my clothes and damp hair with it.

I let out a sad sigh, my eyes filling up with tears once again. "Ian, please stop." I pleaded, my trembling voice barely above a whisper.

Ian slowly raised his head, his eyes meeting mine. "What's wrong, Celia? Why are you crying?" He whispered, reaching out to wipe the tears from my eyes.

"I'm sorry, Ian, but I'm breaking up with you." My heart clenched tightly in my chest as I managed to get those dreaded words out.

Ian's eyes slowly widened in confusion and horror. "What? You're breaking up with me? Why?!"

My throat instantly constricted as more tears slid down my cheeks. It was so difficult to get any more words out.

"Please, don't do this, Celia," Ian pleaded, grabbing my hands frantically.

"We can fix this. We can fix whatever happened. Just don't break up with me. Don't leave me." Ian's voice wobbled and he was on the brink of tears which made me cry even harder.

"I have to do this. I don't have a choice."

"But why?! What did I do?"

"It's not your fault, Ian. You didn't do anything wrong. I have to do this for my father. For the sake of his company. I have to marry someone else to save my family."

Ian froze as his expression slowly turned dark. "You're getting married?"

"You have to understand, Ian. If I don't, my father's company will go under!" I yelled defensively.

"So after everything we've been through together, you're just going to marry some other man?"

"I'm not doing this because I want to. I don't have a choice!"

"You always have a choice, Celia!" Ian yelled, anger dancing in the pools of his eyes as he ran his fingers through his hair in an agitated manner.

"Why do you never stand up for yourself? Why do you let them keep doing this to you?! First, you gave up your dream to become a writer just to help your father run his company and now, he's marrying you off to save said company?!"

"I'm doing this because it is my responsibility! I will not be selfish and just watch everything my father built go up in flames!"

"Don't do this to me, Celia. Please."

"I'm sorry, Ian, but I have no choice."

Ian was silent for a second and it looked like he was holding back tears.

"You're really going to do this? You're going to marry someone else, after everything we've been through. After all the years we spent together?" Ian whispered, his bloodshot eyes filled with disbelief and I couldn't help but feel intense guilt eat at my insides like a plague.

"I don't have a choice." I repeated weakly, aware of the fact that it was all an excuse.

"Get out," He growled. "I never want to see your face again."

"Ian-"

"Get out!" He exclaimed, his eyes flashing with anger and disdain before he slowly turned his back to me.

I gulped, my body trembling as I slowly pulled off the towel and placed it on the couch. "I'm so sorry, Ian." I said in a choked voice before running out of the apartment, back into the rain which still poured mercilessly.

I kept running as tears slid down my cheeks, my heart pounding against my chest.

I wanted to hate my father. Because of him, I had to bury my dreams of becoming a writer and help him at the company instead and now, I lost the love of my life and it was all because of him once again.

My life was on the verge of getting ruined all because of him and his company, but I couldn't bring myself to hate him.

He had gone through so much. He lost my mom and had to raise me all by myself before he finally met Victoria, my step-mother and Nora, my step-sister.

The loss of my mother was a huge blow, but when Victoria and Nora arrived, I thought all was right in the world again.

I was happy to have gained another mother and sister, but my dreams were soon crushed when I found out that they were not who I thought they were.

The two women were horrible people who would not hesitate to bully me every chance they got when dad was not there to see it.

The greatest mistake I ever made was trying to stand up for myself. To teach me a lesson, my step-mother pushed me down the stairs, almost killing me in the process, but miraculously, I survived.

When dad found me heavily injured in the hospital, Victoria and Nora did not hesitate to tell him that I slipped by accident and I couldn't dare tell him otherwise.

That day, I found out the hard way that my step-mother and sister could easily kill me if I tried to stand up for myself. I had no choice, but to keep my mouth shut out of fear and do whatever they told me to.

Celia

My hands trembled by my sides as I walked down the aisle towards the altar.

Today was the day of my wedding. The day I finally married Shane Reynolds, the billionaire psycho and I couldn't help but wish that the ground would open up and swallow me instead.

Anything else would be better than marrying that man.

My heels clicked against the ground as dad walked me down the aisle. His presence next to me was supposed to be comforting, but instead, it felt more of a burden.

I felt so suffocated in my dress and the urge to throw up was strong, but I managed to collect myself.

"Just get through this wedding. For dad. For the company." I whispered under my breath.

When we finally reached the altar, I finally saw Shane's face for the first time and I was so stunned that I nearly tripped on my heels.

As popular as Shane Reynolds was in New York, his identity was sort of a mystery. His reputation was horrific, but his face was the complete opposite.

