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CHAPTER NINE
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2025-04-04 00:44:54
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A Whole New World CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO
ESSENCE I barely had time to breathe before the cameras descended on us. The moment we stepped back into the hall, a flurry of movement closed in around us. Flashbulbs popped. Reporters surrounded us like bees, their questions coming faster than my brain could process. "Mr. Knight, is this your new woman?" "Is she just your date?" "Can we get a statement about your relationship?" Lucian didn’t flinch. In fact, he seemed to have been waiting for this moment. He slid his arm around my waist, pulled me just a little closer to him and said, in that smooth, velvet voice of his that could probably make a stone blush, “Essence is my wife. The love of my life.” My jaw almost unhinged. The love of his life? Was this some kind of PR strategy? Was he... serious? Before I could even begin to think about how to react, my eyes caught something—or rather, someone—standing in the corner of the room, leaning against a high table like she owned the whole damn party. Brittany. Ther
A Whole New World CHAPTER FIFTY ONE
ESSENCE Lucian stood in front of Alex and me, his jaw tight, the muscles in his neck twitching like he was seconds away from throwing a punch. The last time these two clashed, Lucian nearly broke Alex's jaw. As much as the idea of watching Lucian flatten Alex again was tempting, I couldn’t allow it... not here, not now. Asher was still lying in a hospital bed. Like it or not, Alex was the only person staying close to him. If Lucian hurt him, and he ended up on a hospital bed too, I knew I’d feel obliged to step in and care for Asher, and I wasn’t ready to re-enter that world. Besides, I didn’t need Lucian to protect me anymore. I could handle Alex all by myself. I yanked my hand out of Alex’s grip with more force than I intended, but I didn’t care. “I’m sure you’ve read the divorce papers by now, Alex. Don’t act like an idiot. You and I? We’re done. I moved on.... you should too. Stop showing up where you're not wanted. It’s pathetic.” In the corner of my mind, Brittany’s voic
A Whole New World CHAPTER FIFTY
ALEX The hospital smelled like bleach and disappointment. I stood beside Asher's bed, his tiny hand resting in mine. I had paced the floor for hours, called Essence over and over again, but nothing. She didn’t even have the decency to call or explain. My mind was spinning, and the fury that simmered inside me was starting to boil over. The previous day, Remi had told me she saw Essence at a bar, drinking and laughing while her son was in a hospital bed. I didn't want to believe her, but when I got to that bar and didn't find Essence, it only made me angrier. I didn’t know what was going on with her anymore. She wasn’t the same woman I used to know—the woman who once adored me, who lived to make our family work. What was she playing at? I left the hospital in a haze, deciding to stop home and shower before heading back to continue my vigil beside Asher. But the moment I stepped through the door, Vesper's voice echoed from the living room. "A parcel came for you," she called.
A Whole New World CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
ESSENCE I stood frozen for a moment, blinking like a deer caught in stadium lights. Did I just hear her say fiancée? My eyes scanned her face, waiting for some twitch of a smile that would tell me this was some kind of joke. But no—this girl was dead serious. Confident, smug, beautiful, and terrifyingly calm. Her voice was syrupy sweet, like honey dripped over poison. "Your name is Essence, right?" she said, lips curled into a lazy smirk. “I’m Brittany. Brittany Dane. I just wanted to say hello.... after all, we share something in common. Lucian.” I tilted my head, pretending to be unbothered, even as my heart did that annoying somersault thing it did whenever something didn’t feel right. Did I have to keep dealing with things like this, as long as I was married to Lucian? “Yes, I am Essence. Lucian’s wife, to be exact,” I said, adding a smile that didn’t reach my eyes. “Nice to meet you, Brittany.” But Brittany was relentless. She let out a soft, amused laugh like I had sa
A Whole New World CHAPTER FORTY EIGHT
