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Chapter 52
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2025-05-01 21:37:33
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My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 53
That night, as the wind hummed through the trees and the fire flickered gently inside the cradle lantern, Nova sat awake in the rocker, Cassia asleep against her chest. Her tiny breath was rhythmic, warm, anchoring.Liam stood near the doorway, holding a steaming cup of tea in one hand, watching them like he still couldn’t believe they were real.“I’ve built systems,” he whispered. “Lived in cities that never sleep. But nothing’s ever felt as eternal as this.”Nova smiled softly. “That’s because this isn’t time. It’s legacy breathing.”In the first days after the birth, the Turner estate transformed into a sanctuary within the Sanctuary.Everyone contributed in their own way.Grace took morning shifts, reading softly from Cassie’s journals. Zuri kept music playing throughout the day, soft harmonies, lullabies written in languages Cassia didn’t yet understand but already seemed to recognize. Ella painted a mural in Cassia’s nursery: flames blooming into stars, stars falling into books,
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-05-02My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 54
The morning came soft, like breath on glass.Nova sat on the porch with a mug of black coffee, barefoot in Liam’s oversized shirt, watching Cassia sleep in her bassinet beside her. The garden still held the scent of last night, honeysuckle, damp grass, and something electric, like the trace of lightning long after a storm.Liam emerged from the kitchen, hair still damp from his shower, holding two plates of toast and eggs. He placed one in front of her and kissed the crown of her head.“You didn’t sleep,” he murmured.Nova shrugged, eyes still on Cassia. “Some nights, I don’t need to. I just… watch her.”He settled beside her. “You’re not afraid anymore?”She turned to him, slowly. “Of what?”“That you’ll lose this.”She hesitated. Her fingers tightened around the mug. “I think... I’ve just accepted it. Fear doesn’t stop loss. But love, Liam? Love makes the fear quieter.”He reached for her hand across the table. “And if it’s still loud?”She smiled sadly. “Then we dance anyway.”He s
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-05-02My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 55
Nova didn’t know a simple email could undo her.But there it was.Subject: Invitation - Cassian Blackthorne Estate GalaFrom: Blackthorne HoldingsTime: Next Saturday, 7 PMDress Code: FormalPersonal note:Liam, it’s time. Bring her.She reread it five times. Not “Bring your fiancée.” Not “Bring your daughter.”Just “Bring her.”Nova leaned against the kitchen counter, her heart pounding like thunder in her chest. Liam had been in back-to-back meetings all morning. The estate gala? She hadn’t heard that name in over a year.Not since he walked out of her life and into silence.Cassian Blackthorne, Liam’s father. Her father's oldest rival. And once, the man who'd saved Nova's life.A man with secrets.A man who had once held her in his arms and whispered, You deserve more than war, Nova. You deserve peace, even if it costs us everything.Liam came home late. The tie loosened, exhaustion in his eyes. He dropped his keys on the table and kissed her cheek distractedly. “Long day.”She di
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-05-02My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 56
The storm came two nights after the gala.Not the kind with rain.The kind with headlines.Nova woke up to Liam pacing the bedroom, his phone glowing in his hand, his face carved in fury.“What happened?” she asked, sitting up.He didn’t answer. He just turned the screen toward her.It was a news article.From one of those gossip sites that always smelled like scandal.“Blackthorne Scandal Unfolds: Secret Daughter of Rival Family Exposed?”And She’s Raising His Grandchild.Below the headline was a blurry photo of Nova in her red gown at the gala.Beside it: a zoomed-in image of Cassia’s face, asleep in her stroller.“No...” Nova breathed.She grabbed the phone, scanning the rest of the article.They knew. Or they thought they did. The piece was filled with speculation, half-truths, old rumors about her mother's affair, and cruel suggestions about who Cassia’s real father was.The comments were worse.“Gold-digger in a silk dress.”“Did Liam get played by the enemy?”“That baby doesn’t
