All Chapters of Bound to the Ruthless Don: Chapter 1 - Chapter 7

Jane's POV“Please, Mr. Raymond, I’m not asking for a handout, I’m just asking for an advance.”I closed my eyes and clenched my hands against my thighs so he wouldn't notice that my hands were shaking.Raymond didn’t look up from the handwritten ledger. He turned a page, and the crisp sound of paper cutting through the silence made me flinch.“We’re not a charity, Jane,” he replied. His voice was calm and non-emotional. “The medical cost of your father is a personal issue and not the responsibility of the family.”I approached his desk, knees wobbling beneath my skirt. My fingers clenched on the smooth black wood tightly.“By the end of today, the hospital will end his treatment, and the cancer will spread to his lungs. If you pay the balance to the clinic tonight, you can deduct half from my salary every month.”The ledger finally closed, making a loud sound that echoed through the still room. His large, rounded shoulders took up so much space in the high-backed leather chair that he

Jane POVI walked over to the shallow steps. The water splashed around my shoulders as the cool night air hit my wet skin as soon as I touched the tiled deck.My teeth began to shiver, and a wild shaking began at my chest and worked on through to my legs and arms.I held my arms hugging my body as if shutting down my body.He came out of the water and reached up to a dark towel on one of the lounge chairs with his hand and dabbed water from his face, until his eyes glared at me. He stopped walking and watched my shoulders tremble.“Are you cold?” he asked, his voice low and level.“I… I’m… I’m fine.” I couldn't get my voice to come out right. I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment so he wouldn’t hear my teeth grinding. “My body is just new to this.”“You’re a terrible liar.” He looked over to the glass doors where there was a guard. He lifted two fingers, nodded quickly and sharply. “Bring a towel, a heavy cardigan, and a hot drink to the dining room immediately.”The guard was gone as

Jane POV“Valentina,” Raymond said in a serious tone, a tone that made me scared.“Still remember my name, right?” Valentina said with a mocking, bitter smile as she stopped two feet away from us. “So why haven’t you answered my calls for the last four days, Ray? I left you a dozen messages, but none of them have been returned.”“I’ve been very busy,” Raymond replied simply, as if her confrontation had not affected him at all.“Busy, huh?” Valentina laughed, loud and sharp, without a shred of humor in her tone as she tilted her head. “You have always been busy. That’s your excuse for everything, Raymond.”I held my ground and put all my weight on his sleeve as I looked at both of them. My mind was racing, trying to piece together the history written in the sharp tension vibrating between them. I was completely clueless about who this woman was.Valentina looked directly into my eyes, turning my face to look at her, and studying my dress, with a look of pure disgust. She raised a well-

Jane’s POVI opened my eyes and found a strange woman standing at the foot of my bed. My breath caught as I shoved the duvet aside and scrambled backward until my back hit the headboard. My pulse raced as I stared at her.“Good morning,” the older woman said. She wore a black dress, her silver hair pulled into a neat bun. A tablet rested in one hand while a garment bag hung over her other arm.“Who are you?” I asked, my throat dry.“My name is Evelyn. Mr. Hale assigned me to oversee your schedule from today onward.”I blinked and looked around the bedroom. Morning sunlight filled the room, and everything that had happened the night before came rushing back. The banquet. The guns. Raymond. My stomach dropped as I realized it hadn’t been a nightmare. I was still in the Hale estate.“My schedule?” I asked, pulling my knees to my chest.“Yes.” Evelyn glanced at her tablet. “Breakfast is in thirty minutes. After that, you’ll begin etiquette training, followed by security orientation, a war