ESSENCE When I eventually went to bed, Lucian was still working. I lay on my side, facing the wall, pretending to be asleep even though my heart was still very much awake. Minutes later, I felt the mattress shift under his weight as he joined me in bed. Moments passed. Then I felt his arm sliding around my waist, pulling me gently toward him until my back pressed into his chest. His warmth settled over me like a blanket, and I loved it. Honestly, if blushing were a paid job, I would have been a billionaire by now. I was grinning like an idiot and hiding my face in the pillow like a teenage girl with a crush. I fought the urge to turn around and stare into his face. Maybe he was already asleep, or maybe he was just holding me for comfort, but whatever it was, I didn’t want it to stop. His breathing slowed against my neck, and mine soon matched his. Wrapped up in that stillness, I finally let go of my thoughts and drifted off into a very peaceful sleep. When morning came, I w
A Whole New World CHAPTER FORTY SEVEN
ESSENCE Oh. My. God. Lucian wanted me. No, scratch that.... Lucian was attracted to me. I wasn’t dreaming, right? His hands didn’t just glide across my skin like silk. His lips didn’t just trail over my neck like he was inhaling me. And that thing I felt...yes, that thing....pressing gently against my lower back when he leaned in, that was not my imagination. Was it? I sat frozen, my heart racing like a wild stallion, and all I could do was stare ahead and pretend that I hadn’t just felt the most beautiful, maddening, nerve-wrecking thrill of my entire life. Every insecurity I had buried under sarcasm and sass was now rising like steam. My scars. My body. My imperfections. Would he still want me if he saw them? That question alone held my heart hostage. Lucian was kind. Generous. Gorgeous beyond reason. The kind of man women used as wallpaper on their phones, not the kind of man who would ever... want someone like me. Right? But he did. The evidence was, well, visible.
A Whole New World CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
LUCIAN Being married to Essence was a lot more beautiful and surprisingly thrilling than I ever imagined. She was not just funny in a way that disarmed me, she was also fragile and incredibly brave at the same time. And God, she was clueless about the effect she had on me. The way her eyes lit up when she was trying not to smile, the soft lines around her mouth when she pouted... I couldn’t stop watching her. That night, I had watched her struggle against sleep like a soldier on the battlefield. All in an effort to hide her snoring from me. She tried everything...cold showers, counting into her phone, even whispering to herself like some sweet, sleepy child who had sworn not to disappoint herself. But of course, sleep won. When I woke up the next morning to the unmistakable sound of her snoring.... a strong, melodic buzz that filled the room.... I couldn’t help it. I laughed. Not out of mockery, but sheer affection. It was oddly comforting. She was finally letting her guard down
A Whole New World CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
ESSENCE I didn’t even know how to breathe. Was Lucian serious? Did he really mean what I thought he meant? He was offering to bring my son, Asher, into our home. Into our life. Into this new, strange, beautiful chapter I didn’t even fully understand yet. I blinked at him, trying to piece his words together in my mind like a broken puzzle. How could he be so willing? So open? So... good? No man had ever done that. Not even Asher’s own father had ever stood by me with this kind of gentle determination. And yet here was Lucian, a man who owed me nothing, a man who married me under the most unconventional circumstances, offering me something I’d never dared to wish for out loud. But I couldn’t accept it. I just couldn’t. I lowered my eyes, my voice soft and bitter. “It’s not worth it, Lucian. Don’t worry yourself.” He tilted his head, concern etched into every line of his face. “Why would you say that? You’re clearly worried about him.” “I am,” I admitted, even though it hu
A Whole New World CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
ESSENCE The words just wouldn't compute. "Your... stepson?" I asked again, even though my ears had done a perfectly fine job the first time. Sky gave me a little shrug, the kind someone gives when they just admitted to borrowing your lipstick without asking and hoped you wouldn’t make a big deal out of it. Not when what she’d said was equivalent to dropping a whole-ass scandal in the middle of a crowded marketplace. "Yes, technically," she replied, looking as calm as a cucumber dipped in audacity. "He’s the son of my late husband. We didn’t really talk until after the funeral. And one thing led to another..." I almost dropped my purse. "Sky, that’s not 'one thing.' That’s a whole damn novella! You went from widow to wicked stepmother in under a year." She snorted. "Oh, please. He’s older than me by like five years, and my husband was practically a century old. Besides, it’s not like I raised him or anything." I stared at her. "Sky. You literally just boned your dead hu
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