The Wife He Never Loved
"You were never her, Aria. You were just... there."
Jason's words echo in my head as I stand in the back of the church, watching him mourn another woman on her sister's wedding day. Isabelle. The perfect dead girlfriend. The ghost I've been competing with for three years.
I thought I could be enough. I thought love could grow where grief once lived. But when I find the evidence, when I see the hotel receipts, the text messages, the photos of Jason with Isabelle's sister Violet, I realize the truth.
I was never the love story. I was the intermission.
What I don't know yet is that nothing about my marriage was real. Not Jason's cruelty. Not Violet's affair. Not the stranger's rescue.
They've all been playing a game, and I'm the prize they're willing to destroy each other for.
When the truth comes out, when I discover why Isabelle really died and who's been pulling the strings, I'll have to decide: Do I let them destroy me, or do I burn their whole world down?
Baca
Chapter: Chapter 76: The Ball and the StormAria’s POVThe Elite Art Benefactors Ball glittered like a dream I used to have.Crystal chandeliers cast warm light over the grand ballroom. Soft music played. Waiters moved with trays of champagne. People in elegant gowns and tuxedos laughed and talked about art, deals, and the future.I stood near the entrance on Kyle’s arm, wearing the deep burgundy gown he had chosen. It hugged my body and made my curls stand out. Kyle looked sharp in his black tuxedo, his hand resting possessively on my lower back. The bruises on his face were carefully covered, but I could still see the faint shadow if I looked closely.People noticed us immediately.“Ms. Myles! Congratulations on the award!”“Wonderful to see you back!”Cameras flashed. Reporters called my name. I smiled gracefully and answered with the poise I had practiced for years.“Thank you. The gallery has always been about bringing art to more people, and tonight is a celebration of that.”Kyle stayed right beside me, smiling politel
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2026-04-08
Chapter: Chapter 75: The Screen and the StormViolet’s POVThe living room television glowed softly in the dim light.Violet sat on the wide white sofa, legs tucked beneath her, a glass of red wine in one hand. The evening news segment had just started, and the screen filled with bright images from the gallery.There she was.Aria Myles.Standing in the middle of her gallery, smiling gracefully as reporters surrounded her. The dress hugged her figure perfectly. Her natural curls framed her face. She looked confident. Radiant. Alive.The reporter’s voice floated through the speakers: “After winning Gallery Director of the Year, Aria Myles is back in the spotlight as the honoree and co-organizer of this year’s prestigious Elite Art Benefactors Ball. Sources say the event is already generating massive buzz…”Violet’s fingers tightened around the wine glass until her knuckles turned white.Anger surged through her like fire.How?How was this bitch still winning?Violet’s chest rose and fell rapidly. Her perfectly applied makeup fe
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2026-04-07
Chapter: Chapter 74: The JourneyKyle’s POVLucien leaned back in the leather chair, swirling his drink with lazy fingers. The private lounge was dim, the air thick with cigar smoke and silence. Only the two of us.“Why are you letting her go to that ball?” he asked, voice smooth but probing. “You’ve spent weeks pulling her deeper into your world. The threats worked. She’s scared. She’s dependent. She barely leaves the penthouse anymore. And now you’re handing her an invitation to step outside?”I took a slow sip of whiskey, letting the burn settle before I answered.“Because she’s starting to waver,” I said. “She’s feeling weird things. Doubting. Questioning everything. She snuck off to the gallery the other day behind my back. She’s getting restless. If I keep the leash too tight for too long, she’ll start fighting it instead of loving it. She needs a little breathing space.”Lucien’s ice-blue eyes narrowed with interest. “Breathing space. And you think giving her the ball will make her come back more willing?”
