Gloria_Atueyi_9155

Real Hearts

By Glowie. A

When love is promised to one, but fate binds another… whose heart truly wins?

Raymond Carter is a 28-year-old billionaire heir — cold, arrogant, and bound by legacy. He’s a man used to getting his way, except when it comes to the one thing he truly wants: Stephanie, a kind-hearted 23-year-old college student studying literature, whose gentle spirit melts his icy exterior. Their love is fierce but forbidden — his powerful family will never accept her.

Forced into a one-year contract marriage with Dina, a seemingly quiet and respectful woman from an influential family, Raymond assumes the arrangement will be nothing more than paper. But when kindness turns to obsession, and a year stretches into danger, Dina’s growing affection for Raymond takes a dark turn. Meanwhile, Stephanie tries to hold onto the promise he made: to return to her after it all ends.

As hearts grow closer and trust deepens, secrets from the past begin to stir — secrets that connect their families in ways no one saw coming. And in the shadows, Andre — Raymond’s best friend — battles his own feelings for Dina.

Real Hearts is a sweeping romance full of passion, betrayal, longing, and a love that fights to survive despite the odds. Can true love conquer duty, lies, and the scars of history?

Real hearts

Dina Aurora stood in the spacious living room of Raymond's mansion, staring at the untouched lunch she had asked the chef to prepare. The golden sunlight filtered through the high windows, but it didn't bring her warmth — not today.

She hadn't seen Raymond in two days.

He came home late. Always busy. Always cold. Always distant.

It's a contract, she reminded herself for the hundredth time. It's just one year.

But why did it sting every time he walked past her like she was invisible?

The sound of the gate intercom buzzed, cutting through her spiraling thoughts.

She checked the screen and sighed in relief.

Moments later, he walked in, carrying a bottle of red wine and his usual calm smile.

"Surprise visit," he said. "I figured you needed company."

"I always do," Dina said softly, her voice fragile.

Andre raised a brow, walking closer. "Rough day?"

She hesitated. "Not rough. Just… cold."

Andre knew better than to ask directly. Instead, he poured the wine and handed her a glass.

They sat in silence for a moment, the clink of glass against glass echoing softly.

"Still the same with Raymond?" he asked gently.

Andre frowned. "He doesn't talk to you?"

"He's polite. He eats dinner. He asks if I need anything. But it's like he's speaking to a house guest. Not a wife."

"You are his wife, Dina," Andre said carefully.

"Contract wife," she corrected bitterly. "And I hate how that sounds."

Andre set down his glass. "You didn't always hate it."

"I didn't always feel this way," she snapped, then immediately softened. "Sorry. I'm just—tired."

Andre studied her face. The shadows under her eyes. The way she kept glancing at the door, like hoping he'd appear.

"Do you love him?" he asked suddenly.

Dina blinked, caught off guard. "What?"

She was quiet for a moment, then said, almost in a whisper, "I think I do."

He wanted to scream. To shake her. To remind her that she wasn't some abandoned soul. That she deserved love that didn't ignore her.

Instead, he stood up and walked to the window, keeping his voice calm.

"You know this can't end the way you want, right? That this marriage… wasn't meant to be real?"

Dina stood up too. "What if I want to make it real?"

"What if I prove to him that I can be more than a contract? That I can be his everything if he just gives me a chance?"

Andre turned to her, jaw clenched.

"And what if you lose yourself chasing someone who's never looking back?"

She stared at him, stunned by the weight of those words.

"Maybe," she said after a long pause. "But I can't stop now."

Andre's eyes darkened with something unspoken. And somewhere deep inside, a quiet part of him — the part still clinging to the Dina he used to admire — began to slowly let go.

chapter seventeen - the uneven triangle