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Chapter Two Hundred and Fifty-Eight
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2025-11-19 10:25:48
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No Way to Win Me Back Chapter Two Hundred and Seventy-Five
Celeste’s POVRyan and I stood side by side in the private lounge I sometimes used for investor meetings.Today, it felt too polished.Leander Voss lounged on the sofa like a man born in satin, one ankle crossed over the other, a half-smile playing lazily at his mouth.I’d expected someone colder. Someone with the calculated sterility of corporate secrecy.Instead, he radiated charm, the dangerous, unhurried kind that didn’t need to posture.“Thank you for meeting us on such short notice,” Ryan said, keeping his tone respectful but steady. There was an edge beneath it, quiet but unmistakable.Voss lifted his gaze, eyes sharp despite the relaxed posture. “When a Crown Luxe heir asks for a conversation, I assume it’s never about small talk.”I resisted the urge to swallow. Ryan had told him nothing about why we needed this meeting. We agreed to read him first.“It’s about the Avalon Club,” I said.His smile didn’t falter, but it stopped moving.“That’s quite a loaded topic for a Tuesday,
No Way to Win Me Back Chapter Two Hundred and Seventy-Four
Celeste’s POVBy the time I crossed the street toward the art studio, the sun was already dipping toward evening, painting the buildings in soft ambRosemary Atelier’s windows glowed across from it, the only place where life made sense lately, despite the chaos knotted beneath everything.I spotted Molly first through the glass wall, sitting cross-legged on the floor, her tiny hands smudged with pastels.Her teacher knelt beside her, praising something she’d blended into a soft gradient.It made my chest warm, seeing her comfortable here.I was about to step inside when someone else walked out of the building.Gideon.He didn’t see me. His head was down, phone in one hand, keys in the other.He walked briskly toward a car parked down the street.I froze.Because the car, sleek black, tinted windows, polished almost aggressively, was familiar.Not intimately. But familiar in the way a silhouette in the dark feels familiar before your mind catches up.A luxury model. High-end. The kind o
No Way to Win Me Back Chapter Two Hundred and Seventy-Three
Celeste’s POVThe lighting crew kept shifting the reflector panels, but for once, Grace and I didn’t snap at each other over the angles or the poses.It was… peaceful.Or at least the closest thing we’d had to peace since the Paraiba robbery.The feature was for Gilded Muse Magazine, one of the top jewelry publications in the country.They wanted a joint interview and a photoshoot titled The Women Behind Rosemary Atelier. A flattering title. A flattering opportunity. And despite everything, Grace and I had agreed.The camera clicked.Grace leaned her head lightly against mine.We both held practiced smiles.“You two have such natural synergy,” the photographer said.Grace laughed, genuinely, and for a second I let myself believe we were fine.Or getting there.Though something in our relationship had broken and I know it would take a long while before it can go back to the way it had been.When the photos wrapped, we walked down the hall to the media room.The lights were softer there,
No Way to Win Me Back Chapter Two Hundred and Seventy-Two
Ryan’s POVThe client picked the restaurant, some polished corner spot in Midtown where everything smelled like roasted hazelnuts and old money.He’d been buying from Crown Luxe for years, but this was the first time he’d specifically asked for me.Mr. Hargrove was the sort of man who wore understated wealth. The kind of clientele my father worshipped.I didn’t.But I respected their taste, and more importantly, they respected mine.“You’ve replaced your father quite fast,” Mr. Hargrove murmured as we nursed out drinks.“Replace? It’s just a temporary takeover. I’ll be stepping away the moment he’s back on his feet. Which can be any day now. He’s getting restless having to stay inside his estate.”I shook my head, remembering how he had shouted at me to let him out of the house the last time I’d gone to visit.“He must’ve been in quite a shock. With everything that came out about Steven,” Mr. Hargrove shook his head, “I don’t know about you, but I smell foul play.”I didn’t say anythin
No Way to Win Me Back Chapter Two Hundred and Seventy-One
Celeste’s POVI was at the rooftop of Rosemary Atelier, finding solace after a long day.The conversation with Officer Raymond was still fresh in my mind, and what followed afterwards.It was all very confusing.I stood near the railing, fingers frozen around my phone, waiting.I had texted Ryan to meet me here a few minutes ago and sure enough, I heard footsteps.Ryan stepped out from the stairwell, still in his work clothes, hair slightly disheveled from a long day. His jade-green eyes softened immediately when he saw me.“Hey,” he said quietly.My chest tightened. “Hi.”For a moment, neither of us moved.It had only been a few days since the submission, an exhausting, frantic blur of carving, designing, running, panicking, but it felt like weeks.“You’re tired,” I said, finally stepping closer. “You look… it’s been rough, hasn’t it?”He exhaled, scrubbing a hand over his face. “Yeah. Crown Luxe hasn’t been… calm.”Ryan had become increasingly busy with Crown Luxe and I wondered what
No Way to Win Me Back Chapter Two Hundred and Seventy
Celeste’s POVFor the first time in three days, Rosemary Atelier was quiet.The kind of silence that settles only after surviving a storm.My body still carried the echo of the sleepless nights Ryan and I had poured into the Paraiba redesign.My fingers were raw from sanding metal, my head full of gemstones and sketches, but the moment my office door closed behind me, a very different weight settled over me.The Avalon Club list.I’d almost forgotten it existed.Almost.I opened my desk drawer, reached beneath the false bottom, and pulled out the envelope Officer Raymond had given me weeks ago.I’d locked it away the same night I caught Gideon trying to look at it, and the next day Grace had yelled at me for it, accusing me of paranoia, of letting past traumas distort my trust.We’d barely spoken since. The robbery had forced a temporary truce, but truce isn’t trust.It’s just a pause before the next battle.I slid the paper out and stared at the names.All these people who had worked
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