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-05-02My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 57
Nova didn’t drive straight home.She parked three blocks away from the penthouse and walked the rest of the distance beneath the glow of broken streetlights. The night air was cold, but her skin burned, with secrets, with betrayal, with the fire of a mother’s voice echoing through time.Every word in that letter was tattooed on her soul now.You were born of love.Your fire will burn the lies down someday.But the fire needed fuel. And truth always came at a price.When she slipped back into the penthouse, the lights were dim. Silent.Except for the faint hum of jazz music drifting from the kitchen.She found Liam there, barefoot in sweatpants, leaning against the counter with a glass of whiskey in hand.“I thought you went for a walk,” he said, not looking at her.Nova swallowed. “I did.”“In Central Park? Or through the shadows of your past?”Her heart thudded. “Liam”He turned then, eyes hard, but not cold. Not yet.“You disappeared for two hours. No security. No driver. And you le
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-05-03My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 58
The story broke at dawn.A carefully curated exposé published by an independent outlet, backed by documents, witness testimonies, and an emotionally charged foreword written by Nova under a pen name: The Daughter Who Remembered.Within hours, it had spread like wildfire.By noon, it was trending across every major news outlet.“BLACKTHORNE SCANDAL: Billionaire’s Mistress Institutionalized for Profit?”“Whispers From the Past: Leclerc Heiress Breaks Silence”“Justice or Revenge? Nova Leclerc’s Brave Confession Divides Elites”But inside the penthouse?Silence.Nova stood by the window, phone vibrating with texts, calls, threats, and offers for exclusive interviews. Her inbox was a battlefield. Her name was a headline.But Cassia... Cassia was asleep.Peaceful.Untouched.“She’s still safe,” Liam said from behind her, wrapping an arm around her waist. “You did that.”Nova leaned into him. “Did I do the right thing?”“You told the truth.”“Yeah,” she murmured. “But the truth is rarely ki
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-05-03My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 59
The video haunted Liam all night.He didn’t sleep. He couldn’t.Nova curled beside him, peaceful in the afterglow of a war they thought they’d survived. But Liam knew better now. That video changed everything.It wasn’t just about what Cassian had done.It was about what he let happen.The man Liam had called brother. Mentor. Father figure.And the man who stood still while a woman screamed for her life.At dawn, Liam slipped from bed and walked barefoot to the kitchen.Coffee brewed in silence.His thoughts screamed louder than boiling water.Cassian had made no mention of the video in the boardroom. No explanation. Just silence. A loaded file dropped into Liam’s inbox like a grenade.Was it a confession?A warning?Or a dare?He didn’t know.But one thing was clear: the past wasn’t buried.It was alive. And it was coming for them all.Later that morning, Nova sat across from him at the breakfast bar.Cassia played on a blanket between them, babbling nonsense, chewing on a wooden gir
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-05-04My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 60
Liam didn’t speak right away.He simply wrapped his arms tighter around Nova and waited.The words she had just spoken, She’s alive, hung heavy in the air between them, like ash from a slow-burning fire.They sat together in the quiet of the penthouse living room, the soft hum of the city bleeding through the glass walls. Cassia slept upstairs, oblivious to the shift in her mother’s world.Finally, Nova pulled back.“She was locked away, Liam. For years.”“Where?”“Vaughn Institute. Elira's own facility. She claims she helped her disappear... again.”Liam’s brows furrowed. “Disappeared from what? Who was chasing her?”Nova let out a breath. “My father. And possibly yours.”The weight of that landed hard.Liam stood and ran a hand through his hair, pacing.“Cassian didn’t mention her in the video.”“No. But he knew. I felt it, Liam. The way he looked at me when I asked. The guilt. He knew she wasn’t dead. He just chose not to say it.”Liam stopped pacing. “So what now? Do you believe E
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-05-04
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My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 68
