Chapter: Chapter 74Evelyn The church was already full when we arrived. Alfred had insisted on being late. Late enough that heads would turn when we walked in and enough for the cameras outside to catch us at the perfect angle, grieving employers paying respects to a loyal employee’s family. I wore black. A dress I’d bought years ago for someone else’s funeral. Elegant. Simple. I’d done my makeup carefully that morning, sitting at the vanity for longer than necessary, fixing my hair, making sure every strand was in place, making sure I looked put together even though I’d barely slept three hours. Every time I’d closed my eyes, I’d heard gunshots. Heard Sam scream. Heard my own footsteps running, running, running. Alfred walked beside me in his best suit, the one he wore for important occasions, high-profile events. His hand rested on my lower back, guiding me up the church steps like I needed guidance, like I was fragile. Reporters lined the sidewalk, cameras clicking in rapid succession. I kept my f
Last Updated: 2026-01-08
Chapter: Chapter 73Evelyn I sat in my car in the driveway, hands gripping the steering wheel, shaking so hard my teeth chattered.I couldn’t move. Couldn’t get out. Couldn’t breathe.The engine was still running. I didn’t remember driving home. Didn’t remember the roads, the lights, any of it. Just the sound of gunshots echoing in my head over and over.Sam had grabbed my arm when the window exploded. Glass everywhere. Another shot. The lamp shattering beside us.“Go!” he’d screamed. “Back door. Now!”I’d run. Through his kitchen. Past the table. He was right behind me. I could hear his footsteps. His breathing. Another gunshot and the doorframe beside my head splintered.I’d reached the back door. Locked. My hands were shaking so badly I couldn’t get it open. Sam pushed past me, unlocked it, shoved me through.“Jump the fence,” he said. “Don’t stop. Don’t look back.”I’d climbed onto the windowsill, threw myself over the fence, landed hard on the other side. Pain shot through my ankle but I kept movin
Last Updated: 2026-01-07
Chapter: ChapterEvelyn I drove too fast, running two red lights, my hands locked on the wheel. The diner was on the edge of town, the kind of place truckers stopped at for bad coffee and greasy eggs. When I pulled into the parking lot, I spotted her car immediately. Back corner. Engine running. I parked next to her and got out. Diana was slumped over the steering wheel, her whole body shaking. I knocked on the window and she jumped, her head snapping up. When she saw me, her face crumpled and she unlocked the door. I opened it and crouched down beside her. Her hands were covered in cuts. Fresh ones. Blood smeared across her palms, dried under her nails. Her shirt was torn at the shoulder. Mascara streaked down her face in black rivers. “What happened?” I asked. She tried to speak but nothing came out except a choked sob. “Diana. Look at me.” She did, her eyes wide and red and terrified. “Tell me what happened.” She took a shaky breath. “After I sent you those pictures, I went home and pack
Last Updated: 2026-01-07
Chapter: Chapter 71: The Mother-In-lawEvelyn I stood there frozen, my robe pulled tight around me, hair still damp and messy from sleep, my mind scrambling to catch up.“Grace,” I managed, forcing something that might pass for a smile. “What a surprise.”“Is it?” she said, setting her tea cup down with a delicate clink. “I would think my visits are always welcome.”They weren’t. They never were. But I couldn’t say that.I walked over and she stood, opening her arms for a hug. I stepped into it, feeling her bony frame against mine, her perfume overwhelming, floral and sharp. Her hand patted my back twice, cold and formal, before she pulled away.“You look tired, dear,” she said, her eyes scanning my face with that critical gaze I’d come to dread. “Are you sleeping well?”“Fine,” I said. “Just wasn’t expecting company.”“Company?” She laughed, light and tinkling. “Evelyn, I’m family. I don’t need an invitation to visit my son and grandchildren.”Of course she didn’t. She never did. Just showed up whenever she felt like it,
Last Updated: 2026-01-05
Chapter: Chapter 70: Now what?Evelyn I drove home with the windows down, the cold air biting at my face, trying to clear my head. Trying to erase the smell of him from my skin, the taste of him still on my lips, the feeling of his hands on my body.It didn’t work.My hands gripped the steering wheel tighter, knuckles white. I kept replaying it. The way he’d looked at me. The way he’d touched me. The desperation in his voice when he’d said he needed me. The way my body had responded, the way I’d let go completely, the way I’d wanted him so badly I’d forgotten every reason why I shouldn’t.I’d had sex with Theo.With my husband’s intern.In his dead mother’s house.The shame hit me first. Hot and sharp, making my stomach twist. What the hell had I done? I was a married woman. A mother. I’d just committed adultery with a twenty-four-year-old who worked for my husband. Who trusted me. Who I was supposed to be using as a pawn in my revenge plan, not sleeping with.But underneath the shame was something else.Excitemen
