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Chapter 140: Awkward Bonding

Author: Evve
last update publish date: 2026-01-26 05:57:32

The "supervised visit" at the museum had been a test. Liam had passed, but he had cheated. Or rather, Aurora had cheated for him.

Now, however, there were no clipboards. No Guardians.

There was just Saturday morning, a Central Park playground, and a silence that was louder than the screaming children around them.

This was their first "unsupervised" visit. Legally, Mrs. Higgins had signed off on "monitored interaction"—which meant Aurora had to be there, but she didn't have to hover. She cou
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  • Runaway Heiress: The Billionaire’s Forgotten Bride   CHAPTER 459: THE PILOT

    The boardroom of Vale-Cross Global had witnessed mergers, hostile takeovers, and the near-collapse of a dynasty. It had absorbed the shouts of angry men and the silence of terrified ones.Today, it was quiet. But it was a focused, electric quiet.Aurora stood at the head of the table. She wasn't wearing the armor of the early days—the severe chignons and the black suits. She wore a cream silk blouse and trousers that moved with her. She didn't need armor anymore. She was the structure itself.She clicked the remote.On the screen, the rendering of the resin vase appeared. It rotated slowly, catching the virtual light."The Atelier," Aurora said. Her voice was steady, pitched for the acoustics of the room. "A micro-division focused on artisanal home goods. Limited run. High margin. Sustainable materials sourced exclusively from our construction waste."She looked around the table.Julian Thorne was there, older now, his hair completely white, but his eyes still sharp. Elena sat next to

  • Runaway Heiress: The Billionaire’s Forgotten Bride   CHAPTER 458: HOPE'S PROPOSAL

    The dining room table was no longer a place for meals. It was a stage.Hope stood at the head of the table. She was fourteen years old. She wore a black turtleneck and wide-leg trousers—an outfit she had borrowed from Sophia’s "minimalist archive." It was slightly too big in the shoulders, but she liked the weight of it. It felt like armor.She adjusted the lighting. The dimmer switch was set to fifty percent. The afternoon sun was filtered through the sheer drapes, creating a soft, diffuse glow that hit the center of the table perfectly.On the mahogany surface, there were no plates. There were three objects.A vase made of poured resin and reclaimed glass.A swatch of fabric that looked like a storm cloud woven into wool.A sketchbook, closed."They're here," Ethan whispered.He was sitting in the corner, acting as her technical support (he was running the projector she didn't plan to use, just in case). He looked up from his tablet. "Do you want me to announce them?""No," Hope sai

  • Runaway Heiress: The Billionaire’s Forgotten Bride   CHAPTER 457: THE MENTOR AND THE STUDENT

    The view from the corner office of Vale-Cross Global hadn't changed in ten years, but the man looking at it had.Liam Cross stood at the window, nursing a cup of tea. He drank less coffee these days. Dr. Hale had been right about the cortisol; survival was a marathon, not a sprint.Behind him, at the smaller desk usually reserved for junior associates, sat Ethan.Ethan was sixteen now. He had grown into his height, filling out the lanky frame with the lean muscle of a runner. He wore a button-down shirt that fit him properly, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, revealing wrists that looked capable.He was typing. Fast. The sound of the mechanical keyboard was a rapid-fire staccato in the quiet room."You're typing like you're angry at the code," Liam observed, turning around."I'm not angry," Ethan said, not looking up. "I'm optimizing. The legacy database for the foundation housing grants is a mess. It's built on spaghetti code from 2015. If I don't untangle it, the scholarship disburse

  • Runaway Heiress: The Billionaire’s Forgotten Bride   CHAPTER 456: THE INTERN

    The code on the monitor wasn't just text. It was a language, and right now, it was screaming.Ethan Vale-Cross sat in the bullpen of the AVA-Cross Technology Division on the twelfth floor. He was sixteen years old. He was wearing a hoodie he had bought at a thrift store in Brooklyn because he didn't want anyone to know his sneakers cost four hundred dollars. He had an ID badge clipped to his lanyard that simply said E. Cross - Summer Intern.Most people assumed he was a nephew. Or a cousin. Or a charity case.They didn't know he was the heir.And Ethan intended to keep it that way."It's a memory leak," said the Senior Engineer, a man named Patterson who had been sweating through his shirt since 9:00 AM. "It's in the kernel. We have to scrap the update.""We can't scrap it," another engineer argued. "The Tokyo integration goes live in forty-eight hours. If the logistics platform crashes, we lose real-time tracking on half the fleet."Ethan didn't speak. He adjusted his noise-canceling