The rain in Rome came like whispers that morning, gentle, deceitful. Just like the letter Liam held in his hand.It had arrived without warning. No return address. Just his name in looping, familiar cursive.Liam.There are truths even Nova doesn’t know.Meet me. Alone. No guards. No Nova. If you care about your daughter’s life, you’ll come.Midnight. Ponte Sisto. Burn this.He read it three times. Then he did as the note said.He burned it.But the words… branded his soul.Liam didn’t tell Nova.Not because he wanted to keep secrets.But because he already had.For years.Before Nova… before Cassia… before the war between families ignited, Liam Ashford had worn a different face. One Nova didn’t know. One the world had forgotten.A name buried in government files.A ghost in enemy camps.A man who had once worked for Irena Volkov.And worse…A man who had loved her.That night, under the pale glow of a Roman bridge, Liam waited.He didn’t flinch when a woman in crimson heels appeared
My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 67
Nova had always believed that darkness came with a warning.A shift in the wind. A crack in the silence. A scent like steel.But this one came in a dress.Red. Silk. High slit.It arrived at their door without a sound, a letter sealed with the Volkov crest.Delivered by no courier.No signature.Just words inked in perfect cursive:"The sins of our fathers are not buried. They bloom.Meet me in Vienna.One last time.Irena"Tatiana burned the envelope."We ignore it," she said flatly, watching the seal melt in the fire.Liam shook his head. "We can't. If she's reaching out, she's not desperate. She's baiting us."Nova said nothing.Not yet.Not until she stared at the flames long enough to realize:Irena wasn’t just calling her back.She was finishing what she'd started.That night, Nova lay in bed staring at the ceiling. Cassia slept in the cradle beside her, her small fingers twitching in dreams.Liam turned on his side. "Don’t go."Nova didn’t answer immediately."If I don’t," she
My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 66
Nova didn't sleep.Not after Vienna. Not after the rooftop.Not after that kiss.Yelena wasn’t just Irena’s hidden daughter. She was something else entirely.An echo of everything Nova had fought to leave behind.And yet… a mirror too.That kiss hadn’t been about desire.It had been a dare.A warning.And maybe… an invitation.Back in Croatia, the estate was locked down tighter than ever.Tatiana reviewed security footage for hours, rewinding and replaying Yelena’s rooftop escape like it held the secrets to the universe.It almost did."She landed on a black Ducati," Tatiana muttered, squinting. "Helmetless. Classic narcissist move."Nova leaned against the wall, arms crossed. “Where’d she go?”"Underground. We traced her to Berlin. Then Paris. Now she’s off-grid again."Nova didn’t flinch. “She’s hunting something.”Tatiana looked up, eyes sharp. “She’s hunting you.”Later, while Liam held Cassia in the nursery, Nova sat alone in the firelit library.The file Tatiana had given her la
My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 65
The private jet touched down just after midnight, its sleek black frame a shadow against the Croatian sky.Nova waited on the runway.No guards. No Liam. No baby monitor in her hand.Just her and the wind.When the jet door opened and the stairs unfolded, the first thing Nova saw was a stiletto heel.Then the shimmer of a silk robe, red like blood, slit like sin.Tatiana Myelov stepped into the moonlight.She hadn’t aged a day.Which, knowing Tatiana, probably meant she’d killed Time and made it beg for mercy.“Darling,” Tatiana purred, sunglasses on despite the dark. “You look like war wrapped in regret.”Nova didn’t smile.“Did you bring the file?”Tatiana held up a slim black case.“I brought everything, darling. Bloodlines. Hidden children. Offshore trusts. The kind of secrets that make governments flinch.”Nova took the case, but her eyes never left the older woman’s face.“Why now?”Tatiana pulled off her glasses.Her eyes were emerald and ruthless.“Because you’re finally ready
My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 64
It had been three days since Cassian Blackthorne was officially dethroned.Three days since Liam had watched Nova walk out of that villa, head high, spine steel, heart untamed.But peace, Liam knew, was never permanent.Especially not when you were holding an empire that used to belong to a monster.And monsters didn’t die quietly.They whispered from the ashes.The Blackthorne estate in Croatia was quiet, too quiet.Liam stood on the balcony outside the study, his shirt half-buttoned, scotch in hand, eyes trained on the horizon like a soldier waiting for the next attack.Below, Nova walked the garden with Cassia in her arms, the toddler giggling as she reached for fireflies.It was one of those moments that shouldn’t be possible after everything they’d endured.But then the phone in his pocket buzzed.A single message from Leila.“We have a breach. Someone leaked the safehouse locations. Internal.”Liam’s heart froze mid-beat.Not because he was surprised.But because betrayal was al