Last Updated: 2026-01-04
Chapter: Chapter 69Evelyn He reached for the fork. His hand shook slightly. He took a bite, chewed slowly, like he’d forgotten how. Swallowed. Took another bite. He looked so distant like his mind was completely somewhere else. He got through maybe half before he stopped, set the fork down, pushed the plate away slightly.Then he looked up at me. A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. Barely there but real. “Thank you,” he said quietly. I nodded and sat down beside him again. We didn’t talk. The house settled around us, the only sound the faint hum of the refrigerator from the kitchen, the tick of a clock somewhere I couldn’t see. The photos of his mother watched from every wall, her smile frozen in time, forever young in some, forever proud in others. I found myself staring at him. At the way the dim light caught the edges of his tattoos. The bird across his ribs, wings spread mid-flight. The words in script wrapping his collarbone, something in Spanish I couldn’t quite read. The line
Last Updated: 2026-01-01
Chapter: Chapter 115Ari’s POV I pushed open the door to the beach house expecting to hear Rhea call out from the kitchen or peek her head from the bedroom, but the entire place sat still in a way that didn’t feel normal. The first thing I noticed was the bed rumpled, warm, and unmistakably missing her. The sight made a heavy ache spread through my chest. She had warned me last night that she would probably leave soon, and I tried to pretend I could ignore that possibility, but seeing the empty room forced the truth into my throat with a kind of weight I couldn’t swallow. I stepped inside slowly, almost afraid of confirming what I already feared. Every part of the house held some trace of her, yet she wasn’t here. I walked toward the kitchen table, hoping she left something behind, maybe a message or a note that explained why she couldn’t wait for me to come back. At first, there was nothing except a chair slightly out of place. Then I saw it a piece of paper sitting near the edge of the table with a p
Last Updated: 2025-11-28
Chapter: Chapter 114 Ari By the time I reached Rhea’s beach house, the night had settled into something heavy, the kind that makes you feel every step in your chest rather than your legs. Her small place sat near the dunes, soft light leaking through the curtains. I could hear faint movement inside I stopped outside her door for a few seconds, breathing slowly, trying to gather myself. My parents’ faces were still fresh in my mind Dad’s anger, Mom’s fear, the way their voices trembled when they realized who she was. If I stood there long enough, maybe everything would make sense. It didn’t. I lifted my hand and knocked. It took her a moment to answer. I heard her footsteps, hesitant but fast, like she wasn’t sure whether to open the door at all. When she finally pulled it open, she stood there barefoot, dress wrinkled from hours of wearing it, her hair a little undone around her face. Her eyes were red not from crying, but from holding in tears she didn’t want anyone to see. “Ari,” she said qu
Last Updated: 2025-11-22
Chapter: Chapter 113Ari’s POV I brought Rhea home that morning even though she wasn’t sure about coming. I could tell from the way she kept glancing over her shoulder, her eyes moving along the quiet path as if she expected someone to step out from behind a tree. I promised her it wouldn’t be awkward, that my parents would want to meet her before she left the island. After a long moment, she finally agreed. She walked beside me in a pale dress, her hair tied up loosely, sketchbook held tight against her chest. Every step she took felt careful, deliberate in a way that made me glance at her more than once. I didn’t tell her she had nothing to be nervous about, because in this house, everything had history. Mom opened the door before my hand even touched it. Her smile came quickly, warm and curious. “You must be Rhea.” Rhea nodded lightly. “Yes, ma’am.” Mom’s smile wavered. Not because she didn’t like her. It was something else. Something she sensed before she could name it. Her eyes narrowed slightl
Last Updated: 2025-11-04
Chapter: Chapter 112Ari’s POV I didn’t plan to see her again that night. I walked because the house felt too tight around me after the fight with my father, every room still echoing with what we’d thrown at each other. I needed air, space, distance anything that didn’t sound like his voice in my head. The path that led toward the water gave me all of that. The shoreline shimmered in pale light, and the waves rose and fell with a rhythm that steadied my steps. I kept telling myself I only needed a few minutes to clear the noise in my chest. I didn’t expect to see her there. Rhea sat on the same overturned boat where we’d talked before, knees drawn up, sketchbook abandoned beside her like she’d forgotten she was supposed to be using it. She had her chin tucked down as if she was listening to the sea breathe. The tide kept reaching for her feet, slipping close then pulling back again. She lifted her head the moment I stopped, and the look in her eyes told me she’d felt me coming before she saw me.
