Entwined with the Enigmatic Heir

At the edge of a cliff.

"You have nowhere left to run, Miss Taylor." The short, stout man before her wore a black suit with a specially made Crimson Rose Medallion pinned to his chest. A lecherous smile spread across his face as he watched her like prey already within reach.

As he continued to close in, Sierra Taylor clenched her fists and took a step back. Wind howled over the cliff, making her slight body tremble. Sand and pebbles crumbled beneath her feet and scattered into the abyss.

"This is a deserted island. No one is coming to save you." Amused by her resistance, the man sneered. "Don't try to be clever with me. Letting you slip away earlier was my mistake. But now, unless you're willing to jump, you'd better surrender quietly."

"In your dreams!" Even with death staring her in the face, Sierra's pride would not let her show weakness. She straightened her back, forcing down her fear as she demanded, "Who had me kidnapped and brought here? What do you want?"

"What do I want?" The man folded his arms and stopped advancing, but his smile grew even more sinister. "You should ask yourself whose way you've been blocking lately to end up in such bad luck."

"Lately..." Sierra forced herself to calm down and searched her memory.

Her family owned Coco e-Retail, a well-known company in the city. As the internet economy had boomed, online retailers had sprung up everywhere and competition had become increasingly brutal. Her parents were decisive in business and had naturally made plenty of enemies.

But the worst thing to happen to her recently was Coco e-Retail's impending bankruptcy. Her parents were desperate for financing to save the company, so they had arranged for her to marry the son of a venture-capital executive.

No matter how unwilling she had been, Sierra understood that she had been raised to help secure the family business.

In the end, she had attended the engagement banquet.

Yet on the day of her engagement, she had been drugged at the hotel. When she woke up, she was on this uninhabited island.

"Could it be..." Sierra's eyes widened as dread swept through her. "Someone doesn't want Coco e-Retail's crisis resolved, so they're using me to destroy the engagement?"

"Not bad, not bad. Too bad you figured it out too late." Applauding lazily, the man approached again, his smile turning increasingly vile. "A clever woman like you should come with me quietly. I promise I won't treat you badly—as long as you become mine."

"Keep dreaming!" Sierra's face went pale. One more step backward and she would plunge from the cliff, shattered on the rocks below. The thought filled her with cold terror.

"What? Do you really have the courage to jump? Don't make me laugh." With a contemptuous curl of his lip, the man reached for her with a leering hand.

Revulsion flashed in Sierra's eyes. At the last moment, she made her choice.

"I'd rather die than let you have your way!"

She squeezed her eyes shut and tipped backward. The stout man froze, stunned.

The wind roared past her ears. Through it, she heard the faint voice of another man.

"Careful!"

Before Sierra could open her eyes, a strong arm caught her wrist and pulled her into a broad embrace.

The terror of falling from the cliff tangled with a strange, unfamiliar sensation. Against the biting wind, Sierra instinctively opened her eyes and looked up. A strikingly handsome profile filled her view.

She knew she was falling and might soon be smashed to pieces, yet she could not look away from him.

His finely shaped jaw and high nose were flawless. At a moment like this, Sierra still found herself thinking that if such a handsome fool was willing to die with her, perhaps she had no reason to regret anything.

"Hold tight, close your eyes, and hold your breath!"

His voice was low and magnetic. Ordinarily, Sierra would never have listened to a stranger giving her orders. But in this life-or-death moment, she obeyed without thinking.

Seconds later, they hit the sea with a tremendous splash and were torn apart by the impact.

Water as cold as ice soaked through Sierra's clothes and skin, making her shudder. In her panic, she forgot to hold her breath. Seawater rushed into her nose, and suffocation overwhelmed her. She could barely breathe; her head spun, her vision blurred, and her body began sinking toward the depths.

Then the figure swam swiftly toward her. His face grew clearer and clearer until he reached out and caught her around the waist.

Sierra's heartbeat slowed, and her consciousness began to fade.

"Mm..."

Cool, soft lips touched hers, and air was passed into her lungs. A few seconds later, Sierra gradually came back to herself. Her eyes opened wide at the handsome face so close to her own, and she struggled with a muffled sound, trying to push him away.

The man easily restrained her slender wrists. With one arm firm around her waist, he swam toward shore.

"Cough... cough..." When they finally surfaced, Sierra dragged in a breath of fresh air and immediately dissolved into a violent fit of coughing. It took a long while before she could recover.

Feeling the lingering sensation on her lips and the hand still resting at her waist, Sierra was about to thank him for saving her. Then she saw the rose medallion pinned to his chest, and her expression changed abruptly.

The lecherous man on the cliff had worn the same medallion. Were they together?

One of them had wanted her dead. Why, then, had this man saved her?

Before she could think it through, humiliation and anger surged up. She raised her hand to slap him, but he caught it with ease.

"You still have the strength to scratch?"

He released her and rose lightly to his feet, tall and straight as a pine.

Without his support, Sierra lost her balance and pitched forward.

Just as her head was about to strike the rocks on the shore, the man reached out as though he had expected it and caught her arm, saving her from the blow.

Sierra looked up and met his condescending gaze.

"Is this how you treat the man who saved your life?"

His bearing was forceful and his voice ice-cold. The air of condescension in his manner, as though he were bestowing a favor, struck hard at Sierra's pride.

With a sharp slap, she knocked his hand away and forced herself upright. Her body swayed slightly, but her eyes remained sharp and her presence did not yield to his.

"You're with that fat man, aren't you? Who knows why you saved me? Do you think I'm foolish enough to fall for this?"

Her eyes were full of caution and suspicion. Only moments ago, she had wondered why a stranger would risk his life to jump after her. Now, she could not tell whether he had an ulterior motive.

At her words, a dark glint passed through the man's eyes. In the next moment, he strode toward her on long legs.

Sierra's heart tightened. She staggered back a step, but still forced herself to demand, "W-what are you doing? Don't come any closer!"

---