  • Runaway Heiress: The Billionaire’s Forgotten Bride   CHAPTER 455: LILY

    The hospital room was different this time. It wasn't the sterile, high-tech fortress of the NICU, nor the tense waiting room of surgery.It was just a room. A room with beige walls and a window overlooking the same skyline that had witnessed every tragedy and triumph of the Cross family.But inside the room, there was only triumph.Marcus Cross sat on the edge of the bed. He was wearing a t-shirt that said Vale-Cross Foundation Construction Crew, covered in faint traces of sawdust because he had come straight from the site when Sophia called. His boots were on the floor. His hands—large, scarred, calloused—were wrapped around Sophia’s."You okay?" he asked. His voice was rougher than usual.Sophia leaned back against the pillows. She looked exhausted, her hair damp with sweat, her face pale. But her eyes were bright. Triumphant."I am perfect," she whispered. "Did you see her? Did you see the lungs on her?""I heard her," Marcus said. "I think they heard her in Jersey."He looked at t

  • Runaway Heiress: The Billionaire’s Forgotten Bride   CHAPTER 454: GRACE ARRIVES

    The room didn't smell like iodine or panic. It smelled of lavender oil (Emma’s diffuser) and crushed ice.Aurora sat on a birthing ball beside the hospital bed, her hand resting on Emma’s knee. The lights were dimmed. A playlist of acoustic folk music—Emma’s choice—drifted from a speaker in the corner.It was the most boring, beautiful scene Aurora had ever witnessed."You're doing amazing," Aurora whispered.Emma opened her eyes. She was sweating, her hair plastered to her temples, riding the crest of a contraction that had started a minute ago. She gripped the bedrails, her knuckles white, breathing through the pain with a rhythmic, guttural sound."It’s... intense," Emma gasped as the wave receded. She slumped back against the pillows."You're at eight centimeters," the nurse said, checking the monitor. "Almost there."Aurora looked at Liam.He was standing on the other side of the bed, holding a cup of ice chips. He looked calm. His shoulders were relaxed. He wasn't wearing a bunn

  • Runaway Heiress: The Billionaire’s Forgotten Bride   Chapter 135: Adrian's Loyalty

    The Cross Empire tower, usually a bastion of ruthless, unified ambition, was fracturing. It wasn't visible from the street. The glass facade was as impenetrable as ever. But inside, on the executive floors, the fault lines were widening. Adrian Cross sat in his office, the door closed. He was th

    last updateLast Updated : 2026-03-26

  • Runaway Heiress: The Billionaire’s Forgotten Bride   Chapter 132: The Legal Battle

    The engagement announcement had been a shield, but the legal system was a battering ram. It was Monday morning. The "romantic" headlines were still fresh, but in the sterile, mahogany-paneled conference room of Sterling & Partners, romance was not on the agenda. Aurora sat on one side of the mas

    last updateLast Updated : 2026-03-26

  • Runaway Heiress: The Billionaire’s Forgotten Bride   Chapter 133: Henry's Intervention

    The Vale family lawyers were a different breed than the "sharks" Liam employed or the "wolves" who worked for the state. They were quieter. Slower. They were the kind of men who wore three-piece suits in July and spoke in whispers that carried more weight than a shout. They arrived at the penthou

    last updateLast Updated : 2026-03-26

  • Runaway Heiress: The Billionaire’s Forgotten Bride   Chapter 126: Aurora's Defiance

    The office of Maison AVA was a kingdom without a queen. The staff walked on eggshells. The seamstresses whispered in corners. The "Secret Heir" scandal, which had briefly been a victory, was now a looming storm cloud. Aurora sat in her office, staring at the documents Miller had drafted. Transf

    last updateLast Updated : 2026-03-26
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