ANMELDENShe smiled. Her voice immediately brightened, taking on the effortless ease her followers were accustomed to seeing from her. "Oh my goodness, hello, everyone. Hi! I haven't done one of these in forever."She picked up her tube of night cream and squeezed a little onto her fingertips. "I've been so ridiculously busy lately. Like, actually ridiculous. I barely have time to breathe, let alone sit down and chat with you guys." She began gently dotting the cream across her cheeks and forehead. "But I have an excuse, because something very, very exciting is coming."She smiled conspiratorially at the camera. "I can't tell you everything yet, obviously, because then what would be the fun? But I'm so excited to finally share it with all of you. And, honestly, if you've been paying attention lately, you might have already seen a little hint of what's coming." She paused dramatically. "Maybe on a billboard or two."The comments began moving rapidly enough that she had to squint to keep up. Her
Her anger began to simmer again. She thought of Cyprus standing outside the studio, his grim expression and his refusal to retaliate.Nothing. That was what he had said. They would do nothing and wait for the scandal to blow over. Olivia had disagreed with him then and she disagreed even more now.The comments continued to multiply and Olivia stared at them for several seconds before slowly locking her phone. She set it face down on her thigh. Her unfinished sketch remained in front of her, the ridiculous sleeves staring back at her.While the lies continued to spread, Cyprus had no choice but to carry on as though nothing had changed.Saint Liman still needed a CEO. Meetings still had to be attended, decisions still had to be made, and the company’s various departments could not simply grind to a halt because the internet had decided that Cyprus Blackwell was a monster. There were executives waiting for his approval, lawyers working through the fallout from the leaked designs, invest
Olivia had been staring at the same sketch for nearly ten minutes.The pencil remained suspended between her fingers, hovering above the page as ifsheer proximity to the paper might somehow convince her hand to start moving again. It did not. The half-finished design in front of her looked increasingly ridiculous the longer she studied it, particularly the oversized, puffy sleeves she had drawn with absolutely no conviction.Normally, this was where Olivia found peace.Once Hazel and Poppy were tucked into bed and the apartment had finally fallen quiet, she liked nothing more than settling herself at her desk with her sketchbook open in front of her. Designing was the one part of her life that did not demand anything from her beyond imagination. There were no photographers barking instructions, no deadlines breathing down her neck, no little girls arguing over which cartoon they were going to watch.There was simply pencil meeting paper and an idea slowly becoming something tangible.
For once, Olivia had no immediate comeback. She knew Gabby was perfectly capable. Antonio and Gabby had both been hired because they were good at what they did, and Cyprus had no reason to believe that she was unsafe with them.This was not about whether Gabby could protect her. It was about the fact that he was worried. The realization settled strangely inside her. Olivia looked away. She should have refused, she knew that.It would be the sensible thing to do. Getting into Cyprus’s car again was hardly going to help the rumours that were already spreading online, and she certainly did not need another opportunity for the stalker to see them together.And yet, after everything that had happened lately, there was something unexpectedly reassuring about the thought of Cyprus Blackwell wanting to make sure she got home safely.It was ridiculous, especially considering she had spent years doing everything in her power to keep him away from the very children he was unknowingly growing att
People were expressing sympathy for her. Others were calling for Saint Liman to investigate Cyprus. Some were speculating that the reason Olivia had become the face of the campaign so quickly was because she had slept with him. Her face heated. “This is insane.”There were people dissecting the behind-the-scenes video. The way Cyprus had looked at her. The way she had looked back. The moment he had leaned toward her. The tension between them. Before, it had all been treated like entertaining gossip. A possible office romance. A flirtation. Something for fans to speculate about. Now those same moments had been repackaged as evidence. Olivia felt her stomach twist.Cyprus continued, “If I immediately come out and deny sleeping with you, people will ask why I’m specifically denying that part. If I deny coercing you, they’ll accuse me of trying to get ahead of the story.”Any reaction could be interpreted as guilt. Any silence could be interpreted as guilt.“She’s trying to force you into
Near the monitor, Amara and Sacha stood together, still discussing something on the screen.Olivia approached them. “I'm leaving you two to whatever evil genius plan you're cooking up.”Amara waved distractedly. “Bye, Livienne.”“See you next shoot,” Sacha added.“See you.” Olivia made her way toward the exit.Marcus and Gustav were waiting near the entrance, and she offered them both a smile as Marcus retrieved her phone. “Have a good evening, Ms. Livienne,” Marcus said.Gustav nodded his own goodbye. Olivia stepped outside. The air was cooler than she had expected. She had barely made it a few feet from the studio doors when she noticed someone standing nearby. Olivia stopped at the sight of Cyprus. He stood just a short distance away, looking as if he had been there waiting.He was on a phone call, and whatever he was being told seemed to be doing a remarkable job of ruining his mood.Olivia noticed it before she was even close enough to hear his voice. He stood a few feet away fro







