로그인Aurelia’s POVI didn’t waste time thinking. I called Matteo.“I need your help, urgently,” I said the moment he picked up. My voice sounded steadier than I felt. “I asked Grant’s girlfriend to get me some information. Now she’s in danger.”There was no panic on his end, only the quiet shift of a man switching into action mode.“Send me the location,” he said.I hesitated, fingers tightening around my phone. “Matteo… I want this done quietly. No noise. No headlines.”“That’s not a problem,” he replied smoothly.We sent him the exact coordinates her phone was pinging from, then all we could do was wait. Every second stretched thin, brittle with dread. My eyes kept drifting to the screen, as if staring harder might will it to change.Not long after, my phone rang again.“She’s not at the location you sent,” Matteo said.My stomach dropped. “That doesn’t make sense. Her phone is pointing in that direction.”There was a brief pause on the line, the kind that carried weight.“Could it be th
Aurelia’s POV“How did you even come to that conclusion?” Julien asked, his voice measured but tight.“Matteo,” I said simply.His head snapped up. “What?”“Look,” I continued, already sensing the shift in the air, “you don’t like him, and that’s fine. But he works for me. I can ask him whatever I want.”Julien exhaled slowly, rubbing his jaw. “I can’t use that information.”I turned fully to him. “Because you’re proud?”His eyes flashed. “Because Matteo is a shady man. And because this doesn’t make sense.” He straightened. “How could it be Isolde? She comes from one of the wealthiest families in the country. The Cyrus family owns the largest shares in that company. Why would she need to steal from me?”I scoffed, the sound sharp. “Are you saying this because you hate Matteo… or because you like Isolde?”“What?” he asked, genuinely stunned.“If not,” I pressed, “why are you so determined she isn’t involved? This is the same woman who lied to you before.”“That’s outrageous,” he snappe
Aurelia’s POVAfter I ended the call, silence stretched between Julien and me. The house felt smaller somehow, the walls pressing in with the weight of what was coming.“They’re trying to link this to me,” I muttered, more to myself than to him. “Someone wants my name tainted. They want me to look guilty.”Julien’s hand closed around mine, firm and grounding, pulling me back from the spiral of calculations racing through my mind.“Let them try,” he said quietly. There was no panic in his voice, only heat. “We’ll show them exactly who’s really behind this.”I nodded, heart pounding, my mind already rearranging facts, timelines, and faces. This wasn’t just about stolen files anymore. It wasn’t even about money. This was war. A carefully staged one. I picked up my phone and called Tessa.“I was about to call you,” she said immediately. “I just saw the news.”“Good,” I replied. “Listen carefully. Do not tell anyone about the stolen files. Not the police. Not yet.”She went silent.“Tell
Aurelia’s POVBy two p.m. sharp, I pulled into the café parking lot. The place smelled of roasted coffee beans and quiet confessions, the kind people made when they thought no one was listening.Selene was already there. Same seat as last time. Same corner.But she wasn’t the Selene I remembered, she's not as flashy.“Hey,” I said as I slid into the chair across from her.She looked up slowly. “Hey.”Her face was leaner, sharper around the edges. The softness she once carried was gone, replaced by something colder, more deliberate. Survival had rewritten her features.“Tough life, huh?” I asked lightly.She scoffed. “You don’t say. I’m considering selling my farm in Colombia.”That made me chuckle. The irony of it all never failed to amuse me.The barista approached, and I ordered an iced latte, watching Selene carefully. She sat too still, too composed. This wasn’t healing. This was calculation.“So Grant,” I said casually. “Does he know you had a hand in what happened to his company
Aurelia's POVThe next morning, my phone buzzed. It was Abraham. His assistant hadn’t shown up at work, and somehow, their contact wasn’t reachable.“Thank you. Just get back to work,” I said, my tone clipped but calm.“Yes, ma’am,” he replied.Julien and I went to see Philip. He seemed locked in his own universe. His sleeves were rolled up neatly, discarded markers piled in the bin beside him, each one a casualty of his obsession. Numbers danced across the glass walls with rhythmic precision, the scratch of his pen echoing softly in the quiet room.“Should we greet him?” Julien asked, glancing at the determined figure inside.“No need,” I said, shaking my head slightly. “Call someone to drop off boiled water, leave the label outside the door.”Julien frowned. “Why only boiled water?”“He doesn’t eat anything made by someone else,” I explained. “The highest we can do is give him very clean water. Nothing more, nothing less.”Julien’s brow furrowed. “Does he have OCD too?”I chuckled s
Aurelia’s POVTuesday arrived with intention.Philip, my accountant, landed early that morning, precise as everything else about him. The three of us drove to the company together, the city unfolding outside the tinted windows. K-Tech rose ahead of us, vast and immaculate. Glass, steel, quiet luxury. The kind of building that promised order, control, and nothing out of place.Philip barely spared the lobby a glance before asking for a room. “Glass walls and temporary maker pens,” he said simply.Julien exchanged a look with the secretary before nodding. A small meeting room with transparent walls was prepared immediately. Julien instructed the accounting department to bring everything. Files. Ledgers. Digital backups. Hard copies.Philip stood by the table, hands loosely clasped behind his back.“When did you notice the change?” he asked, eyes already scanning the room like it was a puzzle waiting to be solved.“Recently,” Julien replied. “But I feel like it dates back months. Maybe
Aurelia’s POVThat night, my dream picked up exactly where it had stopped, Julien and I, tangled in the dim storeroom, the air heavy with the scent of him and forbidden want.His lips found mine again, and I melted into him like I’d been waiting a lifetime for this moment. His hands were rough, del
Aurelia’s POV“What?” Cassia gasped, eyes wide in disbelief.Grant leaned against the counter, wearing that same smug expression that used to make my skin crawl. “Well I’m glad you’re back. Also I've forgiven you,” he said casually, as if we were picking up from a small argument and not a broken m
Aurelia’s POVThe next day at the office, during lunch, a staff member approached me carrying a large bouquet.The moment my colleagues saw it, a chorus of “Awws” erupted. My mood flipped instantly, but I hesitated, thinking, Grant again?I carefully unfolded the note tucked inside the bouquet.‘Wh
Aurelia's POV The rest of the evening passed quietly. I kept thinking about Julien, his voice still echoing softly in my head, replaying in the background of every thought.While doing Oliver’s laundry, I caught myself smiling more than once. It was strange, feeling that warmth again after so long