Last Updated: 2025-11-03
Chapter: Chapter 111Ari’s POV The first thing I noticed when I stepped inside wasn’t any quiet in the house. It was the way both my parents stared at me as if I had walked in carrying something dangerous on my skin. Father was still by the window, sleeves pushed up, his jaw clenched tight. Mom sat at the table with her fingers curled around a mug she hadn’t tasted once. Valeria was perched on the arm of the couch with a book open on her lap, but she hadn’t been turning any pages. Her eyes were fixed on me the whole time. “You’re late,” Father said without raising his voice. I shut the door behind me, feeling more eyes on me than people in the room. “Didn’t know there was a curfew,” I muttered, trying to walk past him, but the way he slowly turned his head told me that whatever he had heard, it wasn’t good. He asked if I wanted to repeat myself, and for a moment I actually considered lying, giving them some easy excuse, anything to avoid this conversation. But the moment our eyes met, everything f
Last Updated: 2025-11-02
Chapter: Chapter 110 Ari’s POV We stayed near the water after the men were gone. The tide had crept back, slow and heavy, dragging foam across the sand until it touched our feet. Rhea sat a few paces from me, knees pulled to her chest, sketchbook lying closed beside her. Neither of us spoke for a long time. The pier behind us had gone quiet. The fishermen had gone home. Only the sea kept talking. Her hair was still messy from the scuffle, a few strands stuck to her face. I wanted to brush them away, but I didn’t. I just sat there, watching the waves fold over each other, waiting for her to breathe normally again. Finally, she said, “You shouldn’t have done that.” I glanced at her. “I know.” “You could’ve gotten hurt.” “So could you.” “That’s different.” “No,” I said. “It’s not.” Rhea turned her head slowly. “You don’t get it, do you?” “Then make me get it.” Her eyes flicked to the horizon, pale and still. “You asked me who he was. That man at the pier.” “Yeah.” “He works for
Last Updated: 2025-11-01
Chapter: Chapter 14 Elena Cruz Elena sprawled across her bed with her laptop, highlighter in hand, trying to make sense of the Anthropology reading that was due at midnight. The words kept blurring together. Something about territorial disputes in early pack settlements. Something about hierarchy structures. Something she should probably care about but couldn’t focus on. A knock on her door pulled her attention. “Come in.” Mrs. Parker opened the door. “Your friend Lila is here, dear. She says you’re working on a project together?” “Oh. Yeah. Send her up.” Mrs. Parker nodded and disappeared. A moment later, Lila appeared in the doorway, backpack slung over one shoulder, looking around with wide eyes. “Okay, this house is insane,” she said, dropping her bag on the floor. “Your room is bigger than my entire apartment.” “It’s not my house.” “Still. This is how rich people live.” Lila flopped onto the bed next to Elena. “Do you have a butler?” “Mrs. Parker is the housekeeper. And there’s
Last Updated: 2026-01-08
Chapter: Chapter 13 Elena Cruz Elena drove to campus the next morning in her new car, still not quite believing it was hers. The engine was smooth. The seats were comfortable. Everything smelled new and expensive. She kept glancing at the maroon paint gleaming in the morning sun, kept touching the steering wheel like she needed to confirm it was real. By the time she pulled into the student parking lot, she’d almost convinced herself this was normal. That people just gave other people brand new cars all the time. That it didn’t mean anything. But the stares started immediately. Students turned to look as she parked. Heads swiveled. Conversations paused. Elena could feel their eyes tracking her as she got out and grabbed her bag. She kept her head down and walked toward the main building, trying to ignore the attention. “ELENA!” Lila’s voice cut across the parking lot. She was practically running, Harper trailing behind her with a more reserved expression. “Is that your car?” Lila demand
Last Updated: 2026-01-08
Chapter: Chapter 12 Elena Cruz After Lila left, I dragged myself upstairs and collapsed onto my bed. The conversation with my mom had drained me more than I wanted to admit, and the studying with Lila had left my brain feeling like mush. I closed my eyes for what I thought would be a few minutes. When I opened them again, the light outside had changed. Late afternoon sun instead of midday brightness. I grabbed my phone and checked the time. I’d been asleep for almost three hours. That’s when I heard it. Music drifting up from downstairs. Voices and laughter that sounded too loud to be genuine. I got up and walked to my door, cracking it open just enough to listen. The sounds were coming from the back of the house, from the patio and lounge area that overlooked the pool. Mrs. Hale was hosting something. Nobody had mentioned a party. I looked down at what I was wearing. Wrinkled t-shirt and leggings that I’d thrown on this morning. Not exactly appropriate for whatever was happening downstairs. I cha
