NewEraCulture

A high-society romance where pretense turned into reality.
 
Van, the heir to a top-tier fortune and a regular on the front page of the Wall Street Journal, had been mocked for being perpetually single, with even rumors swirling about his "dysfunction."
 
Winnie, a Hollywood superstar desperate to escape her constant barrage of scandals, encountered this billionaire worth tens of billions. To her surprise, Van presented her with an unexpected proposal:
 
"Pretend to date me for a year. You won't have to do anything else. I'll pay you $100 million after taxes."
 
She planned to laugh it off but couldn't ignore the man's chiseled features—the way his shadowed face was lit up as he casually raised an eyebrow and lit a cigarette in the glow of firelight, his voice steady and laced with danger.
 
She remembered their first meeting in a torrential downpour—the man reclining in a silver Maybach, eyes half-closed, exuding charm yet utterly unattainable. She also remembered later, when everyone had believed him to be unshakable and untouchable, he had appeared alone, worn and weary, at her remote desert film set, quietly asking:
 
"Do you really have to shoot this kiss scene?"
 
Behind this contract lay something far deeper than money—a fixation, a love that had turned real, or perhaps an irresistible force neither of them had recognized.
 
$100 million had set the stage for a high-stakes battle of love and hate that would ultimately unravel.

A Love Confession from Las Vegas

Winnie lived in a secluded villa community in the suburbs. Each home was surrounded by gardens, offering excellent privacy. Several well-known actors and directors also resided in the area, but none had ever seen Winnie or known that she was hiding out there. Most people assumed she lived in the large apartment downtown.


The next afternoon, at exactly 4:30pm as agreed, Van's car arrived. The Maybach glided past a dark green corner lined with fiddle-leaf fig trees, its quiet hum producing a low, pleasant sound on the brick road, before coming to a smooth stop at the front door.


The sun was blazing that day. Eric stepped out of the car, opened a black straight-handle umbrella, and then bowed slightly as he opened the back door to assist the man inside.


Van stepped out and looked up at the house—a three-story white villa with half-arched flower windows and an orange roof, a classic South Asian style. Not large, but certainly cozy.


Chapter 25