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2026-04-06
Chapter: Chapter 73: The Hidden CallAria’s POVI waited until Kyle went into his study for a call.The penthouse was quiet except for the low murmur of his voice behind the closed door. My hands were shaking as I pulled Elena Ruiz’s card from the bottom of my drawer. I had changed my number twice already … once after the black roses, once after the voicemail. I didn’t want anyone tracing the old one.I dialed the new number Elena had given me at the party. It rang twice.“Aria?” Elena’s voice was calm and professional. “I was hoping you’d call.”“I’m sorry,” I whispered. I walked to the far end of the bedroom, away from the door. “I had to change my contact again. I didn’t want… anyone to see.”“I understand. Are you safe right now?”“For the moment.” My voice cracked a little. “Did you find anything? Any clue who is doing this?”There was a short pause. I could hear Elena typing in the background.“I’ve been digging,” she said. “The threats are too coordinated to be random. The personal details … the wedding dress,
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2026-04-05
Chapter: Chapter 72: The Almost JourneyAria’s POVThe penthouse felt warmer that evening.I was sitting on the couch with my legs tucked under me, wearing one of Kyle’s soft gray sweaters. It smelled like him. I had spent the day doing small things again … making tea, watering the plants, folding the same blanket three times. My mind kept going back to the gallery. I wanted to go back so badly it hurts.Kyle walked in from his study. He had changed into a black shirt and dark jeans. The bruises on his face were fading to yellow and purple, but they were still there. He looked at me for a long moment, his eyes soft but searching.“Aren’t we going for our journey anymore?” he asked quietly. “It would have been good for you..”I looked up at him. My fingers played with the hem of the sweater.“I… I changed my mind,” I said. “I want to stay. The team invited me to the party tomorrow night. I want to go. Just for a little while.”Kyle’s jaw tightened for half a second. His eyes went cold, then warm again so fast I almost miss
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2026-04-04
Chapter: Chapter 71: The ReturnAria’s POVI couldn’t sleep that night.Kyle’s bruises were dark against his skin. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw the cut on his lip and the swelling on his cheek. He had kissed me every time I asked who hurt him. He had taken me to bed and proved he was still strong. But the questions stayed loud in my head.Who did this to him?Was it the same people sending the threats?Was it Jason?The next morning, Kyle left for a meeting. He kissed me at the door and told me to stay inside. “I’ll be back by lunch,” he said. “Rest. Don’t worry about me.”The moment the door closed, I picked up my phone.I tried calling Margaret first. It rang three times and went to voicemail.I tried Thomas. Same thing.I tried the gallery main line. A new receptionist answered. When I asked for Margaret, the woman said, “She’s in a meeting. Can I take a message?”I hung up.Everyone was avoiding me.I sat on the couch and stared at the phone. My hands shook. The walls felt closer than ever. I tried calli
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2026-04-03
FORBIDDEN AFFAIR WITH THE BIKER I CAN'T HAVE
He pinned me against the wall. His voice, a low growl in my ear.
“You’re trembling, little bird. Fear? Or something else?” His hand burns against my skin. “Your brother would kill me for this... but look me in the eye. Tell me you don’t want me. Tell me you weren’t wet the moment I touched you.”
At twenty-one, Elara Stark thought she’d finally escaped the Vipers’ world of blood and leather. Six years later, after her father's murder and her fiancé's betrayal, she's back, only to be trapped under the watch of her brother's Enforcer, Knox.
Knox has been secretly obsessed with Elara for years.
The girl he once knew is gone, now stands a woman, broken and vulnerable in a way that awakens something dark and possessive in him.
He is everything that goes against the moral core and peaceful life she craves, and she knows he's dangerous, but she simply can't resist the temptation.
But there's a catch– a rule, no romantic relationship with a Viper or Vipers' families, failure to abide means instant death for the club member.
When Elara's pain forces them into a forbidden kiss, the rule doesn't stop them.
Will this crushing secret be the final thing to destroy them both? Read to find out what happens when you crave the one thing that will end you.
