Novel-novel oleh Alexia Rose

Marco's text message glowed on Elena's phone screen as the car turned onto the highway. *Who is he really, Elena? I saw the prenup online.*She stared at the words until they blurred, her brother's question echoing in her mind. Who was Julian really? Her husband? Her employer? The man who made blueprints of her vineyard in secret? The man who'd asked her to teach him how to be honest?Elena typed and deleted three different responses before giving up. What could she possibly say that wouldn't be another lie?The drive back felt endless. By the time the estate's iron gates appeared, her stomach had twisted itself into knots. She expected Julian to be waiting in his study, cold and furious about the leaked prenup. Expected another fight, more broken glass, more words that cut deeper than they should.What she didn't expect was to find his sleek black Mercedes parked in front of the vineyard's main house when the car pulled up three hours later.Elena's heart stopped. "What?"The driver

The sound of shattering glass still echoed in Elena's ears three days later as the car rolled up the familiar dusty drive. She pressed her forehead against the cool window, watching rows of grapevines blur past. Home. Finally home, even if just for a few hours.Julian hadn't spoken to her since that night neither has he looked at her. They moved through the estate like ghosts, carefully avoiding each other's paths. The driver pulled up to the main house. Elena didn't wait for him to open her door. She was out before the car fully stopped, her heels sinking into the soft earth.Her father stood on the porch, exactly where she'd left him weeks ago. But he looked stronger. His shoulders weren't quite so bowed and the lines around his mouth had softened."Mija," he said, opening his arms.Elena ran to him like she was ten years old again. He caught her, held her tight, and for a moment everything was simple. She was just his daughter. Not Mrs. Thorne. Not a contract bride. Just Elena."L

Julian's words hung in the air between them, his hands still gripping Elena's shoulders. The blueprints lay spread across the table behind her, damning evidence of plans she hadn't known existed.Elena shoved him hard making him stumbled back a step, surprise flashing across his face."Don't touch me," her voice shook, but not from fear. It was from rage so pure it felt like fire in her veins. "Don't you dare touch me right now.""Elena, if you would just listen….""Listen? Listen to what? More lies?" She grabbed the nearest blueprint, holding it up between them like a weapon. "Potential expansion,water rights acquisition. You've been planning this the whole time, haven't you?"Julian's jaw clenched. He reached for the tumbler of scotch on his desk and took a long drink. His hand was steady, controlled. Everything about him was controlled except his eyes, which burned with something Elena couldn't name."It's not what you think," he said."Then what is it?" Elena threw the blueprint a

The photographer's flash left bright spots dancing across Elena's vision, and her cheeks ached from smiling for what felt like hours, the muscles in her face gone stiff and locked in place like a mask she couldn't peel off.Vanessa stood three feet away in her red dress with red lips and red nails drumming against Julian's forearm like she owned it.Elena's fingers curled around her champagne flute, the glass cold and slick, her grip tightening until her knuckles went white.She wanted to break something.The thought arrived clear and sharp, and it shocked her because this wasn't part of the arrangement—she wasn't supposed to care who touched him, wasn't supposed to feel this heat crawling up the back of her neck and spreading across her scalp like fire.But her jaw clenched anyway, her molars grinding together.The orchestra stopped and the silence made everything worse, Vanessa's voice carrying across the marble floor loud enough for everyone to hear."Darling, where did you find th

The week following Cassian’s disruption passed in a tense, muffled silence. Julian was more absent than ever, burying himself in work at Thorne Consolidated. The promised vineyard visit loomed, a spectral reprieve Elena clung to with desperate fingers. But first, there was another performance to endure. “The New York Historical Preservation Society’s Winter Benefit,” Henderson informed her on Thursday morning, placing a heavy, cream-colored envelope beside her breakfast plate. “Tonight. Black tie. Mr. Thorne will return to escort you at seven.” Another gala. Another stage. The memory of Cassian’s cruel appraisal and Julian’s subsequent fury was a fresh bruise. She opened the envelope. The invitation was engraved, coldly elegant. Mr. Julian Thorne and Guest. Guest. That was all she was. A plus-one. An accessory with a two-million-dollar price tag. Julian returned just before seven, a storm cloud in a Brioni tuxedo. He acknowledged her with a curt nod as she descended the stairca

Elena woke earlier than usual, unsettled by the quiet. The manor was always silent, but this morning it felt intentional, as though the house itself had paused to acknowledge what had changed. She lay still for a moment, staring at the ceiling, then reached for her phone.The transaction alert was still there.She locked the screen and set the phone aside, a tightness forming beneath her ribs that had nothing to do with hunger.Getting dressed required no thought. The wardrobe offered choices she hadn’t earned and couldn’t refuse. She selected a soft sweater and tailored trousers, clothes that fit her body perfectly without asking permission. She studied her reflection longer than she meant to. She looked composed. She didn’t feel it.Downstairs, the dining room was pristine. The long table had been set for one. Henderson stood near the sideboard, his presence as neutral as the polished silver.“Good morning, Ms. Vega. Mr. Thorne has already left for the city. He asked that you be ava