The man was so devastatingly handsome that I was momentarily blown away. His dark hair hung in loose curls over his forehead, but what made my heart nearly stop was his dazzling eyes.

I had never seen eyes so green in my entire life.

Unfortunately, as dazzling as those eyes were, when they landed on me, they turned so cold as ice to the point where I was taken aback.

Even though it was a well-known knowledge that Shane was probably psychotic, I didn't expect him to look at me with such coldness, hate and anger.

I didn't know if I was being paranoid, but it felt like he had a personal vendetta against me.

I gulped uncomfortably before turning to look at the priest who continued with the wedding ceremony.

When it was time for Shane and I to kiss, my body trembled as I once again stared into those green, soulless eyes, getting momentarily lost in them.

The moment Shane's fingers touched my waist, pulling me close to him, my entire body came alive, sizzling with red hot electricity.

Our lips touched and it felt like my whole world had been turned upside down. Despite Shane's hard exterior, his lips felt as soft as a pillow and I wanted to continue kissing him for eternity.

Nothing ever felt like this. It never felt like this with Ian.

I couldn't help the disappointment which settled in the pit of my stomach when Shane pulled away and he once again stared at me with an expression void of emotion like he didn't just kiss me senseless seconds ago.

When the ceremony was over, before I could catch my breath, I suddenly got pulled to the side roughly and I was standing face to face with Nora, the scowl she specially reserved for me resting on her face.

"You know what? I changed my mind," She said haughtily, glancing at Shane who was currently discussing with dad.

"I want him back. I want to marry him."

I raised an annoyed brow, instantly comprehending the whole situation. She rejected the marriage offer, but now that she saw how handsome he was, she wanted him.

For some reason, that didn't sit right with me. I didn't know Shane.

We had not even said anything to each other despite getting married, but the idea of Nora or any other woman getting married to him left a sour taste in my mouth.

"We already got married, Nora. It doesn't work like that." I replied, trying to hide the distaste in my voice, but my words still came out flat and slightly bitter.

"Shut the fuck up. He was mine first, or did you forget that? Dad asked me first!"

"And you said no!"

"How dare you raise your voice at me?!"

"Look, Nora. I'm not trying to start anything here, but I'm already married to him and there's nothing you can do about that." I said, trying to keep the peace despite the annoyance which had begun to build in my insides.

This was just classic Nora. She was always unreasonable and would do anything to make my life a living hell.

Nora's eyes screamed murder as her hands clenched into fists by her sides. I mindfully took a step back, aware of the fact that nothing good happened when she looked like that.

Suddenly she picked up a glass of wine and poured it all over herself.

A gasp escaped my lips and I watched with wide horror-struck eyes as the red liquid seeped straight into her beautiful light blue dress.

I opened my mouth to speak, but before any words could leave my lips, Nora let out a loud yell, attracting as much attention as she could.

"Why in the world would you do this, Celia?! Come on!" She yelled at the top of her lungs and I couldn't help but look on, utterly flabbergasted as people began gathering around us.

I raised my hands nervously as beads of sweat trickled down my brows. "Me? I–I didn't do anything. She did this-"

I began trying to defend myself, but Victoria cut in, rushing toward Nora with a horrified look in her eyes.

"Nora! What in the world happened?!"

She turned to me, her eyes darkening with anger and malice. "Celia?! How could you do this to your own sister?! I know you have always been jealous of her, but did you have to do this at your wedding too? Come on! You had the attention already. The spotlight was already on you, but you had to make it more about you, didn't you? You just couldn't help yourself."

A disbelieved gasp escaped my lips as my eyes brimmed with tears. The people around us began to murmur and I could hear a few unkind words thrown my way.

"I–I didn't do this! I swear. She poured the wine on herself!"

A loud, distasteful scoff escaped Victoria's lips as she glared daggers at me. "Can you even hear yourself? In what world does that make any sense? Why would she choose to pour wine on herself?"

"Nora! Tell them! Tell them the truth!"

Nora let out a sigh, her expression softening. "Fine. I'll tell them," She said and I couldn't help the relieved sigh which escaped my lips.

"Celia and I were arguing and I thought we would settle our differences amicably as adults, but she got so angry that she decided to pour the wine over my dress."

I let out a gasp and so did the rest of the crowd for different reasons. My heart sank as I looked on in disbelief.

My eyes automatically darted towards Shane and when our eyes met, his lips formed a thin line as he shook his head, uttering the first words I had ever heard him say since I met him.

"Despicable." He hissed before walking away.