My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 63
The private jet cut through the clouds like a secret no one was supposed to hear.Nova sat by the window, eyes unmoving, her thoughts far away from the Italian sky. Her fingers clutched a worn piece of paper, Hayes' message, hastily scribbled and scanned.“Cassian has involved Irena Volkov. He’s using your daughter as leverage.”She had read it ten times since takeoff, but the words still felt foreign. Cassian. Her father. Willing to use Cassia as a pawn.Beside her, Liam sat in stillness, his jaw set, his silence dangerous.He hadn’t spoken much since they left their villa in Venice, not after Nova showed him the message.When she finally turned to him, his hands were clasped together on his lap, but his knuckles were white.“He crossed the line,” Liam said without looking at her.Nova swallowed. “He erased the line.”“We should’ve killed him when we had the chance.”“We would’ve become him.”“Then maybe that’s what it takes.”She reached over and touched his hand.“No,” she said sof
My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 62
The sea outside Dubrovnik was silent. A turquoise hush that stretched for miles.Cassian Blackthorne stood on the balcony of his marble villa, fingers wrapped around a glass of aged bourbon, his eyes fixed on the water.Not because it calmed him.But because it reminded him of Nova’s eyes.Storm and depth. Memory and consequence.He hated that.He hated her.Not because she defied him.But because she survived him.And because every time she showed her face on the news, every time she spoke in interviews or walked beside Liam Cavendish like she owned the empire she was born to burn, Cassian felt a crack inside the throne he had spent decades building.Now, that crack was a chasm.The world had turned.And he was no longer the king.He was the villain in exile.Hayes approached from behind, stiff in his tailored blazer.“We intercepted another press interview,” he said, tossing a folder on the table beside Cassian. “She’s calling us out indirectly again. Using words like corruption, fa
My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 61
The world began to stir.Not because of the rising sun or the hum of city traffic, but because of a single scheduled post.At exactly 8:00 AM, every major news outlet, financial blog, and independent whistleblower platform received the same encrypted file.Subject line: “The Blackthorne-Leclerc Empire: Truth Unsealed.”Sender: E.V.Within moments, the media exploded.Nova sat beside Liam in their private media room, watching live broadcasts roll across the screen.“we’re seeing hundreds of leaked documents implicating billionaire Cassian Blackthorne and former industrialist Hugo Leclerc in a network of corruption, off-shore laundering, and political manipulation”“Elira Vaughn, the heiress-turned-investigator, has come forward with a full report…”“multiple arrests already underway in Geneva and Abu Dhabi”Liam muted the volume.Cassia giggled from her playpen, oblivious to the storm her parents had helped unleash.Nova didn’t blink.“We just set fire to a kingdom,” she whispered.Lia
My Father's Rival Is My Lover Chapter 60
Liam didn’t speak right away.He simply wrapped his arms tighter around Nova and waited.The words she had just spoken, She’s alive, hung heavy in the air between them, like ash from a slow-burning fire.They sat together in the quiet of the penthouse living room, the soft hum of the city bleeding through the glass walls. Cassia slept upstairs, oblivious to the shift in her mother’s world.Finally, Nova pulled back.“She was locked away, Liam. For years.”“Where?”“Vaughn Institute. Elira's own facility. She claims she helped her disappear... again.”Liam’s brows furrowed. “Disappeared from what? Who was chasing her?”Nova let out a breath. “My father. And possibly yours.”The weight of that landed hard.Liam stood and ran a hand through his hair, pacing.“Cassian didn’t mention her in the video.”“No. But he knew. I felt it, Liam. The way he looked at me when I asked. The guilt. He knew she wasn’t dead. He just chose not to say it.”Liam stopped pacing. “So what now? Do you believe E
