LOGINChapter 100🥳 Backstage at the Grand Palais was a special kind of organized insanity. Racks of silk, leather, and tailored wool were getting wheeled past us at breakneck speed by manic assistants wearing all black and wireless headsets. The sharp smell of hairspray, expensive perfume, and hot lighting fixtures hung thick in the air, mixed with the heavy bass of the pre-show soundcheck vibrating through the wooden floorboards under my heels. Honestly, if you took away the flashing cameras and the thousand-dollar clothes, it wasn't all that different from a corporate trading floor. Just prettier people and significantly better lighting. "Head up, sweetheart," Alex murmured beside me, his hand settling naturally at the small of my back. "The photographers near the media wall have been tracking us since we stepped out of the SUV." "I am posing, Alex," I muttered through a polished, perfectly camera-ready smile, keeping my eyes fixed ahead as a wave of flashbulbs went off to o
Chapter 100🥳 Backstage at the Grand Palais was a special kind of organized insanity. Racks of silk, leather, and tailored wool were getting wheeled past us at breakneck speed by manic assistants wearing all black and wireless headsets. The sharp smell of hairspray, expensive perfume, and hot lighting fixtures hung thick in the air, mixed with the heavy bass of the pre-show soundcheck vibrating through the wooden floorboards under my heels. Honestly, if you took away the flashing cameras and the thousand-dollar clothes, it wasn't all that different from a corporate trading floor. Just prettier people and significantly better lighting. "Head up, sweetheart," Alex murmured beside me, his hand settling naturally at the small of my back. "The photographers near the media wall have been tracking us since we stepped out of the SUV." "I am posing, Alex," I muttered through a polished, perfectly camera-ready smile, keeping my eyes fixed ahead as a wave of flashbulbs went off to our lef
Chapter 100🥳Backstage at the Grand Palais was a special kind of organized insanity.Racks of silk, leather, and tailored wool were getting wheeled past us at breakneck speed by manic assistants wearing all black and wireless headsets. The sharp smell of hairspray, expensive perfume, and hot lighting fixtures hung thick in the air, mixed with the heavy bass of the pre-show soundcheck vibrating through the wooden floorboards under my heels.Honestly, if you took away the flashing cameras and the thousand-dollar clothes, it wasn't all that different from a corporate trading floor. Just prettier people and significantly better lighting."Head up, sweetheart," Alex murmured beside me, his hand settling naturally at the small of my back. "The photographers near the media wall have been tracking us since we stepped out of the SUV.""I am posing, Alex," I muttered through a polished, perfectly camera-ready smile, keeping my eyes fixed ahead as a wave of flashbulbs went off to our left. "I'
Chapter 101Backstage at the Grand Palais was a special kind of organized insanity.Racks of silk, leather, and tailored wool were getting wheeled past us at breakneck speed by manic assistants wearing all black and wireless headsets. The sharp smell of hairspray, expensive perfume, and hot lighting fixtures hung thick in the air, mixed with the heavy bass of the pre-show soundcheck vibrating through the wooden floorboards under my heels.Honestly, if you took away the flashing cameras and the thousand-dollar clothes, it wasn't all that different from a corporate trading floor. Just prettier people and significantly better lighting."Head up, sweetheart," Alex murmured beside me, his hand settling naturally at the small of my back. "The photographers near the media wall have been tracking us since we stepped out of the SUV.""I am posing, Alex," I muttered through a polished, perfectly camera-ready smile, keeping my eyes fixed ahead as a wave of flashbulbs went off to our left. "I've
Chapter 99 The digitized static hissed softly in my ear, cold and empty against the quiet warmth of my living room. Beside me, Alex didn't move an inch. His shoulders were set, his face completely unreadable, watching every tiny shift in my expression as I stood there holding the phone. I kept the receiver pressed so hard against my ear my knuckles were turning white. My whole body was braced for impact, expecting Kade to hit me with a razor-sharp threat or some arrogant corporate demand. That was the Kade I knew. That was the man I’d trained myself to handle. So when he let out a long, ragged sigh that sounded straight-up exhausted, my brain almost didn't know what to do with it. "Aurora... please," he said. His voice wasn't sharp at all. It was low, quiet, and stripped of that untouchable, high-and-mighty tone he always wore like armor. "Just listen to me for two minutes. Don't hang up. Just... listen." My thumb hovered over the red button on the screen, trembling. Every single
Chapter 99The digitized static hissed softly in my ear, cold and empty against the quiet warmth of my living room. Beside me, Alex didn't move an inch. His shoulders were set, his face completely unreadable, watching every tiny shift in my expression as I stood there holding the phone.I kept the receiver pressed so hard against my ear my knuckles were turning white. My whole body was braced for impact, expecting Kade to hit me with a razor-sharp threat or some arrogant corporate demand. That was the Kade I knew. That was the man I’d trained myself to handle.So when he let out a long, ragged sigh that sounded straight-up exhausted, my brain almost didn't know what to do with it."Aurora... please," he said. His voice wasn't sharp at all. It was low, quiet, and stripped of that untouchable, high-and-mighty tone he always wore like armor. "Just listen to me for two minutes. Don't hang up. Just... listen."My thumb hovered over the red button on the screen, trembling. Every single surv







