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Chapter Sixteen: Rising
publish date:
2026-04-19 04:43:08
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Love, Lies, and a Billionaire's Regret 147: The last stance
PENELOPE The wedding came as a surprise, as it was never meant to be an event.We booked no venue months in advance. We debated no guest list for weeks. We ordered no flowers from somewhere that required notice.It happened on a Saturday, because that was the Saturday Adrian came back from Geneva, "It will happen today, if you want," he said.I said yes before he finished the sentence.Mrs. Park cried when I called her. She has watched as all this resolve and had watched it happen from too close to pretend she wasn't invested.She arrived within forty minutes, carrying Nora's best dress and wearing her own good coat. She has already done a lot, and nobody was going to tell her otherwise.I asked Jonathan to come, and he did. He didn't act surprised, he has finally learnt to let things slide.He wore the same dark coat he'd had on the night Seraphina collapsed at the hospital. He walked into the registry office and sat in the front row beside Mrs. Park.Seraphina sat beside him.They
Love, Lies, and a Billionaire's Regret 146: Before the End
PENELOPE Jonathan swam at the coast for the second time, where he had spent months standing at the water's edge, trying so hard to overcome his fear of water. I was there when he was showing me. Then he walked in, still in his usual tuxedo, and the water reached up to his knees. He stopped, and I could see how heavily he was panting. Then he took off his outfit, leaving nothing on but his shorts. I could see how shaky his legs were, and it made me wonder whether it was from the cold water or from fear. He went further this time; his waist went deep, and his legs were completely buried by the water. He stopped again and turned, and at this point, he was indecisive about whether he should submerge himself or not. Then he pushed forward, went under, came up, and started swimming. He swam for about twenty metres, then swam back, and walked out to stand on the pebbles. He was soaked through, and his clothes were clinging to his skin."I wish I could go back to when all thi
Love, Lies, and a Billionaire's Regret 145: It Almost Broke It
PENELOPE Six weeks after the gallery closed, Adrian's mother came to London to stay and not the casual visiting she does.She had sold the Hertfordshire property, the workshop, the garden that would have been extraordinary in summer.She arrived at my door on a Saturday morning with two suitcases and the look of a woman who had made a decision and was standing inside it now, daring anyone to question her.I had known she was coming. Adrian had told me. What I hadn't known was that she was bringing something with her...The table.It came in a van and two men carried it up the stairs. They set it down in my kitchen."He said you wanted it here." She lamented."I did. I wanted a table." i responded.She nodded. "It is made from good wood. It'll last.""So will I."She almost smiled but held it back which was unusual for her appearance.Adrian came up behind the men and stood in the doorway. He looked at his mother, then at the table. "It fits properly.""It does. Look at how beautiful t
Love, Lies, and a Billionaire's Regret 144: She didn't expect that
PENELOPE Three weeks later, the Hartwell situation resolved faster than Tessa had predicted because Jonathan walked into Hartwell Capital's offices on a Tuesday morning without an appointment and bought their entire position in my company outright as a hostile acquisition of their stake.He then transferred the shares to Nora, in trust, for when she was old enough to decide what to do with them.Tessa called while I was in the Clerkenwell office, staring at the documentation."He can do this?" I asked excitedly."He already did it," she said. "The shares aren't his to give you. They are Nora's. He is her father, he can put assets in trust for her without your approval."I set the document down and looked at the wall, at the print of Velour I had hung there...one of the smaller projections from the gallery show, framed simply."He protected your company's ownership structure," Tessa said. "No external party can make a claim through those shares until Nora decides.""Which is never. Sh
Love, Lies, and a Billionaire's Regret 143: The Declaration
PENELOPE Tessa called later on. "It's weak," she said. "The clause is standard, but their application of it is a stretch. Seraphina's introduction was informal, never documented as a formal referral, and Hartwell has no direct contractual relationship with your company. We'll fight for this. But it takes three months minimum." "I don't have three months," I said. "Why not?" "Because I'm ending this today." I stayed. "Ending what?" "All of it." I hung up, got dressed, left Nora at Mrs Park's care and drove to Seraphina's building. She answered the door in pyjamas and looked at my face before stepping back to let me in. Her flat was half-packed with boxes everywhere, the walls already stripped. She was moving out even though she has already sold the house. " About Hartwell Capital," I started. She looked at me, and something moved through her face that wasn't quite guilt. It was more like watching a buried thing surface exactly where she had buried it. Then she said. "I introd
Love, Lies, and a Billionaire's Regret 142: The Woman With the Camera
PENELOPE I went downstairs. The woman was still there when I came out. She saw me coming and didn't run, which told me she was professional and was willing to confront me. "Who hired you?" I asked"Ms. Westfield. I can explain...""Who hired you?" I asked again.She lowered the camera down. "I'm not able to...""You've been standing outside my building," I said, "photographing my window. My daughter is upstairs. Tell me who hired you, or I'll call the police right now and you can explain the camera to them."She looked at me, deciding if she would reveal too much or not. "Hartwell Capital."I stared at her. "The investment firm?""Yes." she responded."They withdrew their claim against my company months ago." I muttered "They withdrew the legal claim," she said. "They retained a separate interest in the situation.""What interest?"She reached into her bag, pulled out an envelope, and handed it to me. I opened it. Inside was a printed document. I read the first paragraph, then the
Love, Lies, and a Billionaire's Regret 95: The New Address
PENELOPE "Send me the address," I said. "Right now.""Penelope...""Seraphina." My voice had gone past fear into a flatter tone and it sounded more dangerous. "Send me the address or I will call the police this second."She sent the address after much hesitation."Don't bring the police," Seraphin
Love, Lies, and a Billionaire's Regret Chapter Sixty-One: Mrs Park statement
PENELOPE "You don't have to sit here." Mrs. Park said this from her hospital bed without opening her eyes. She had an uncanny ability to sense when someone was in the room. "Nora needs you home." "Nora is with Adrian. She's fine." I said There was a short silence "Adrian?" she said. The
Love, Lies, and a Billionaire's Regret Chapter Fifty-Nine: Coffee date with Adrian
Adrian's POVTHE NEXT MORNING "You've been awake since four," Penelope stated.She sat across from me in a corner booth of the coffee shop two streets from her apartment. It was nine in the morning. Nora lay in the pram beside her, bundled against the November chill, staring at the ceiling with th
Love, Lies, and a Billionaire's Regret Chapter Fifty-Seven: Margaret knows
JONATHAN *** AT A FAMILY DINNER "She has your grandfather's brow." Margaret said this the moment I placed Nora on the large dining room table next to the bread basket, which wasn’t the safest spot, so I quickly moved her to my lap. "She has her own brow," I replied. "All the Blackwood men h
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