Burned By His Lies
BLURB
Zara Winterborn believed that marrying Adrian Leighhton was a dream come true and the best thing that had ever happened to her broken childhood. Instead, it tied her to a man whose love hid a dark truth that burned her to ashes.
She overhears a phone call on their honeymoon that shatters her whole world. The love of her life is already married.
Feeling betrayed and desperate after learning she's pregnant, she makes some unthinkable decisions. She fakes an abortion, fakes a miscarriage, and disappears from her old life. Five years later, she returns as a renowned architect. Not as Zara but Aria Sterling with a secret daughter.
Adrian sees her at a gala and his regret transforms into obsession as he hires investigators to dig deeper. He will tear everything down, even his empire and his blood just to win her forgiveness again.
But Adrian isn't the only one who becomes obsessed with her. Even Damien, the stranger who helped her disappear to punish her, has his own plans and wants to use Zara as a weapon for revenge.
As secrets of stolen embryos, hidden mothers, children, unknown siblings, and bloodlines twisted by lies, come to light, Zara must choose. Does she stick with Damien and destroy Adrian forever or does she forgive Adrian and let him into their lives?
She vanished before. Can she disappear again when things get tough?
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Chapter: Chapter 31: The Beach TripZara’s Pov“Mommy!” The scream is from an impatient Lila. She has been screaming my name for the past thirty minutes, urging me to hurry up so we can hit the road.“Almost done. Give me a minute,” I yell back, throwing my charger, some necessary things, some cash, and a credit card in my purse. I don't know his plans but I won't have him leave me stranded in the middle of nowhere.“You said that five minutes ago.” I can hear the whine in her voice. I'm definitely on her bad list today. I smile to myself, thinking about her excitement throughout the day. She told me she couldn't wait for school to be over so that we could start going.Excitement was an understatement. While I was thinking twice about leaving her in school, she was blowing my eardrums. The guards Adrian hired are like our shadows, but they're good at keeping themselves invisible yet seen. So far, I don't think Lila has noticed them.“Daddy, Mommy is going to make us late,” the little traitor says as I walk into the liv
Last Updated: 2025-11-13
Chapter: Chapter 30: The BodyguardsAria(Zara’s Pov)The next morning is quiet and peaceful. Murphy, Celia, and I are just lazying around while Lila is sleeping on the couch, watching cartoons. Celia and Murphy are arguing about what to have for breakfast and I don't want to be caught in the middle.“Pancake or eggs, Zara?” Celia asks. They have switched to calling me that instead of Aria and I don't mind, honestly. Celia justified it by saying she likes the name better. Like she would have a choice if I were actually named Aria.“Zara,” this time, it's Murphy who calls.“What?” I'd zoned out.“Forget it. You're of no use to me,” Celia says, walking to the living room while shouting Lila’s name. “Lila, baby.”“Oh come on. She's always playing dirty,” Murphy says in a defeated tone knowing whatever Lila says is what we'll be having for breakfast. And knowing Celia, she's going to convince Lila to pick what she wants.“Poor, Murphy. Scared of two little girls.” I tease him and he gives me a dirty look. I just chuckle.Cel
Last Updated: 2025-11-10
Chapter: Chapter 29: Missing FootageAdrian’s PovWe stayed at the hospital. The doctor told us she was okay but he wanted to keep her that night to monitor her and confirm nothing else was wrong. So Zara and I slept there while Celia and Murphy returned home.I told Zara to take the only couch in the room while I took the chair by Lila’s bed. I could see Zara struggling to stay up after talking to Lila but I assured her that I wasn't going to sleep.And I didn't. By morning, my head is banging, my back is killing me, and my eyes feel heavy. I don't complain because I'm spending time with my daughter despite the situation.“You can take the couch. I'm sure that chair is uncomfortable.” she tries to whisper so she doesn't wake the sleeping Lila up.“I'm okay. Nothing I can't handle.”“I know. But you should stretch your back for a bit too,” she insists, and I don't argue further.She makes her way towards me. When she tries to walk past me, I hold her arm softly. “Are you okay?” She stops, then raises her eyes to look at
Last Updated: 2025-11-09
Chapter: Chapter 28: AllergyAdrian’s PovI told my daughter I would come over the next day that’s what I do. There's no hiding it anymore. She knows I'm her father even when her mother tried so hard to keep it from her. The little girl is just so wise that she picked up everything from our previous arguments and put everything together.I'm happy that she accepts me as her father but I can't help but worry about her mother's resistance. I just hope she'll come around and let me love my daughter freely and openly.I’m looking forward to when she’ll finally tell Lila that I'm her real father. The kid already knows but it'll mean the world to me and carry more weight if she voices it out herself. That will be the door I need to enter her life.So here I am, standing in front of this asshole’s door with the gifts I bought for my little girl. I still don't know their relationship but it must be pretty close if he hugged her like that that night. I don't care what relationship they have. He can't play family with my
Last Updated: 2025-11-01
Chapter: Chapter 27: The Misunderstanding Adrian’s Pov“Okay, Mr Leighton. I'll have the visitation paperwork ready as soon as possible.” my lawyer says on the other end of the phone.“Could you bring it over this afternoon? I want to notify her before filing. Maybe she can change her mind,” I say to him. “Sure. I'll deliver them myself later today.”“Thank you, Mr Smith.” I end the call before I can change my mind. I turn to find Mark looking at me with a frown on his face.“What Mark,” I ask in a defeated voice. “Are you sure you want to do this Adrian? She's not going to take this lightly,” he says.I stand up and move to the window and look outside. My life is so disorganized. I've since removed my tie and jacket and placed them on my chair. My head is heavy. I haven't slept well in the last few days. Every time I close my eyes, I see that man hug Zara and place his hand on her back. Anger and jealousy almost burst through me.I removed her from one man only to take her to another man's house. This girl is driving me
Last Updated: 2025-10-31
Chapter: Chapter 26: The Trap.Aria(Zara’s Pov)I arrive at the restaurant 5 minutes after seven and as usual, Damien comments on it. He stands as the server guides me to the table. His suit stretched tight over his muscles and his presence screams wealth and arrogance. He is the type to raise his nose at people and make luxurious places look cheap. “You’re five minutes late,” he says, while smiling and checking his expensive watch.“Just five minutes,” I tell him as I sit on the other side of the table. “Hope it doesn't affect your tight schedule.”He chuckles, but it sounds forced. “If it did, I wouldn't still be sitting here, would I?”“Good,” I say simply, trying not to roll my eyes. I glance at the surroundings and can't help but admire the interior setup of the place. The glass and gold combination gives off a cinematic aura to the building. I also can't help but notice the glances we’re receiving from people. They'll have another thing to feast on after their last assumption that we are a couple.I feel t
Last Updated: 2025-10-30
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