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Chapter 12

Aвтор: authorchomzy
last update Последнее обновление: 2025-07-21 23:50:09

Jace stood outside the hospital under the harsh glare of the afternoon sun, the envelope clutched tightly in his sweating palm. Inside was a check—Elias's check. The amount scrawled on it could cover months of rent, erase debts, and buy his brother a second chance at life. It felt like blood money. And still, he clung to it like salvation.

He stepped into the hospital, swallowed by its sterile chill. The scent of antiseptic and worry clung to every corner. At the reception, a nurse barely looked up when he gave Noah's name, instead motioning toward the surgical ward.

"They’re prepping him now," she said. "We’re waiting on payment confirmation."

Wordlessly, Jace handed over the envelope. His hands trembled from the unbearable weight of whether he was going to lose his brother, the last family he had left, today.

The nurse took the check and disappeared behind the glass. Jace was left alone with nothing but the echo of his racing heartbeat and the sterile hum of the hospital.

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  • RUTHLESS TEMPTATION    Chapter 100

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  • RUTHLESS TEMPTATION    Chapter 99

    “Hello,” Elias said quietly, trying to sound sober and steady.“Hey,” Jace’s voice came through, softer than he remembered, laced with tiredness. “Mila was missing you, so she wanted to speak to you.”Elias straightened a little, his throat tightening. “Oh... Okay.”There was a soft shuffle, and then a smaller voice filled the line, bright and sweet and fragile.“Hello, Dad!”Elias closed his eyes for a moment, the sound of her voice slicing through him. He had not realized how much he had needed to hear it until now. “Hey, sweetheart,” he said, forcing a smile that no one could see. “How are you doing?”“I’m good,” she chirped. “How are you?”“I’m… I’m good too, sweetheart.” He sniffled, trying to hold it together. The sound must have carried because Mila’s voice softened instantly.“Are you okay, Daddy? Are you crying?”He let out a shaky laugh, brushing his face with the back of his hand. “No, baby, I’m fine. Daddy just has a little cold, that’s all.”There was a pause. Then, in he

  • RUTHLESS TEMPTATION    Chapter 98

    The room smelled like whiskey and rain.Outside the hotel window, the city glowed a restless blur of neon and drizzle but inside, Elias Crane sat in near darkness. Only the amber gleam of a bedside lamp touched his face, cutting across his jaw, his half-buttoned shirt, the faint tremor of his fingers as he poured another drink.The glass clinked against the bottle.He did not even look at it this time.The whiskey burned down his throat, but the pain did not reach far enough. Not compared to the words still echoing in his head.“I regret marrying you.”Jace’s voice was low, cold and final. It kept replaying like a cruel record in Elias’s head. No matter how many times Elias told himself it was not true, that Jace was going through a lot but the words pressed against his ribs each repetition cutting deeper than the last.He laughed bitterly and leaned back against the couch. “You regret it?” he muttered to the empty room. “Then what the hell was it, Jace? The love, was it a performance

  • RUTHLESS TEMPTATION    Chapter 97

    The morning light streamed through the kitchen window, soft and golden, spilling across the marble counters. The smell of toasted bread and scrambled eggs filled the air but the warmth of it all did not reach Jace’s chest. Not really. The house had felt too quiet lately, like every sound echoed just a little too long before fading.He checked the time again, tapping the countertop impatiently. 7:48 a.m. “Mila!” he called up the stairs. “If you don’t come down right now, you’ll be late for school!”His voice bounced off the walls, met with silence for a heartbeat then the quick patter of small feet thundered down the staircase.“I’m here, I’m here!” Mila’s curls bounced as she raced into the kitchen, pink backpack slung over one shoulder. She stopped short when she spotted the man standing near Jace. The man was tall, broad-shouldered, and wearing a pressed black suit.She froze mid-step, eyes narrowing in suspicion.“Daddy,” she whispered, tugging lightly at his shirt. “Who’s that?”

  • RUTHLESS TEMPTATION    Chapter 96

    The morning air was sharp with the scent of rain when Aiden reached the gates of the Crane residence. The mansion rose from the manicured hills like something out of a dream. Cream-white walls with sleek glass windows that reflected the pale sun and security so tight it could choke a man. He swallowed hard. It had been years since he had last seen Jace, but standing here steps away from his world, the memories hit with merciless precision. The laughter that used to fill small apartments. The smell of burnt coffee on lazy mornings. The countless number of times they had made love. Now, that same man lived behind marble walls guarded by men with guns. Aiden adjusted the collar of his borrowed jacket, forcing a neutral expression as one of the security officers approached him. The man was broad-shouldered, sunglasses glinting. “Name?” “Morgan Cole,” he said evenly. The guard glanced down at his clipboard, then gave a curt nod. “You are on the list. Step forward, please.” Aiden obe

  • RUTHLESS TEMPTATION    Chapter 95

    The hum of the library was low and steady. The shuffle of pages, the muted clack of a keyboard and the faint rustle of someone’s coat as they moved past the aisles. Aiden sat hunched in front of an old desktop, the flickering screen casting a pale glow over his face.His coffee had gone cold an hour ago, untouched the thin film on its surface unbroken. His fingers moved mechanically over the mouse as he scrolled, eyes scanning the screen with focus.He had been doing this for weeks, months even, sitting here, lost among the quiet whispers of the library and haunting the digital shadow of two people who had moved on.Elias Crane and Jace Crane: Philanthropic Power Couple Host Annual Charity Gala.Crane Family Welcomes Twin Heirs.Love After Tragedy: The Cranes’ Five-Year Anniversary.Aiden had read every one of them. He had memorized the headlines, the photographs and the lines about their perfect life. And yet, he could not stop.Today, the same article appeared again, the same one ab

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