Last Updated: 2026-01-01
Chapter: Chapter 11 Elena Cruz Lila showed up at the estate the next morning with her backpack stuffed full of textbooks and that bright energy she always carried. Mrs. Parker let her in and directed her upstairs. Lila burst into my room like she owned it, tossing her bag on the floor and grinning. “Okay, so I brought everything for our Anthropology assignment , but I also need updates on last night. How was it?” I laughed despite myself. “It was fine. We just talked.” “Just talked? Elena, you went out with Ethan Cross. There has to be more than that.” “There really isn’t. We grabbed food, drove around for a bit, and he dropped me off.” “Did he kiss you?” “No.” “Why not?” “Because it was our first time hanging out and I barely know him?” Lila groaned and flopped onto my bed. “You’re killing me. Fine. But next time, you better have something interesting to report.” We spread our books and notes across the floor, actually getting some studying done for the first time. But Lila kep
Last Updated: 2026-01-01
Chapter: Chapter 10Elena Cruz I just wanted to feel like a normal college girl on a normal date with a normal guy who thought she was worth his time. Mrs. Parker was waiting by the front door when I came downstairs, her expression a mix of concern and maternal protectiveness. “Going out, dear?” “Just coffee with a friend from school.” “At this hour?” I glanced at my phone. It was barely eight. “We’re just going to grab something and talk. I won’t be late.” She studied my face for a moment, then nodded. “Let me walk you to the gate.” I didn’t argue. Mrs. Parker had been nothing but kind to me since I arrived, and I knew she was just trying to look out for me. We walked down the driveway together in comfortable silence. When we reached the gate, Ethan’s car was already there, idling just outside. He got out when he saw us approaching, flashing that easy smile. “Hi,” he said, his attention shifting between me and Mrs. Parker. “I’m Ethan.” Mrs. Parker looked him over with the practiced eye of so
Last Updated: 2025-12-31
Chapter: Chapter 9: Elena Cruz Nobody responded again and they all gave excuses about going to the bathroom or heading home immediately. I knew the girls just wanted to leave me to figure out what they meant. After lunch ended, Ethan walked with me partway across campus. We were alone now, the noise of the dining hall fading behind us. “So,” he said, slowing his pace. “I was thinking we should grab coffee sometime. Just the two of us.” My stomach fluttered. “Coffee?” “Yeah. You know, that thing people drink when they want to have actual conversations without an audience.” He grinned. “What do you say?” I should’ve hesitated. Should’ve made some excuse about being busy or needing to check my schedule. But the truth was, I wanted to say yes. I wanted to feel normal. Wanted to be pursued by someone age-appropriate who wasn’t my father’s married friend. “Sure,” I said. “That sounds good.” “Yeah?” His smile widened. “Great. I’ll text you and we can figure out a time.” “Okay.” We reached
Last Updated: 2025-12-31
Chapter: Chapter 123 ARIA’S POV The Wedding For a second wedding I felt nervous. I didn’t recognize myself in the mirror at first. I stood there in the small room the stylist set up for me, staring at the last details being pinned, smoothed, fixed. My dress wasn’t overly dramatic. It wasn’t loud or heavy or glittery. It felt like me clean lines, soft fabric, elegant but not too much, with a small hand-painted design at the hem that matched one of my favorite patterns from the art pieces Damien always loved watching me create. My mother stood behind me adjusting the last curl of my hair. She had been crying since morning and kept telling everyone she wasn’t crying, even while wiping her face with the corner of her sleeve. My brother kept pacing in the hallway, too excited to sit still. Elma kept peeking into the room, asking if she could come inside again even though she had already come in three times to hug me. Every time I looked at them, something inside my chest filled in a way I didn’t know
Last Updated: 2025-11-26