Baca
Chapter: CHAPTER 157: THE MOTORCYCLEKNOX’S POVI woke up thinking about her.That had been happening more frequently than I knew what to do with.I closed my eye, and all I could think of was her, my Elera.My hand moved almost on its own, pressing down over the front of my pants. I was already half-hard just from the memory of her laugh.I shouldn’t do this. But the need was sudden and sharp. I slid my zipper down, and freed myself. My cock was heavy and aching in my palm.I wrapped my fingers around the length and gave one slow stroke.A low sound escaped me — half sigh, half groan.I pictured her closer. Closer than she had any right to be in my mind. Her hand instead of mine. Those dark eyes watching me while she touched me. The way her breath might catch if I pulled her against me.I stroked faster, thumb brushing over the head, spreading the bead of precum that had already formed. Another soft moan slipped out, quiet but raw. I bit my lip to keep it from getting louder, but the pleasure built quickly, fueled by
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2026-04-08
Chapter: CHAPTER 156: THE CALLVICTORIA’S POVI called at ten.It rang twice and Knox picked up, which meant he wasn’t asleep and wasn’t busy, which meant he was choosing to answer quickly.“Hey,” he said.“Hey.” I kept my voice light. “How’s the evening?”“Quiet. You?”“Fine. I’m at home.” I paused. “Is everything okay there?”“Yes. Everything’s fine.”Short answers. Knox gave short answers when he was distracted by something he didn’t want to talk about yet. I had learned that in eight months of knowing him.“Has your guest settled in for the night?” I asked.A small pause. “I think so.”I left it there.We talked for a few more minutes about nothing important and then said goodnight and I put the phone down and sat with it in my lap.The next morning I called Maria.Maria was loyal to Knox first and always would be. But she was also honest in the way that certain straightforward women were honest, not cruel, not gossiping, just factual when asked a direct question.“How is everything in the house?” I asked.“F
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2026-04-07
Chapter: CHAPTER 155: THE BEACHKNOX’S POVI gave it an hour.Sat in my office pretending to work, listening to the house settle around me, telling myself I was fine and this was fine and there was absolutely no reason to go looking for anyone.Then I heard Priya come upstairs. I heard her door close. the house go quiet in the particular way it went quiet when everyone was in for the night.I waited another ten minutes.Then I went out into the hallway.Maria was coming up the stairs with a folded towel.“Is she back?” I asked. Keeping my voice casual.Maria looked at me. “Priya is back. Miss Elara chose to stay out a little longer.”I looked at her. “Alone?”“Dominic dropped them both off. Priya came inside. Miss Elara said she wanted some air.”“How long ago?”Maria considered this. “Maybe forty minutes.”Forty minutes. Alone outside at night.I was already moving toward the stairs before I finished the thought.“Mr. Reyes,” Maria called after me.I didn’t stop.I went to the front gate first and looked both ways
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2026-04-05
Chapter: CHAPTER 154:THE DOOR KNOX’S POVI stood in the hallway for a full minute after she went down the stairs.Just standing there with my jacket half on and my phone in my hand like an idiot.I heard the front door open. I heard Priya’s voice, bright and immediate. Heard a car start in the driveway. Heard everything get quiet again.She was gone.I finished putting my jacket on slowly and stood there trying to understand what was happening inside my chest. It was an odd feeling. Not painful exactly. More like something that didn’t have a name yet.I went back into my office and sat down at my desk.Picked up my phone. Put it down.Picked it up again.I opened the security app out of habit. The front gate camera. The driveway. I watched Dominic’s car pull out onto the street and disappear.I put the phone face down on the desk.This was ridiculous.Dominic was good. I knew that. I trusted him. He was one of maybe four people in my life I trusted without condition.He was careful and steady and honest and he w
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2026-04-04
Chapter: CHAPTER 153: THURSDAYELARA’S POVI woke up before my alarm. I laid in the dark staring at the ceiling for a while. The house was quiet. And Thursday was finally here. My stomach felt really uneasy like I was going to throw up.Thursday.I sat up and put my feet on the floor and told myself very clearly that I was going out tonight. That it was a night market twenty minutes away with two people who had never once made me feel unsafe. That the fear I was feeling was old fear, borrowed from other situations, and it did not actually belong to tonight.It didn’t fully work. But I got up anyway.That was the thing I’d learned about fear over the past year. You didn’t have to feel brave. You just had to move while scared and eventually your body caught up with what your mind had already decided.If I was going to build a life again, any kind of life, I had to start somewhere. I had to take one step outside and then another and keep going until outside didn’t feel like enemy territory anymore.Tonight was the
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2026-04-02
Chapter: CHAPTER 152: OUTSIDEELARA’S POVThe burn calmed down after a few minutes under cold water.Dominic wrapped my palm in a clean cloth, keeping it loose the way he said, and then stepped back and gave me room to breathe. He was good at that. Giving room without making it obvious he was doing it.We ended up outside on the back terrace. Two old chairs and a small iron table between them, the paint chipped off the legs in places. The garden stretched out in front of us, quiet and green, Mr. Heng’s tools lined up neatly against the shed wall even though he’d gone home an hour ago.We sat for a while without talking.It wasn’t uncomfortable. That was the thing that surprised me. Silence with most people had started to feel like something that needed to be managed, filled, handled carefully. With Dominic it just sat there between us like it was welcome.“So what do you actually do,” he said eventually, “when you’re not working?”I thought about it honestly. “I read if there’s something worth reading. Sometime
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2026-03-29
Masuk
