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Chapter 42

Penulis: Ruby
last update Tanggal publikasi: 2026-02-09 22:36:15

Damien POV

The heavy doors of the penthouse felt like a prison I had finally unlocked.

I checked my watch. Past midnight.

Three months.

For three months, I had played a part. I had been the good grandson. The kind husband. I had sat through dull dinners-, nodded at meaningless conversations, and pretended I cared about Sophia’s small, insignificant life,.

Today, the lawyers confirmed it,.

The inheritance was mine.

I didn’t have to pretend anymore,.

I pushed the door open, a dark sense of freedo
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  • Gilded Hearts   Chapter 51

    Sophia POVWednesday-, 10:07 a.m,.I was sitting on the couch with a book balanced on my knees-, halfway through reading and pretending not to think about how strangely quiet the penthouse had been these last two days,.Damien had barely spoken to me,.Not that I minded,.Actually,, I preferred it,.Silence was easier than his words,.My phone suddenly buzzed against the coffee table,.Unknown number.I frowned and picked it up.“Hello?”“Good morning-, Madam,.”I blinked,."This is Ethan., Mr Hayes's assistant,.Immediately-, confusion settled in my chest,.“Ethan?”“Yes.” His usual calm professional tone came through the line. “Mr. Damien Hayes has asked me to inform you that he needs you at Hayes Global within the next hour.”I stared at the phone.“…Me?”“He requested your presence at the office.”I sat up straighter.“No.” I frowned. “No, I think you’re mistaken.”“No, Madam.”“Ethan-,” I said slowly-, “Damien specifically asked me not to come back to the office a few days before

  • Gilded Hearts   Chapter 50

    Damien POVI never wanted this marriage.That was the truth beneath every family dinner, every staged appearance, every signature on every legal document tied to Sophia Bennett’s name.It was never about love.It was obligation.Control.Damage management.At present-, I am the CEO of Hayes Global, and right now I am sitting with my trusted lawyer on a random mid-week afternoon discussing my freedom,.The lawyer adjusted his glasses as he slid the folder across the conference table,.“It won’t happen immediately-, Mr. Hayes,.”I leaned back slightly in my chair-, expression unreadable,.“How long?”“A few days to prepare the formal paperwork.” He opened the file carefully. “Given the nature of the marriage agreement and your family’s visibility, we need discretion.”Discretion.Of course.Everything around the Hayes name required discretion.I glanced toward the glass wall of my office overlooking the city.“And once the papers are ready?” I asked calmly.“We can proceed immediately,

  • Gilded Hearts   Chapter 49

    Sophia POVMy hands were shaking.Not enough to stop working.Just enough for the broken porcelain pieces to click softly against each other as I dropped them into the trash bin one by one,.The kitchen felt too bright after the terrace,.Too quiet.But not quiet enough to drown out the humiliation replaying inside my head.I shut my eyes briefly.God.I gripped the edge of the counter and inhaled slowly-, forcing myself to focus,.I bent to throw the broken shard when the kitchen door slammed open hard enough to make me flinch,.Damien walked in as the air shifted instantly,.His expression was terrifyingly calm,.His jacket was gone now, sleeves rolled up slightly-, jaw tight enough to cut glass,. He stepped into the kitchen slowly-, shutting the door behind him,.The click of the lock echoed,.I straightened immediately.“I didn’t know she had an allergy-,” I said before he could speak,. “You never told me—”“You think this is about mushrooms?”His voice was low.Deadly quiet.I fr

  • Gilded Hearts   Chapter 48

    Sophia’s POVIt's already been a week, since I started living like this.Like a puppet A week doesn’t sound like much until you live through it like this.By Friday, I didn’t wait for instructions anymore. I anticipated them.That evening, I was in the kitchen-, slicing vegetables with precise-, mechanical movements when I heard his footsteps behind me,. I didn’t turn immediately,. I waited, because that’s what he preferred,.“Tomorrow.” Damien's voice cut through the quiet.I glanced over my shoulder. “Tomorrow… what?”“There’s a party.”I turned fully this time, setting the knife down. “Here?”“Yes.”“How many people?”“Five. Maybe ten.”“Friends?” I asked“Some friends and some business.” Damien replied.“What exactly do you want me to handle?” I wiped my hands on a towel,. He leaned against the doorway-, his posture relaxed-, but his gaze steady and sharp,. “Everything,.” “Be specific.” I held his eyes.A faint pause. Then, “The terrace. Set it up.”“Seating arrangement?”“Yes.

  • Gilded Hearts   Chapter 47

    Sophia POVI don’t think I actually slept,.Not properly.It was the kind of night where your body gives up before your mind does,. Every time I drifted-, something dragged me back—the cold floor beneath me-, the stiffness in my spine, or worse,.His voice.It didn’t echo loudly.It lingered.Morning came quietly,.A thin strip of light slipped through the curtains and stretched across the room—stopping just short of where I lay on the floor,.Of course it did,.I stared at the ceiling for a few seconds before forcing myself to move,. My muscles protested immediately-, a dull ache settling deep into my back and shoulders,.I sat up slowly-, inhaling through it,.I stood, adjusting my clothes, smoothing out creases that didn’t really matter,. The room still carried the silence of last night,.Damien was on the bed,.Asleep.Unbothered.For a moment, I watched him.Not with anger.With distance.Then I looked away.I picked up the pillow he had thrown at me,. It felt heavier now—not phy

  • Gilded Hearts   Chapter 46

    Sophia POVBy the time the dishes were washed and the kitchen was finally quiet again-, the apartment had settled into a heavy silence,.The city lights outside the glass walls flickered against the dark marble floors-, stretching long reflections across the living room,.I dried my hands slowly-, hanging the towel back in its place,.My body felt exhausted-, but my mind refused to quiet down,.Dinner.The table.His words.You’re staff in this house now.The sentence replayed in my head like something stuck on repeat.I inhaled slowly.Fine.If that was the role he had decided to force on me, then I would survive it. Just long enough to find something else,. Just long enough to walk away from this place without needing anything from him,.I turned off the kitchen lights and walked toward the hallway,.The bedroom door stood slightly open,.For two months, that room had been ours.Not perfect. Not easy.But… real.Apparently I had imagined most of it.I pushed the door open,.The room

  • Gilded Hearts   Chapter 21

    Sophia POVI had not expected this night to end with dinner with Edward Hayes.But there I was, sitting opposite him in a quiet, graceful restaurant out of the bustle of the city. It was not lavish in the manner in which riches tend to proclaim themselves--no chandeliers and show-off opulence. Only

  • Gilded Hearts   Chapter 20

    Sophia POVThe hospital room was no longer a place of emergency,.It was still reeking of disinfectant,. Machines continued to hum in the background. Nurses still came and went. But the fear--that sharp, choking fear which had been in my chest for weeks, had been loosened.Mom was better.Not heal

  • Gilded Hearts   Chapter 19

    Damien POVThe summons came without explanation.The voice of Claire on the phone was brief and official. Mr. Hayes, your grandfather wishes the entire family at the manor to-night. Entire family.That in itself was sufficient to make me nervous. Edward Hayes did not assemble us unless something

  • Gilded Hearts   Chapter 18

    Sophia POVTwo days the hours blended together. I sat in hospital corridors., with the sweet smell of medicine, and heard the beep of machines, that monitored the weak heart of my mother. I could hardly sleep. My brother barely talked. It was all as though by a thin thread. Today morning, when

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