Chapter: Chapter 122 Damien’s POV I spent the entire afternoon in the backyard, trying to arrange everything without making it look forced. I wasn’t good at this kind of thing. I knew how to organize men, how to coordinate shipments, how to run operations worth millions, but setting up flowers and lights made me feel like I was handling the most fragile mission of my life. I kept checking the list I made earlier. I had written it at three in the morning when I couldn’t sleep. Every line had one purpose make her smile. Make her feel loved. Make her feel chosen. Not because of promises made under pressure, and not because of chaos that pushed us together. Because I wanted her. Because she deserved a proposal that came from my heart, not from fear or confusion. Mara helped me carry the last crate of candles to the poolside, and even she looked confused at first. She kept glancing at me as if waiting for me to change my mind, but when she saw how serious I was, she stopped asking questions. By seven
Last Updated: 2025-11-26
Chapter: Chapter 121 Aria Damien told me he was bringing her home. When I finally heard the car pull into the driveway, I stepped outside without realizing I had moved. The light hit the hood of the car as Damien climbed out from the driver’s side, but he didn’t look at me first. He went straight to the back door and opened it like he had carried this moment in his chest for years. My eyes followed his movements, and when he stepped aside, that was when I saw her. She sat with a blanket wrapped gently around her shoulders, her back hunched like she didn’t know how to hold her body anymore. Her hair fell softly over her cheeks, and there was a distant look in her eyes that made something shift inside me. She looked fragile, yes, but not in a weak way. It was the kind of fragility that came from surviving too much, the kind that felt raw and unprotected. Damien reached inside and eased her forward with careful hands. He held her like she belonged nowhere else but in his arms. When he lifted her, h
Last Updated: 2025-11-26
Chapter: Chapter 120 Aria’s POV I noticed the headlights through the curtains before anyone said a word. My mom had gone to her room to fold laundry and I was pretending to scroll through my phone on the couch, even though my mind had been blank for hours. The moment I realized that car was his, something in my chest tightened, not in the painful dramatic way people describe, but in a way that made me sit up slowly like my body wasn’t sure how to react. He didn’t text. He didn’t call. He simply showed up. I watched him step out of the car through the small gap between the curtains. He stood there for a moment, running a hand over his face like he was trying to gather himself before knocking. When he finally walked toward the door, my mom called my name quietly from the hallway. “He’s here again,” she said. “I know.” I stood up because sitting any longer felt impossible. Before she could say anything else, I walked outside. I didn’t want him inside the house again. I didn’t want my mom watc
Last Updated: 2025-11-26
Chapter: Chapter 119 Aria I spent the afternoon in the kitchen with my mom, helping her prepare one of her recipes. She moved around the space like she’d been doing it every day for years, and I tried to copy each step she showed me. She passed me a bowl of tomatoes and told me to add them little by little so they wouldn’t ruin the consistency of the sauce. I leaned closer to the pot and sprinkled them cautiously, trying not to make a mess. “You used to stand on a stool beside me and toss everything in at once,” she said with a small smile. “Then you’d laugh when I had to fix it. You were mischievous even as a child.” I smiled back even though I couldn’t fully remember the moment she talked about. Listening to her stories filled a space in me that had been empty for a long time. I stirred the sauce and let the rhythm calm me. My mom moved to the counter and folded a cloth neatly before looking at me again. “Now that you’ve settled in, I want to ask you something important,” she said gently. “Do
Last Updated: 2025-11-26
Chapter: Chapter 118 Damien’s POV I walked into her room early the next morning because I couldn’t stay away any longer. I didn’t sleep. I barely sat down the whole night. I just kept replaying everything the officer told me, and the look on her face last night when she opened her eyes for those few seconds. I kept thinking maybe she wouldn’t wake up again, or maybe she’d wake up scared and not know where she was. I kept thinking about all the years she spent alone while I was out there searching like a madman. When I stepped inside the room, the first thing I noticed was her eyes were open. Not wide open, but open enough for me to know she was fully awake this time. She looked smaller somehow, tucked into the sheets, her hair a mess across the pillow, her face pale but still carrying that familiar softness I remembered from so long ago. She turned her head slightly when she heard the door. I froze because it felt like a part of my chest pulled tight all at once. “Damien?” Her voice was tiny, r
Last Updated: 2025-11-26
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